So after the hunt when I caught three wild pigs(two by chasing after them)… first time ever… I called Ori because last year we shaved one. Ori is used to having no hair so again I asked for his advice. 🙂
I know that the Hmong people use hot water and a knife to shave the farmed pigs, and I know they are a hunting people too. But on these wild boars, especially the large ones, the hair is very coarse to help protect them from the ticks and also from fights. But with the small ones you can shave them like this, and then apply boiling water and a knife to finish the job. I don’t like using torches because it smells like…burnt wild boar hair.
So last year onward to the food, the pig was brined and roasted flat in the oven, with a little stock on the bottom. Higher heat at the beginning to crisp the skin and then slow roasted in the oven for 3.5 hours and what the stock did was make the meat moist, but the top skin crispy. The meat would continue to hydrate as the stock evaporated into the body. A delicious combination of steam/roast. When it was done, I gave him the honors of breaking in my brand new Moritaka Gyuto but I told him use a cleaver instead. The wild boar was so beautiful and delicate he thought the bones were extremely soft. But they were hard enough to chip and agh… I was angry.
And then we ate the pig and forgot everything. I forgot how to do 2+2 or what my name was. Forgot about life’s worries and that the opening of Bestia was still a few months away. We were all in a trance at the deliciousness of this pig.
and…no disrespect to the farmed suckling pigs, but this wild suckling pig blows it out of the water 20 fold.
So this time around I picked up the professional hair clippers from him and he was so excited for me that I got these top quality pigs again – he said, “Make sure you sanitize it after, I want to use it on my head” 😛
Wild Suckling pig – Memorial Day epic barbecue this weekend…Pursuit of Food style.
Now, this is all about perspective, isn’t it? Imagine they were sleeping. Oh so cute. Now, Imagine they were cooked, wow looks so tasty. Now, imagine they were rats, Oh i’m glad you killed those pests. Well, Wild boars are considered pests. And they happen to do thousands of dollars of crop damage and reproduce 4x a year. They won’t be eradicated, but the Department of Fish and Wildlife has issued me a special permit, so I guess now I’m a professional Hunter. 🙂 Even though many consider them “pests,” they are extremely tasty, and as I mentioned before, I will honor you wild pig.