-
This weekend one of our bull-renters delivered a litter of six piglets to Thistle Hill Farm.
It was cold and gusty, and I was glad their hay-filled pigloo didn’t blow away. These four brothers and two sisters are Tamworth Berkshire crosses. Originally from central England, Tamworths are known for their red color and long abdomen, which makes for wonderful bacon. The Berkshires are black, sometimes with white spots, and produce meat that is not only full of flavor but tender as well. Our pigs, unlike most pigs who when conventionally raised are in pens where there’s not even room to turn around, will be reared in a pasture and given a non-GMO feed to supplement the grass and acorns in the pasture. Carolyn Matthews
-
From the kitchens of Thistle Hill…
…and yes while we have two kitchens…son Church continues his triumphs on the Kamado Joe grill. This time it’s a pork belly smoked by that apple wood tree we harvested a few weeks ago. Church recommends scoring the fat side diagonally and then rubbing all sides with Bone Suckin’ Seasoning and extra brown sugar. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Place over indirect heat and smoke until the meat reaches 200 degrees. My preference is to hold off and make a midnight sandwich. While pork belly isn’t very popular in the States, I have Asian friends who consider this the peak of American cuisine! It is also very popular in Scandinavia, Latin…
-
A sign of spring…
…along with Forsythia and Daffodils…baby piglets. And again this year we’re importing our “weanlings” from Indian Summer Farm in Forest, Virginia. Berkshire is probably the leading pig among the heritage breeds and these are 3/4 Berks. But we also like the leaner meat, and particularly the bacon, the Tamworth produces…so these piglets also have Tamworth in their background. Our thanks to Indian Summer Farm for once again sharing their pig crop! David
-
The Class of 2021…
…the next batch of piglets have arrived at Thistle Hill and will “graduate” next March! We’ve pretty much settled on crosses of Berkshire and Tamworth for our purposes…both are heritage English pigs known for their bacon and hams. We’ve also found they’re easy to handle…no minor attribute when dealing with pigs. Their predecessors incidentally are now in our freezers and you can order cuts. Of course you can also reserve one of the Class of 2021…a half or whole! Contact Church at (214) 802-1283churchhh@gmail.com David
-
Lest we forget…
…pork is on the way. Five pigs that look like they’ll be ready from now to Christmas. This year we’re raising mostly Berkshires…with some Tamworth thrown in. Most pig growers seem to eventually settle on Berkshires for the flavor…and all-around performance. In the past we’ve favored Tamworth and Gloucester Old Spot, but we thought it was time to try the popular favorite. All three of English heritage breeds and each has their advocates. These Berkshire are the best-mannered we’ve had so far…and finishing faster than others. In this picture they’re being fed a mixture of spent brewers grain and a growers ration heavy on corn. Ours pigs are raised entirely…
-
Happy great-grandparents day…
…after swearing “no more pigs”, Church has surrendered to my wearing down and come up with some excellent piglets in nearby Lynchburg. You can’t always be sure from a photo of course, but these look like exceptionally healthy, well cared-for youngsters. Some are Berkshire and the rest are a Berkshire-Tamworth cross. I’ve always been partial to the Tamworth, particularly for their bacon, but “pig pros” seem to tilt to the Berks. So here we have on the way the best of both worlds! Believe it or not, it’s not too early to put your name in for one of these guys! David