Can you just skin a hog instead of scalding & scraping ?

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We're considering killing one of the hogs but we don't want to be bothered with scalding, scraping & shaving. Can't we just skin him? (We've raised hogs before but always had someone else butcher them.)

-- biker (y2kbiker@hotmail.com), December 28, 1999

Answers

biker; If you don't scald,scrape and shave you will have no skin to protect the hams and other meat parts that need the skin for covering. Make sure you shot the hog in the head with 22 long rifle, 22 shorts won't do it! And shoot just above the eyes in the forehead ! Hogs do have sometimes have a double skull,I'm serious ! And have a good long knife to cut the large vein going to the heart,so you can drain the blood out first, then save it so you can make blood saugage,very tasty when cured... Sure hope you plan to hang the hog up when cutting the meat parts. You'll have problems if you don't,it aint like killing a deer! So hang that hog...

-- Furie (furieart@dnet.net), December 28, 1999.

Sure, you can skin the hog. And the hams will be okay. Even our local butcher skins his hogs. I've always skinned hogs that I have butchered. One technique I haven't tried is skinning them in strips from tail to head, instead of skinning like a rabbit. Be sure he's hung up with strong equipment.

-- (hog@skinner.com), December 28, 1999.

Skinning a hog is a lot of work and you will lose the protection the skin affords, but you can do it. But why bother scalding and scraping. Get a torch and flame the hairs off. That's what we did when I was a kid helping my uncle slaughter a pig. We just used a blow torch but any propane torch would work fine and fast.

-- Tom flook (tflook@compuserve.com), December 28, 1999.

Yes, you can skin a hog--thats how we do it. It takes time because you don't want to take all the fat off. If you leave the fat on, the hams will be fine for curing and smoking. We always chill the carcass for a day or two (neighbor has a walk-in cooler)-- this firms up the meat and makes it easier to cut on the table. If you don't have a bandsaw, just bone it out like you would a deer. Not difficult at all.

-- Sam Mcgee (weissacre@gwtc.net), December 28, 1999.

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