Lake Cushman Pig Roast

By “The Pigman and the Master Baster”

PREPARATION/SUPPLIES:

• List of volunteers to help watch and assist with fire guard and basting.
• 1.5 lbs per person  (75 lbs pig feeds 50)
• Charcoal approximately 1 pound per pound of pig. Have at least 60 lbs available (Hickory chips if available). Lighter fluid and matches.  
• Basting Solution: 2 Quarts Olive Oil, cracked fennel seeds, fresh garlic, basil, thyme, black pepper, coarse salt (no sugar). Use fresh herbs if in season. Mix, cook slowly, remove, cover and let it sit until the next morning.
• Large one gallon metal pot with large NEW paint brush  
• Large Meat Thermometer
• 2 Spray bottles with tap water for extinguishing flare ups. Be careful not to over spray. Some drippings will burn, let them burn if they are small and not threatening the pig. Over spraying with also cool the fire and put ash onto the pig.    
• Bailing wire and wire cutting pliers
• Mallet
• Tin foil
• Garden rake
• Chicken wire 2 x 4 foot in case the backbone breaks and you need to firm up the mid section from splitting.
• Paper towels
• Chicken wire, pliers
• Boning knife, chopping knife or machete, large meat two prong fork.
• One sheet of plywood and two saw horse. Staple brown paper or wax paper to the plywood.
• Heat resistance Heavy Rubber gloves
• Aprons
• Extension Chord
• Zip lock quart bags

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PIG PREPARATION:

It is unlikely you will be able to put the pig in a refrigerator. So find a cool secure place in your house (garage or basement) by several blocks of ice and place them in the cavity. This is good for overnight storage only.

Recommend you if you are going to stuff the cavity do it in the morning. You can use onions, garlic, and seasoning or what ever you decide would be great to eat and flavor the pig. This will also keep the ribs from cooking too fast.

FIRE PREPARATION:

Start two rows of charcoal briquettes about eight inches wide and a peak of about four inches to allow space in for grease drippings in the middle. A single bricket will last about one hour so you will have to populate your fire row with new brickets about every 20 min  Or put several large turkey tinfoil drip pans to catch the drippings to use later.  Consider the pan if you can’t let the juices drip into the fire pit, this will keep the animals from snooping around..

COOKING:

Rule No 1: NEVER leave the pig unguarded once the cooking begins. It could easily catch on fire and ruin it.

Rule No.2: NEVER violate rule No. 1

Place the pig on the skewer, tie the legs forward around the bottom of the chin chiny chin chin. The hind legs show be pointed away from the tail and tired together with bailing wire.  The cavity if desired should be stuff or unstuffed either way recommend you place at least three bailing wire laces to close the cavity.

Rotisserie cook the pig 15" - 20" away from the source of heat. Keep the heat constant. Start slowly so as not to burn the pig then increase fire but not to exceed 350 Degrees. Be very careful not to burn the pig you want a gradual browning of the pig.  Begin basting as soon as the skin begins to change from pink. The center of the pig will cook first; it is difficult to check the temperature so the last could of hours move the coals to the ends of the pig. Keeping the skin together will enable the pig to cook better and it will be very moist. The pig will shrink about 8-12 inches on the spit, be prepared to stop the rotisserie and readjust the pig so it does not flop over once it completes a rotation. This will weaken the integrity of the pig and it could break apart. The rotation should be smooth with no jerking movements for it not being properly secured to the spit.    One hour per 10 pounds of pig is what to be expected. It’s a long day start earlier and have everything ready so you aren’t looking at the last minute.

Recommend you decrease the coals under the cooked portion. 30-45 minutes before the pig is done, you should liberally sprinkle coarse Hawaiian salt over the skin of the pig. This will absorb the moisture in the skin and will crisp up the crackling.

Prior to removing make a small incision juices should run clear without any pink. You can expect about a 10 degree per hour increase in the meat temperature for the last three hours.  Place the thermometer in the shoulder and ham it should be at least 170 degrees. Remove after 6-7 hours let stand for 30 min.

Stays hydrated and have a good chair and some awesome music available.

CARVING:

A sixty pound pig will have 40 lbs or more of meat depending on what you like to eat.

Place the spit, complete with the carcass, on a large table or giant-sized carving board, and remove the spit rod.

Remove any crackling if applicable. Cut this into serving portions and serve separately

Remove the larger joints of meat, such as the legs and shoulders. Slice the meat of these joints thinly across the grain, starting at the shank end and carving around towards the bone.

Remove the loins from each side of the spine and carve the meat crosswise into slices.

ADVISE:

The only part of the pig you can’t eat is…. the squeal.

Have fun, this is a big event and will draw lots of attention, everyone is going to want in on the action and will provide unlimited advise…No more than three cooks, working shifts and all must agree on the methodology.  Remember too many cooks will spoil the pig.

If you have big dogs around keep them away once the carving starts

Pig bones are great for split pea soup, save them for stock, or for big dogs.

There will be leftovers plan on giving guests some to take home in zip lock bags.

Plan a big party for all to enjoy. Take notes on what worked and what didn’t for the next pig roast. 

 The Master Baster

 Chicken Wire kept the pigs from breaking in half