tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089868875915873819.post665176044939997539..comments2024-03-02T12:16:05.362-06:00Comments on Sowers4Pastors: Gearing up for the slaughter . . .Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089868875915873819.post-76492199591907493222012-03-18T15:19:03.774-06:002012-03-18T15:19:03.774-06:00Grinding meat does make it smaller and easier to p...Grinding meat does make it smaller and easier to pack into freezers more efficiently. Good luck - hope it went well.Missus Wookiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08137463465514115553noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8089868875915873819.post-42120722212807398132012-03-17T16:35:41.448-06:002012-03-17T16:35:41.448-06:00I grew up on a farm and butchering was one of the ...I grew up on a farm and butchering was one of the normal things done if we wanted to eat meat.<br />We never hung pork to age, only beef; but perhaps that was just in my area I don't know.<br /><br />You can also grind some of the meat and season it for pork sausage, using the casings that you save from the animal. I won't get into that here lol, or you can just season the ground pork and make sausage patties and freeze them.<br /> <br />I am thinking that you want to can most of it as you don't want to use the power for the freezer???<br /><br />Smoking meat is also an option; but I don't imagine you are set up this time to do that; but it might be something you want to look into for the future.<br /><br />My mom used to cure her own hams and bacon but she used a curing salt product that was bought from the store. Mortons brand I think lol. Other than salt I am not sure what was in that mix she used. I do remember that for the cure to get all the way through a ham it had to be in the brine for around a couple of weeks in the frig. so it took up a lot of frig. room. She did freeze some first and then brine it later when she thawed it out.<br /> <br />Are you going to render the fat for lard?? Kind of a yucky process; but that lard makes the best pie crust ever and the most flavourful french fries you can imagine. Not the greatest for your heart; but once in awhile is OK for everything I think.<br /><br />Good luck.Brenda Maashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03451724306271286173noreply@blogger.com