Carving a Hog

No clear-cut rules exist on how to carve a pig. Allow the pig to cool for approx 20 minutes before carving. Remove and carve the shoulder and attached leg. The meat will cut right off the bone. Slice across the grain of the meat.

Remove the back leg and carve the meat. With the two legs off, the skin should peel right off the pig. (The skin can also be removed before the carving begins.) This outside shell can then either be disposed of or saved. In some cultures, the skin is used to make pork rinds or as a flavoring for other foods. Ideas are featured in the recipe section of this book.

Next, cut the back meat and pork loins. These sections of meat are very tender and cut into nice serving pieces.

The bacon is located right next to the pork loin. Under-stand that this meat will not taste like store-bought bacon unless it is cured.

The next areas to go are the back shoulder meat and the back jowl meat just above the shoulder.

Finally, remove the spare ribs. The small pieces of meat located between the ribs are ideal for barbeque.

Pork from a freshly roasted pig tastes great whether eaten plain or used with a barbeque sauce.