Have you ever bit into a pork rib and been hit with an unpleasant, funky smell that lingered long after your bite? What about when you ate a piece of pulled pork and were hit with a smell that made you think of a boys’ locker room? Or when you ate a piece of bacon and were hit with a smell that reminded you of a barnyard?
Then you, my friend, have felt the offensive effect of boar taint. And ain’t nobody got time for that.
There are two naturally occurring compounds that cause pig taint: androstenone, a pheromone that gives urine and sweat their smell, and skatole, which is made in the liver and large intestine and gives feces their foul smell. These two compounds can accumulate in the fat of male pigs who have not been castrated. When heated up, these compounds become more volatile, so you’re more likely to detect them in cooked pork.
Approximately 27.5 percent of the population is susceptible to boar taint, though sensitivity levels vary, and women are more likely to get it than men. I guess it works the same way asparagus pee does – not everyone has it, but most do. And if you do have the sensitivity eating pork can, on occasion, be an unpleasant experience.
When we talk about females, the old trick of asking your butcher for a female pig won’t work this time. For example, a sow’s overactive adrenal gland can cause it to make androstenone, and skatole can affect both men and women. This means that picking a she-pig is not a guarantee, even though taint is only likely to happen in 1% to 2% of females.
It’s not certain that all boars will get taint, but up to 50% of them are likely to do so if nothing is done. Even if the odds are even, the eating quality is the most important thing when raising these animals only for food, so the industry is very careful about how it handles this problem.
Boar taint is an unpleasant odor or taste that can occur in pork from male pigs that have reached puberty. While not dangerous, it can negatively impact the flavor and aroma of the meat. Luckily, there are methods to help minimize boar taint when cooking pork.
What is Boar Taint?
Boar taint is caused by two compounds that accumulate in the tissue of male pigs after puberty – androstenone and skatole.
Androstenone is a pheromone produced in the testes Skatole is produced in the intestines from the breakdown of amino acids. Together, these compounds create an offensive smell and taste
Only about 20% of male pigs have boar taint. It’s more common in older non-castrated male pigs. Castration is a common practice to prevent boar taint.
The aroma of boar taint has been described as urine-like, fecal, sweaty, and unpleasant. The taste is often described as bitter, foul, or ironic. It can make the pork seem unpalatable.
Detecting Boar Taint
There are a few ways boar taint can be detected:
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Chemical tests – Testing the levels of androstenone and skatole in the meat tissue.
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Sensory tests – Human tasters smelling and tasting samples of raw and cooked meat.
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Behavior signs – Aggression and sexual behavior in male pigs may indicate boar taint.
If you suspect boar taint, the odor and taste are most noticeable when cooking or eating the meat. Pay attention when pan-frying or grilling small pieces of the pork.
Is it Safe to Eat Pork with Boar Taint?
The good news is that boar taint does not indicate spoilage or contamination. The compounds responsible are naturally occurring and not harmful.
While undesirable, pork with mild boar taint is still safe to eat when cooked properly to an internal temperature of 145°F.
However, the unpleasant aroma and flavor make even mildly tainted pork unappealing to eat for most people. It’s best avoided if possible.
Tips for Cooking Pork with Boar Taint
If you need to cook pork with a mild boar taint, these tips can help reduce the offensive taste and smell:
Marinate the Pork
Marinating for several hours or up to 24 hours can help mask boar taint. Acidic marinades work best to break down the skatole and androstenone. Try ingredients like:
- Lemon or lime juice
- Vinegar
- Wine
- Yogurt
- Buttermilk
- Tomato juice
You can also add lots of aromatics like garlic, onions, herbs, and spices. The more flavor in the marinade, the better.
Cook it Low and Slow
Slow cooking methods like braising, stewing, or roasting allow the meat to break down more and mellows flavors. Cook at lower temperatures (300°F or less) for optimum results.
Avoid Overcooking
It might seem counterintuitive, but overcooking can increase boar taint. Higher temperatures intensify the compounds responsible for the odor and taste. Use a meat thermometer and stop cooking at 145°F.
Use Strong Seasonings
Spice rubs, sauces, and glazes with robust flavors do a good job masking boar taint. Cumin, chili powder, pepper, sage, rosemary, and hot sauces work well.
Try Rich Liquid Cooking Methods
Braising or stewing pork in broth, wine, cider, beer, or fruit juice allows the meat to absorb other flavors.
Grill or Sear Quickly
Get a nice sear at a high temperature when pan-frying or grilling. This caramelizes the outside and locks in moisture quickly before the compounds have much time to cook out.
Follow up by cooking the remainder at a lower temperature.
Recipe Ideas
Here are a few recipe ideas for dealing with mild boar taint:
Greek Marinated Pork Chops
- Marinate 2-inch pork chops for 2-24 hours in a ziplock bag with lemon juice, olive oil, oregano, garlic, and red wine vinegar.
- Grill chops over high heat for 4 minutes on each side until internal temp reaches 145°F.
Beer Braised Pork Roast
- Season a 3-4 lb pork shoulder roast with salt, pepper and paprika.
- Brown all sides in a skillet with oil.
- Cook roast and sliced onions in a covered dutch oven along with 12 oz of beer at 300°F for 3-4 hours until very tender.
Asian Braised Pork Belly
- Cut 1 lb pork belly into 1-inch cubes.
- Toss pork with 1⁄4 cup soy sauce, minced garlic, minced ginger and cornstarch. Let sit 15 minutes.
- Stir fry pork mixture until browned.
- Add chicken broth, sesame oil, honey and red chili flakes. Simmer for 40 minutes until pork is very tender.
- Serve over rice.
Spicy Pulled Pork
- Rub a 4-lb pork shoulder with chili powder, brown sugar, cumin, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
- Slow cook on low for 8 hours in a slow cooker until fall-apart tender.
- Shred pork and toss with favorite barbecue sauce.
Preventing Boar Taint
When possible, it’s best to avoid boar taint altogether by:
- Purchasing pork from female pigs or castrated males
- Choosing younger pigs, since boar taint increases with age
- Buying quality-assured pork from reputable producers
- Knowing your supplier’s practices and policies regarding boar taint prevention
While an unpleasant issue, boar taint doesn’t have to ruin the joy of cooking pork. With the right techniques, recipes, and preventative measures, you can still end up with delicious and taint-free meals.
That barnyard stink can only be one of two things:
During my research, I came across some independent producers who said that customers might be mixing up boar taint with other taints, such as stress during slaughter, improper bleeding after slaughter, incorrect chilling procedures, or improper handling. Regrettably for anyone who read and believed those statements, they are complete ‘hogwash’, as confirmed by Dr. John McGlone, a professor of animal science at Texas Tech university. “They’re incorrect”, states Dr. According to McGlone, “stress at slaughter can change the color of meat and make it dry when you eat it because it can hold less water,” but none of these things could be mistaken for boar taint.
You can smell one of two things when pork smells funny: either the meat has started to go bad, or you smell boar taint. Trust me, you’ll know the difference. If it’s taint, the smell will only be unpleasant, and if it’s rotten the smell will be nauseating!.
And now for some animal science and industry nerdery! Here are the ways boar taint can be dealt with:
Do nothing at all. Many small holders and heritage breeders choose to do nothing to offset the risk of taint, relying on chance, luck and the genetics of their breeding boar. They may prefer not to castrate for humane reasons, or because they are biodynamic and will not use immuno-vaccines. Some of them even take teeny tiny biopsies from the live animal to check for taint (although logically by this stage, if the meat is tainted, that little piggy is a sausage waiting to happen). Anthony Kumnick of Greenvale Farm in Victoria, Australia raises heritage breed pigs (and produces highly-prized acorn fed pork), but disagrees with the idea of doing nothing at all, choosing instead to physically castrate males in his herd. “Heritage pigs grow nearly twice as slow as commercial pigs hence the likelihood of boar taint in the meat is higher. Not castrating is like Russian Roulette – you’re bound to get one that turns up with boar taint and that’s wasteful for your bottom line and more importantly, a waste of the animals life” he says.
Use a weight calculation. In countries like England and Australia, some producers will choose take a gamble. They don’t castrate the animals; instead, they kill them based on their weight, with the idea that an animal that weighs less than 220 pounds hasn’t reached puberty yet. Problem is, research (D’Souza et al. (2011) shows that there isn’t a real link between weight and the start of puberty. Because of this, lots of meat that smells bad still ends up in grocery stores. According to the American market, pork cuts should be at least a certain size. Also, it costs the same to raise and process a 300-pound animal as a 220-pound animal, so it doesn’t make financial sense to kill young animals.
Breed it out using genetics. It’s a nice and humane idea, but it’s not going to happen anytime soon. Though they are doing some work in Europe, it’s an extremely slow process.
Employ physical castration. There are parts of this text that will make many of you cross your knees: castration is the most common way to keep boar taint away in the United States. It is done in the pork, lamb, and beef industries. It’s a bit controversial because the procedure is done without anesthesia or pain relief. Some animal rights groups think it’s cruel, but other veterinary societies say it’s okay as long as the animal is less than two weeks old. But even this method is not foolproof. Dr. McGlone observes that some mammals are Cryptorchid (meaning they have hidden or undescended testicles). “In other words, the animal can be castrated on the outside but still be a male inside, and boar taint will happen,” explains Dr. McGlone.
Employ immunological castration. An injectable vaccine called Improvest or Improvac has been approved by the FDA and has been used for over ten years in some countries. From the manufacturers website: ‘Improvest is not a hormone or growth promotant. It’s not added to the feed or genetically modified. And, it is not chemical castration”. At the moment, this is thought to be the best way to stop taint, but it’s not the most popular. Why is that? “Some people are afraid of injectables in animals, even if it’s a vaccine,” says Dr. McGlone, “this biotechnology fear is not valid, true or warranted”. For producers, public fear is more important than animal welfare because if people don’t want to buy their product, they can’t make money.
Keep a clean environment. Skatole (the really gross one) is directly linked to how clean the animals’ house is where they are raised. The more dirty the facility, the more skatole is in the pork. If it gets really dirty, the skatole could even overpower the immuno-castration blockers. So keep it clean, y’all.
Making Sausage and is that BOAR TAINT??
FAQ
Can you eat pork that has boar taint?
How to cook out boar taint?
Which procedure is done to reduce boar taint in pork?
How to get rid of gamey taste in pork?
Can boar taint be controlled?
The use of the vaccine is claimed to be as simple and reliable as physical castration in controlling boar taint. It can be administered by trained farm personnel and enables the production of pork meat that is claimed to be of high quality and to be safe for consumers to eat.
Can one eat pork?
A cooked, medium pork cutlet or steak provides 239 calories, 34 grams protein, 10 grams fat, 4 grams saturated fat, 697 milligrams sodium, and 0 grams carbohydrate, if you eat only the lean part of the steak. Pork contains many of the micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) found in beef and it is high in protein, but can be lower in fat than beef—depending on cut and preparation. Meat from any kind of mammal, including pork, can cause an allergic reaction (and some people who are allergic to mammalian meat also react to poultry).
How do you prevent boar taint?
Employ physical castration. Here comes the part where many of you will cross your knees while reading… Physical castration is common practice across the pork, lamb and beef industries and is the number one method of boar taint prevention in the United States.
Can pigs get boar taint?
Boar taint is found in around 20% of entire male finishing pigs. Skatole may also be detected in gilts, but this is linked with fecal contamination of the skin. Studies show that about 75% of consumers are sensitive to boar taint, leading pork producers to control this in order to maximize profits.