Hey everyone, just found this site, hope you can help. I'm an experienced amateur chef, but still a beginner smoker...
I was planning on doing a pig roast for an annual baseball game and party I have. But it'll be an extra $200 for the roaster rental (and the overpriced pig I'll have to buy), compared to just buying the pig from my best source. So I thought - maybe I can still buy the whole hog, but cut it into primals so it fits my equipment? I still want to create as much of the experience as I can for my guests, which for me means crispy crackling skin and a nicely browned pig head.
Here's my preliminary plan, please pick it apart and tell me what I should do instead. I'll separate the pig into head, 2 full shoulders, loin section, ribs, bacon, and 2 fresh hams. I thought I'd bone-out the double loin but leave the skin on tie it like a roast, brine or maybe brine-pump it, then put it on the rotisserrie attachment of my gas Weber. Slash the skin to help it crisp up? Then I have a nice propane smoker, the size of a small fridge. Everything else goes in there, except the bacon and maybe 1 ham(cure for later). I should have good spacing. I have a rough idea of timing and sequence for even cooking, and but no idea what to do with the head! When to put it in relative to the other items, how to prep it, etc.? Also not certain about the skin on the shoulders and hams: where to leave it off or on. And if I leave it on, how to get it crispy, or if I should just remove it after and save it for beans.
Any ideas out there? Thanks!
I was planning on doing a pig roast for an annual baseball game and party I have. But it'll be an extra $200 for the roaster rental (and the overpriced pig I'll have to buy), compared to just buying the pig from my best source. So I thought - maybe I can still buy the whole hog, but cut it into primals so it fits my equipment? I still want to create as much of the experience as I can for my guests, which for me means crispy crackling skin and a nicely browned pig head.
Here's my preliminary plan, please pick it apart and tell me what I should do instead. I'll separate the pig into head, 2 full shoulders, loin section, ribs, bacon, and 2 fresh hams. I thought I'd bone-out the double loin but leave the skin on tie it like a roast, brine or maybe brine-pump it, then put it on the rotisserrie attachment of my gas Weber. Slash the skin to help it crisp up? Then I have a nice propane smoker, the size of a small fridge. Everything else goes in there, except the bacon and maybe 1 ham(cure for later). I should have good spacing. I have a rough idea of timing and sequence for even cooking, and but no idea what to do with the head! When to put it in relative to the other items, how to prep it, etc.? Also not certain about the skin on the shoulders and hams: where to leave it off or on. And if I leave it on, how to get it crispy, or if I should just remove it after and save it for beans.
Any ideas out there? Thanks!