I have a gig at my local cigar shop to smoke a pig for an upcoming event. I've never smoked a pig on my reverse flow smoker so I figured I'd give it a test run to get some idea of temps/times/etc. Here what I found...
Started with a small pig, only 38.5 pounds, for the cigar event I'll be doing a 80-90 pounder. In order to keep it simple, I did a simple cleaning of the cavity and rubbed the skin with EVO and added some rock salt.
Piglet chillin before being introduced to apple and hickory nirvana.
This is piggie on the smoker ready for the ride. I decided to keep it simple, didn't foil the ear/nose as I have on other cookers. It was nice to see how much more pig I could fix on the Hog Coffin. I'm thinking ~`100 pounds should be no issue.
Smoker held a good even temp from left to right. It became clear early on that I have been a lot more nervous about this cook then needed.
Starting to get some good color, 2 hours in.
Fast forward to the six hour mark and I have ~200 degrees at 2 locations in each ham and shoulder. For the record I started at 275 for the first hour and backed down to 250 for the remainder.
Done and looking good. A few observations:
1. Still was really crispy, I did not expect that.
2. A little pig does not yield a lot of meat (guess I knew that)
3. Getting to 200 degrees made for good pulling however it was not "fall off the bone". Definitely chop ready.
4. The hindquarters, area closest to the reverse flow opening, was darker. I'm not sure if the butcher did not drain this area well or what. I should have taken some pics.
5. Meat was moist and flavorful. Not sure how much adding rub to the cavity would help (Anyone)?
All and all, I was happy with the cook. I will keep you all posted on the 8 June event.
Started with a small pig, only 38.5 pounds, for the cigar event I'll be doing a 80-90 pounder. In order to keep it simple, I did a simple cleaning of the cavity and rubbed the skin with EVO and added some rock salt.
Piglet chillin before being introduced to apple and hickory nirvana.
This is piggie on the smoker ready for the ride. I decided to keep it simple, didn't foil the ear/nose as I have on other cookers. It was nice to see how much more pig I could fix on the Hog Coffin. I'm thinking ~`100 pounds should be no issue.
Smoker held a good even temp from left to right. It became clear early on that I have been a lot more nervous about this cook then needed.
Starting to get some good color, 2 hours in.
Fast forward to the six hour mark and I have ~200 degrees at 2 locations in each ham and shoulder. For the record I started at 275 for the first hour and backed down to 250 for the remainder.
Done and looking good. A few observations:
1. Still was really crispy, I did not expect that.
2. A little pig does not yield a lot of meat (guess I knew that)
3. Getting to 200 degrees made for good pulling however it was not "fall off the bone". Definitely chop ready.
4. The hindquarters, area closest to the reverse flow opening, was darker. I'm not sure if the butcher did not drain this area well or what. I should have taken some pics.
5. Meat was moist and flavorful. Not sure how much adding rub to the cavity would help (Anyone)?
All and all, I was happy with the cook. I will keep you all posted on the 8 June event.