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I couldn't find a lot of info on this before I tried, so I thought I'd share. I had the butcher debone the pig (except for legs) and stuff cavity with a large loin roast and sausage as well as a gremolata which I prepared and provided. I heated the oven and covered the pig with foil. I couldn't find a pan big enough to hold the pig and fit through the door (16" x 11") so I put two large foil roasters together and set them on two flat cookie sheets for support. The foil got folded back a little when I slid it in the first time and a small area of meat was exposed... it blackened in 5 minutes, so make sure the pig is covered at all times! I pushed the coals to one side and put the pig on the other and kept alternating every hour or so... moving the coals to the other side and adding more wood as needed.
Pulling the pig in and out of the oven proved to be the biggest challenge in the flimsy foil pans. Ideally, I need a 16"x32" roasting pan with sides and handles for this so I will make a custom one before I try this again. The average dome temp was 650 F throughout the cooking process and it took over 9 hours before the meat was done. Near the end I removed the foil to crisp it up, but it was still too hot and blackened very quickly so be careful. The skin was actually really crisp anyway.
When it was done, the meat was moist and tasted delicious but I was a little disappointed in the visual presentation from the blackened parts. Several of my guests had regularly attended pig roasts, including my Philippino neighbour who had at least one pig roast a year for her entire life. They all said that this was the best roast pig they had ever had so i guess it was a success overall. The way it was prepped meant you just sliced it up to serve.
My advice to anyone trying this would be to get a good pan, and make sure the meat is covered during cooking... at least until the very end.
Pulling the pig in and out of the oven proved to be the biggest challenge in the flimsy foil pans. Ideally, I need a 16"x32" roasting pan with sides and handles for this so I will make a custom one before I try this again. The average dome temp was 650 F throughout the cooking process and it took over 9 hours before the meat was done. Near the end I removed the foil to crisp it up, but it was still too hot and blackened very quickly so be careful. The skin was actually really crisp anyway.
When it was done, the meat was moist and tasted delicious but I was a little disappointed in the visual presentation from the blackened parts. Several of my guests had regularly attended pig roasts, including my Philippino neighbour who had at least one pig roast a year for her entire life. They all said that this was the best roast pig they had ever had so i guess it was a success overall. The way it was prepped meant you just sliced it up to serve.
My advice to anyone trying this would be to get a good pan, and make sure the meat is covered during cooking... at least until the very end.
. I picked up 6-18" X 26" baking sheets at an auction the other day. (my door is 20" wide) I think that one of them would be OK for a small pig. If not, I will be getting something custom made.
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