Finally got my first whole hog breakdown right after 3 tries at the shop

Been practicing on pork shoulders for months but last Saturday I finally broke down a whole hog at Miller's Supply in under 90 minutes without ruining a single roast. Felt like everything just clicked when I found the natural seam between the loin and belly on that second side. Any of you guys remember a moment where a cut finally made sense after struggling with it for a while?

3 comments

3 Comments

wells.evan12d ago

Have you hit that point where you stop thinking about the blade and just feel the meat separate? For me it was when I finally trusted my fingers over the knife on a bone-in ribeye, suddenly the whole thing just fell apart clean. That click moment is what keeps me coming back to the shop even after a bad batch.

the_rose12d ago

@wells.evan More like the point where I stopped trying to impress myself with a fancy cut and just started hacking at it with a cleaver. Suddenly the meat didn't care and I didn't either.

danielowens12d ago

Haha yeah man that's exactly it. I had the same thing with a chuck roast last week. Was so focused on getting the perfect cut I kept messing it up, then just gave up and went with the flow, ended up with the cleanest slices Ive ever done. Funny how that works.