Whole Pig On A Spit?

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triple b

Smoking Fanatic
Original poster
OTBS Member
Feb 27, 2007
559
10
Woodstock,Ontario,Canada
HELP!!!!

Does anyone have any good advice for doing a whole pig on a spit?
I got stuck doing it this year at the Golf Course I work at!
I don't have full details on the spit we're getting,but hopefully by Tuesday I"ll know.I think it's charcoal/wood fired.
Times and temps to look for would be a great start.
One site I visited said 1lb. charcoal to every 2.5 lb of pig.
We're supposed to be getting a 160 lb. pig.

Thanks guys in advance!!!
 
i'd definitely go w/ whole sticks for that kinda cook- for the budget and forthe burn- but thats my 2 centsworth. thats as far as i can help- never donea wholehog on a spit. now if we're talking kailua pig i can help more.
 
Brian.

If the spit will be motorized keep the pig tucked together and bundled in a "rounded" configuration. Your fire can be a bit more intense than if the pig is to be turned manually.

If the pig is to be turned manually I suggest "flattening" it. Squish it betrween two metal grates and keep your fire down. Both pigs will cook in about the same time if you keep a hotter fire under the motorized spit.

Hope this helps!

Cheers!
 
I must first state that I have never cooked a hole pig myself but I would say that the temp of the smoker/cooker should be around 225-250 F and the internal should get to 200 F if you are going to pull it.

One of the best things I have had is a smoked pig and they stuffed the inside with kielbasa and onions.
 
i'll see if i can did up some details we ( my brother-in law, his brother, my self, and nephews..) i want to say it was bout 24 hours? at about 225- 250 ish..225 lbs wild hog, fed out for 60 days.. we had a motorized pit. we burned split hickory, pecan, and oak..? a lot of the details got lost in the cases of beer a must have..
 
Triple B, we must have documentation of the spit, methods, and how you pull of the cook. Look forward to the pics and hearing how you pull this off. Wish I was closer, I'd come get in the way. Good luck and keep us up to date.
 
Well everyone the pig roast was a success even though we a few problems.
First thing was that we ordered a 160 lb. pig and they sent the butcher a 190 lb. pig. Ooops!
Next problem was the pig was too long for the spit the butcher had.
The length we had to work with was 53 inches the pig was around 70 inches.
So off comes the head and all 4 legs (hocks)!
Sunday morning comes,and I get the charcoal fired up.Go into the clubhouse to get the pig on the cage it's going to be spinning on.
We get it out of the walk-in fridge and put it on the lower half of the cage.
Then when we go to put the top half on,the pig is too big again!!
The top part won't reach the rods so we can put the nuts on and tighten it down.
But wait!!
I brought my little frozen food saw that I had bought from Publishers Clearing House!
So,I cut through the breast bone so the main bar will be able to go further down.
Still not enough!
So,I cut where the curved bars of the cage meet the rib cage of the pig.
Try again!
Close but can't get the other end low enough to get that nut started!
So,I get up on the table and stand on the thing and the rod still won't go through far enough.So I grab on to the counter and pull down (and I weigh about 300lbs.!) finally it goes through and we can get the nut on but not the washer.
Finally we get it outside on to the spit.
Plug in the rotisserie and .........nothing! Aahhhhhhh!
Make sure everything is plugged in.Still nothing!
The my kitchen helper looked at the recepticle and found it was a "GFI",
pressed the reset button and presto it worked!!
It starts going around and when it gets to where the font legs were it's still so big it lifts the lid up.I say the heck with it let it burp excess smoke and heat every once around!
So I keep checking the coals and adding more when needed for the next 3 hours.
Before I leave (because I have to back in to work at 3)I tell the breakfast cook what to do.Then he ended up telling a young cook later what to do,who didn't listen very well and when I got back the fire on both sides were almost out!
Aaaaaahhhhhhh!!!!
So the meat thermometer reads about 120° at that time.(supper is at 7)
So I fire it up as much as I dare without scorching it.
We took it off at (150°ish) 5:45 and take back to the kitchen.
Cut off the rarest parts and throw them into our Combi oven while we're cutting up the cooked parts.
Anyway it turned to be the best pig in all the 7 seasons I've been there!
Even had a smoke ring on the exposed meat.
I was still getting good remarks yesterday.
smile.gif



By the way I used lump charcoal,maple logs and in the 3rd hour i threw in a big mesquite log from home.Also had a spritzer made up of water,liquid hickory and garlic powder.

I'll post some pics soon as I download them from the camera.
 
Nice job there Bro ...
icon_biggrin.gif
... looks great!

So, next year order a 120 lber and you'll likely get a 90 ...
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... and then you can call out for pizza!
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Seriously ... nice work under adverse conditions!
 
Congrats Triple B, great job!

BTW, what did you do with the head...?
PDT_Armataz_01_23.gif
 
Well, errr... uhhmmm... Squeezy, I hope that gets better for you real soon!
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