-
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
-
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…
-
Chops…
Mack serves up the first pork chops from our latest pigs. And Nala is worried. She only counts three chops! In the past we’ve used Tamworth and Gloucester Old Spot pigs…English heritage breeds. This time we’re trying a Spanish pig…the Mule foot. The flavor of these first chops seemed the same though the meat was fatter. The Mule foot is known for its ham though and we have yet to sample that. I’ve noticed that the imported ham is selling in specialty stores for more than $300 a pound! We’ll save ours for the holiday. David
-
Thistle Hill food co-editors named….
….well not really, but sometimes I think it would be nice to have a Food Editor and, while I’d apply for the job, it would probably have to go to Tom Garnett of Boonesboro, Maryland. And his wife, Brooke, would have to be the co-editor because she does the job of documenting his work. Not long ago we reported—with photos by Brooke—on Tom’s special pork chop recipe. And after I bragged about my ham, Tom set out to do me one better for his family. He did not share the food but Brooke shares the recipe here: I wanted to report back on our Thistle Hill ham. Tom did an…