Taiwan Aboriginal (Bunun, Atayal)
Wild boar is butchered into manageable portions, rubbed with coarse salt, and hung above a slow-burning hardwood fire (typically camphor or other mountain hardwoods). The smoke must be cool enough to preserve without cooking — a cold-smoke technique that can take one to three days. The resulting meat is dark, firm, intensely flavoured, and shelf-stable for weeks in the mountain climate. It can be eaten as-is, sliced thin, or reheated over flame.
1. EXCEPTIONAL: Wild boar from mountain hunts, smoked over camphor or indigenous hardwood for two-plus days. Deep mahogany colour, firm texture, complex smoke-and-game flavour. 2. GOOD: Quality pork, properly smoked. Correct colour and texture. 3. ADEQUATE: Commercially smoked using modern techniques. Functional preservation but lacking the wild character. 4. INSUFFICIENT: Under-smoked (still raw at centre) or over-smoked (acrid, bitter).
EXCEPTIONAL: Wild boar from mountain hunts, smoked over camphor or indigenous hardwood for two-plus days. Deep mahogany colour, firm texture, complex smoke-and-game flavour.
ADEQUATE: Commercially smoked using modern techniques. Functional preservation but lacking the wild character. INSUFFICIENT: Under-smoked (still raw at centre) or over-smoked (acrid, bitter).
Pacific Migration Trail