Freezer pork

[Plinsc]

I am thinking of getting a whole one for the freezer. My question is do I get a whole one or are there certain cuts that aren’t worth the time?
A whole verse couple front halves or something.
I noticed the prices creeping up heard about some new swine disease sweeping foreign markets right now.

 

[krj]

Cuts that aren't worth getting are cuts you aren't going to use. This varies from person to person. I'm from an agricultural community where people regularly have full/half hogs and steers done for themselves. Some will get almost nothing but ground sausage/beef because they enjoy that and don't care for chops/steaks/bacon/etc. And then some will get the gambit, and are super picky about their cuts. It's your money, your freezer space, and your tastes that are the real factors here. So if you don't like to eat pork chops, don't get chops cut. If you always use a ton of ground pork or pork sausage, then you should probably sacrifice on some cuts, and get more of those made.

 

[chef jimmyj]

There is a reason older folks will tell you, " You eat Everything but the Squeal! "
How much of the processing the Butcher does is up to you. You get from front to back...
1 Head
1 Neck
2 Butts
2 Picnic Shoulders
2 Front Shanks
2 Feet
2 Loins, bone in or boneless, whole or chops. Some Butchers cut Chops from the front 2/3 and give a Sirloin Roast, from the back end.
2 Babyback ribs
2 Spare Ribs
2 Bellies, fresh or Smoked an sliced Bacon
2 Pork Tenderloins
2 Hams, fresh or Smoked
2 Rear Shanks
2 Feet
1 Tail
Back and Kidney Fat for rendering Lard
Heart
Liver
Kidneys
Any Trim and neck meat if you choose, will be made into the sausage of your choice.
You will save money if you cure and smoke the Hams, Shanks, Bellies and Neck. Same if you make the Sausage yourself. The Blood is worth keeping for sausage. Get the head split for Head Cheese or roasting and picking off the goodies....JJ

 

[atomicsmoke]

I am thinking of getting a whole one for the freezer. My question is do I get a whole one or are there certain cuts that aren’t worth the time?
A whole verse couple front halves or something.
I noticed the prices creeping up heard about some new swine disease sweeping foreign markets right now.

Like krj said...cuts not worth getting are those you don't eat.

I buy whole or halves twice a year. As chef said...we eat everything but the squeal. Some of the stuff needs to be dealt with when you buy the hog: organs, head.
Most you can just freeze. If you plan to cure/smoke freeze those cuts after you are done processing them: hocks, hams, belly.

 

[Murray]

We get our hogs/cows butchered into cuts and roasts. As we eat through the animal we figure out pretty quickly what we aren’t eating and turn those cuts/roasts into jerky, burger and sausage. It is a waste of money to pay for cut/wrap then later turn that particular cut into burger but we can live with the extra expense for the flexibility that we have. We usually split the animals with our daughters and trade cuts. Until I had a smoker we would trade brisket for burger. Always like to keep our options open.

 

[atomicsmoke]

There is a reason older folks will tell you, " You eat Everything but the Squeal! "
How much of the processing the Butcher does is up to you. You get from front to back...
1 Head
1 Neck
2 Butts
2 Picnic Shoulders
2 Front Shanks
2 Feet
2 Loins, bone in or boneless, whole or chops. Some Butchers cut Chops from the front 2/3 and give a Sirloin Roast, from the back end.
2 Babyback ribs
2 Spare Ribs
2 Bellies, fresh or Smoked an sliced Bacon
2 Pork Tenderloins
2 Hams, fresh or Smoked
2 Rear Shanks
2 Feet
1 Tail
Back and Kidney Fat for rendering Lard
Heart
Liver
Kidneys
Any Trim and neck meat if you choose, will be made into the sausage of your choice.
You will save money if you cure and smoke the Hams, Shanks, Bellies and Neck. Same if you make the Sausage yourself. The Blood is worth keeping for sausage. Get the head split for Head Cheese or roasting and picking off the goodies....JJ

2 ears...unless you counted them with the head. I use them seprately (for aspic).

 

[atomicsmoke]

Make sure you get the bones from the butcher. You can smoke them too for a tasty stock. Or beans.

I butcher at home, and intentionally leave some meat on the bone. Will pick up more smoke and it's a nice find in soup or beans dish.