Let me start this post by saying that I did not grow up in a hunting family. Everything I know about hunting I have learned from forums like this, off YouTube, or talking to other hunters. My goal is to one day be able to introduce my son (who is currently 3 yrs old) to hunting when he's older and teach him the right way to do things.

Anyways, I got a bow this past fall and am going to start getting after some hogs once duck season is over. Two questions:

1) Are hogs worth taking to the processor or are there only certain cuts worth eating?

2) What's the best way to hunt hogs on public land? Spot and stalk, tree stand, pop-up blind, etc.?

Thanks in advance for the feedback, it helps more than you know!

You can get a decent electric meat grinder from Academy for about 100$. You can blend your own ground hog with different spices, meat blends, etc that would make for another good father/son activity. It will quickly pay for itself vs taking hogs to a processor where they will probably be doing basically the same thing for much more money.

I don't eat hogs that I kill, except for the occasional backstraps that I'll cut out. So, I don't have any experience with processors on them. But, I do know some processors won't even deal with hogs. Personally, I think wild boar is tough and I'd rather eat pork from the butcher counter. Unlike expensive steak, I can get center cut pork chops for $3- $4 per pound, so the cost to process a wild boar outweighs the cost to buy a better testing farmed pig.

I agree with Gringo on this. I've processed and eaten several wild hogs, and, while they were all pretty good, I just don't think it's worth the time/effort/cost to process them....so, now I just kill them and let the buzzards eat them.

at least pull the backstrap

i dont eat wild pig during the summer / some do with no problem / smaller pigs will be better than big boars

public hunting will be a hard road - popups probably would work

I wholeheartedly disagree with pig-meat non-eaters. The wife and I eat plenty of wild pork, and have a bunch of deboned meat over ice right now. If a person hasn’t had good pig meat, there was a problem with meat prep and/or cooking. Every bit as good as bought pork, and maybe even better. I think I put a pig backstrap recipe on the forum a couple weeks ago. The grandson gave us the recipe, and it was such good eating that I went after even more pig meat. We cleaned 3 pigs yesterday.

Put the deboned meat in a cooler over or under ice for 3 or 4 days, draining the bloody water often. Removing the blood removes any gaminess. Then cook it like ‘bought’ pork. And I’ll repost the recipe if anyone wants it, and if I can find it. It’s so good.

Of course, I do understand that some folks just won’t eat wild game. I have a sister in law like that.

In my experience, feral pork is tougher than what one buys in a store but it's still worthwhile. I grind a lot of it and use it for a variety of recipes. It's good in tacos, chili, lasagna or spaghetti sauce, meat loaf, shepherd's pie, enchiladas, etc. I use chunks of it in stews and soups, generally cooking it in a pressure cooker first to make it tender. Of course, there's always sausage! I make breakfast sausage and have also stuffed it into links, including some pretty good tasting bratwurst.
Doing so does require at least a grinder, but I have found that even a fairly low-end LEM grinder works well.

If enough rain fall, pig meat is sweet. Kiddoes grew up eating Bee County pig burgers. Pork chops were cut 1 inch think and ham steaks at 3/4.

I copied that recipe, but haven’t had any pigs show up since you posted it, so I’ll have to wait on that. However, going the crock pot route on the shoulders or rear quarters with the Mississippi Mud Roast recipe is some darn fine table fare. Just gotta make sure to get those glands out when trimming it.

Please don’t listen to those that say all wild pigs taste gross and aren’t worth the effort. There are some regions that I probably wouldn’t eat pigs from - areas with limited food/water (West Texas/Panhandle). If they don’t have access to regular food sources, they will eat anything, which scares me a little. That being said, where I’m located in N. Texas, the pigs always have access to acorns, pecans, roots, bugs, etc. and always have water. They also have lots of cover, therefore they don’t have to run long distances to get food/water. They get lazy, fat, and delicious. I 100% would take a wild pig off my property over store bought pork. I’ve processed hundreds of pigs (including boars of all sizes), and there was only one that I tasted and threw it all away. The hams are my favorites!

Also, people will say that they are nasty animals and carry diseases. All pigs are nasty and carry diseases. Just cook it well done; like you would store bought pork.

‘TeddyPain’, where are you located? If I’m familiar with the area, I can pm you some tips/locations.

Going to look for that recipe!

Here’s the recipe. I’ve asked the wife to cook this soon.

Some have suggested to cook it to 165 degrees rather than 145.

Thank you all for the replies. Very helpful! I really appreciate it.

Good luck TeddyPain. Process it yourself. You'll get better meat. Don't eat the big boars. Small boars and sows of any size are fantastic. I like making Carnitas out of the shoulders. Whole shoulder and ham roasts are fantastic. Pork chops from the backstrap. breakfast sausage from the trimmings/ belly meat, etc. is good. When making sausage, you will need more fat than you think you will need.

As far as hunting them on public land, just try turkey hunting and you will run into them every single time.

...true story. Really, hunt anything other than pigs, and you'll probably have pigs ruin your hunt in some way.

I was working a turkey about ten years ago when I heard a grunt about 5 yards behind me. Turned to see a big 'ol sow staring at me as if I was lunch.

I used to hunt pigs all the time in high school. My buddy's family has a huge rice farm in avoyelles parish, LA so they hated those things. Would kill as many as we wanted and that was a lot. Different hunting though. AR 15's on full moon nights. I haven't done it any other way but it kinda sounds intriguing and something new to try here in NTX.

So I basically have the same question. Do y'all stalk/walk creeks and draws or set up like you would a turkey hunt?

https://thehogbook.com/

Buy this book….worth every penny and tons of very practical information….

Just checked that out. Looks like a great resource!

I'd set up on some active sign in the mornings and evenings.

Well done?? That might be the difference between you and me and why you don't mind eating tough feral pork. I don't cook pork well done- I cook it to 145 where it is still pink.

Grilling chops isn't my favorite use of wild pig, and I rarely cook it that way. I usually go for venison if I want to grill a steak. My pigs get turned into a lot of bratwurst, italian/breakfast sausage, chile verde, chile colorado, roasts, stews etc . Those all get cooked until they're falling apart - so definitely well done (and definitely not tough). You're right though, 160 degrees isn't the best temp for a chop. Thank you for sharing your wisdom.