Whole suckling pig

[annesteph]

Hi Guys

About to do my first whole suckling Pig in two weeks time. Have any of you done this? There seem to be various tips, ie clean thoroughly inside and out and rub with salt and herbs. Some say start hot and let oven cool, others say start cool and finish the crackling at the end. Some even suggest stuffing a chicken inside the pig !! I want to get it right, it cost a lot of money!! Above all I don't want it to dry out. The suckling pig is about 5kgms/10/12lbs and I want lovely crisp crackling at the end. It seems to me I will have to cook the pig first then set it aside and raise the oven temperature to cook our garlic and tequila prawns and pizzas (Tapas) then shove it back in for a bit to warm it through again.. What about vegetables, can you cook the pig on a layer of potatoes or something, do I ad liquid to the roasting tin? All tips welcome. SOS. Let me know if you have tried it and what works best.

Thanks Guys Annie

[Chef]

Re: Whole suckling pig

Annie:

We just did one for our 4th of July celebration you can see the whole process on our blog The Red Dragon Cafe look in the July archives you will find it there. My friend did one also VERY different from ours his web site is My Backyard Brick Oven - ?????????????????????????????????????????????

You can also do a thread search on PIG ROAST and find what others on this site have done. I will tell you this everyone is different...but I'm sure all were wonderful; I don't think there is any one way better than the other. I will tell you our skin was done PERFECTLY crisp and the meat was very mosit and cooked perfectly.

How much did you pa for your pig...We only paid $45 US our friend who lives in the same state paid $150 SAME SIZE PIG 16 pounds!!!

Good Luck...and take photos!!!


Malinda

[annesteph]

Re: Whole suckling pig

Hi Guys

About to do my first whole suckling Pig in two weeks time. Have any of you done this? There seem to be various tips, ie clean thoroughly inside and out and rub with salt and herbs. Some say start hot and let oven cool, others say start cool and finish the crackling at the end. Some even suggest stuffing a chicken inside the pig !! I want to get it right, it cost a lot of money!! Above all I don't want it to dry out. The suckling pig is about 5kgms/10/12lbs and I want lovely crisp crackling at the end. It seems to me I will have to cook the pig first then set it aside and raise the oven temperature to cook our garlic and tequila prawns and pizzas (Tapas) then shove it back in for a bit to warm it through again.. What about vegetables, can you cook the pig on a layer of potatoes or something, do I ad liquid to the roasting tin? All tips welcome. SOS. Let me know if you have tried it and what works best.

Thanks Guys Annie

Hi Malinda
Thanks for those tips will try it your way and take some photos. The result looks scrumptious !! Annie

[annesteph]

Re: Whole suckling pig

Melinda
Forgot to say this is England!! If we are still allowed to say that!! Annie and Suckling Pigs are very very hard to come by. Mine cost ?100 thats why I can't afford to get it wrong !!!

[Chef]

Re: Whole suckling pig

Annie:

Holy Smoke 100 pounds...yeah you better get it right!!

Can't wait to jear and see all about it!!

Malinda

[Chef]

Re: Whole suckling pig

Annie....do you watch the F word with Gordon Ramsey? Maybe next time you can raise a pig in your garden like he did and it wont cost as much!! HA-HA!!

[annesteph]

Re: Whole suckling pig

Annie....do you watch the F word with Gordon Ramsey? Maybe next time you can raise a pig in your garden like he did and it wont cost as much!! HA-HA!!

The neighbours won't put up with the stink !!! This party is called the Last of the Summer Wine, we have it in my garden annually - this year it is a Spanish theme hence the pig !!! Lots of other Tapas going in the oven too including delicious garlic/chilli parsley and tequila prawns. The sauce is to die for !!. How often do you have to top up the fire when doing Miss Piggy? Like your blogg site bye the way. Annie

[annesteph]

Re: Whole suckling pig

Thanks did you really mean jeer - not hear !!!! My digital camera will be at the ready to record the event. !! Annie

[Chef]

Re: Whole suckling pig

Annie:

Just asked chef phil about the fire he does not think we added any wood to the fire as she was cooking.

Malinda

[annesteph]

Re: Whole suckling pig

Our Tapas afternoon was fabulous and for once the sun shone !!

I built up the oven fire at about eight in the morning and by ten the oven was nice and hot.. At this point I roasted some sweet potatoes in their skins and let the oven temperature drop to about 550. In went miss Piggy duly oiled and salted and there she stayed for about 40 minutes to crisp. Then the oven door went on and no one opened it again for two hours. Apart from a slight sunburn on the back of the neck she was perfect see pics. She was then wrapped in foil and left to rest.

Friend Kevin then had a brilliant idea and built a jenga style turret of kindling wood into which he popped a firelighter and gently moved the turret over to the embers and added a couple of logs. In no time at all the oven temperature was back up and we cooked some fabulous Garlic and Chilie Prawns with plenty of oil for dipping, lots of parsley some lime juice and a dash of tequila. We had several different breads for dipping. Mouthwatering to say the least. Whilst we consumed these we tipped some of the juices from Miss Piggy into the sweet potato dish and popped it back in the oven. This made the potatoes very tasty.

The meat fell off the bone on the suckling pig so thank you to everyone who helped with their tips. We had a great day. Photos attached.