Hawaiian Grines - Wild Big Island Boar Sausage for Charcutepalooza

Grines is a term for food in Hawaii, in this case pork....ground.  I guess it makes sense in a way.  Finding them was the big deal, however, as I was not at all happy with the last bit of piggy we sourced.  Should have driven out to the scene of its undoubtedly sad upbringing, several hours away, down the coast to Hamakua, and checked things out  for myself.  Well, this time I was determined, one way or another to get some free range, wild and happy boar.  If I had to go hunting myself, with my trusty Glock.  Ha ha.  Just kidding folks.  I'm not into that really....  Unless sorely pressed.

I was walking away from the store yesterday when an employee came running after me, "Claudia, your pig came in."  Likely any vegetarians in the area were cringing, eyes squished closed.  So, back I went to collect my wild boar bits.

From free as a boar can be, in the forests of the Big Island, brought to the slaughterhouse by Mr. Hunter, to the store and then to me.  I cut the meat in half, ground one part for Breakfast Sausage and the rest for Chorizo, since the challenge for this issue of Charcutepalooza was grinding your own sausage.  Then added the seasonings and put both portions away in the fridge to chill up again.  We are using the authoritative book on the subject, Charcuterie, by Michael Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn, as a guide, and I pretty much stuck with his recipes, excepting as noted below.

The following  morning, as recommended, I pulled a small patty's worth off of my Breakfast Sausage for a flavor test.  Nice with my mango and pastry, though just a bit on the salty side.  So, I decided to add some finely minced apple.  Picture a pig with an apple in its mouth.  

I froze patties with the rest of the Breakfast Sausage.  Once frozen, you can cut up the paper to separate them and then pop into a freezer bag.  We had a couple for Sunday breakfast with our waffles. Yum.

The bowl is sitting in an ice bath between grinding batches.

That Chorizo is awesome, with the flavors of ancho, chipolte, fresh oregano and a glug of tequila.   So fine  for dinner, fried up with potatoes, okra, onions, and bell pepper.

A recipe is not really needed, and no additional spices or flavorings are necessary.  The Chorizo supplies enough.  Fry up as much sausage as you want, then set aside, drained.  In the same skillet, fry your par-boiled potatoes (cut in dice), chopped onion, okra, sliced about 1/2 inch thick or so, and diced bell pepper.  Stir fry until all are tender and browning.  Seriously good.  Now I am looking forward to scrambled eggs with Chorizo, Black Refried Beans with Chorizo, and etc.

A few things learned from this experiment: I don't need to grind quite so fine, and should knead or paddle a little longer, for more cohesiveness.  Also, the spices don't have to be so prominent in the Breakfast Sausage, though the apple helped quite a bit.  Be sure to check out all the innovative takes on this current Charcutepalooza challenge at Mrs. Wheelbarrow's site. Also linking to Frugal Food Thursday and  Hearth 'n Soul Blog Hop for more great recipes.