How do you cook a Whole Hog?

[daisy]

A good idea. I don't know how to cook a hog.

I can roast marshmallows, though.

[Hermione]

Hawk, according to my old copy of Talk About Good II a "Boucherie" is a big party where the pigs are slaughtered. Is that the word you're thinking of? (And if you don't have at least a copy of Talk About Good, the famous cookbook from Layfayette, then God will probably strike you dead for even pretending to be Cajun. N'est ce pas?)

[mac]

I wanna go to a 2 day pig roasting party!

[Hermione]

But you DO have a copy of Talk About Good, right? "Le Livre de la Cuisine de Lafayette." If I could only have one cookbook with me on a desert island, I'm afraid that Joy of Cooking and even beloved old Fannie Farmer would stay right where they are, and T.A.G (vol. I) would make the cut. Not every cookbook has 28 recipes for shrimp (not counting variations) and champagne punch for 100. Not to mention instructions for roux.

Their pig recipe: (to stay on topic)

1 (25 lb) pig, cleaned
8 to 10 sweet potatoes
salt and pepper

[Maggie-Doodle]

We have a friend who lives in Saucier who has a three day pig roast every year in late October.

It starts on Fri. He gets the pig on the spit and he and assorted family members and friends sit up all night to keep a check on the pig and the spit to make sure the pig is cooking ok.

He invites between 100-150 family members and friends to attend...Many come and stay the weekend in their campers. On Sat. everyone brings two side dishes of some sort (when invited you usually RSVP back and if you are going you let him know what you are bringing) Somewheres about 3 pm on Sat. the food is on...geez, you would think you done died and gone to heaven. What ever pig is left over is served on Sun. In the morning they take some of the leftover meat and make a hash out of it and serve for breakfast...the balance is put in a big pot with bbq sauce and then on Sun. pm everyone has pulled pork sandwiches! It is sooooo good. It is a big highlight for us. He has about 5 acres and when he has the pig roast it looks like a camp site.

[dollfus46]

No no, mon cher petite! Dis whatt I try to said:

Cochon de Lait
De picture near de bottom wif de pig getting dizzy is how I roast dem on a kid's swing set.

http://generalhorticulture.tamu.edu/prof/Recipes/Cochon/cochon.html
Yep. I could pronounce it but couldn't spell it. Coo shone delay. We call it a "Pig Pickin'" up here in SC. And NC barbecue sauce is the best, Hawk. When my son was at USM he'd take bottles of it back to Hattiesburg with him 'because he couldn't stand Stricks. He wasn't use to Texas style at all. I like them both, but prefer NC barbecue. S.C. Low Country boys up here can flat cook a pig. I saw one use sliced oranges and some sort of orange juice concoction he'd pour over the pig. It was wonderful.

[bpitt]

We did one a few Christmas's ago. Me, the bro-in-laws, and my father-in-law took turns. We stayed up all day and night, steadily, slowly, turning the hog. He was on a spit about 2 feet over the wood/coals. Pig turned out great. We were tired.

[Butterball]

oink oink little piggie
roasting on the spit

going round make me dizzy
think I have to sit

smoke and fire is working
they make me come apart

bring de beer, bring de women
the party 'bout to start

:D

[58ford]

I've been to a few "Pig pickin's" here in MS. the celebrated event is the "flip". Everyone stays up, drinkin' till maybe 1 or 2 in the morning. then you "flip" the pig. that's when the real celebratin' starts. By lunchtime you got a hundred to a 150 pounds of pork to eat. The pig pickin crew I hang out with always argues over the best portions of the pig. some believe the face is the best but some diehards believe the ass is the best.

[BayStBum]

I've heard about folks cooking one in a hole in the ground but am not sure how that would work. Anybody ever seen that done?

[mac]

I've heard about folks cooking one in a hole in the ground but am not sure how that would work. Anybody ever seen that done?

I've heard about people doing it, but never been there to see it. We killed a hog or two when I was a kid, but we didn't cook the whole thing. Just made sausage and what not, and ate lots of pork over the following months.

[58ford]

Yep, You either need a hole, or you can stack bricks or concrete blocks in a rectangle for the pit. Eviscerate the pig. Fill the pit with good hardwood (start about 8:00 pm drinking should commence now) & burn it down to coals, (between 12:00 & 2:00am) wrap the pig in heavy fence wire like goat wire. (preferably not galvanized) the wire is to hold the pig together as it cooks other wise when you flip the pig it will fall apart, the meat gets that tender. cover the pit (Sheet metal roofing works good) To flip the pig you will need two iron bars (re-bar works great) and four guys or chicks depending on the size of the pig. (between 4;00& 6:00am) your pig should be ready to flip. An unused (new) garden sprayer works for spraying a mixture of vinegar. Sugar, and spices on the pig, spray once an hour or so being careful not to raise the lid of the pit too much. If you start your pig on a Saturday evening it should be ready for lunch when the Sunday go to meetin' folks start showin' up with their covered dishes. check for doneness with a meat thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the ham Take your pig off the fire 10:00 or 11:00 Remember to let the pig cool for an hour or two , right off the fire its hot enough to burn you. A 4X8 sheet of plywood covered with plastic works as a table, but be careful & hammer a few nails in the board to secure the pig or it might try to slide off. Once the pig picking has commeced the Pit master should remove the beast's head (it may have fallen off by now anyway) & parade it around in a drunken stupor & force all the ladies present to kiss it's snout for making the ultimate sacrifice for the feast. Other members of the cooking crew are allowed to pass out at this point.
Hope this helps.