This Little Pig...

[Troble]

@tekoboyou are welcome to listen, although I’m not sure you’ll like it or not. I have a very wide and eclectic taste in music and for this event seeing that I never got to really have a pool party or share our backyard with our friends last year I’m going for the “upscale hotel pool” vibe but obviously we’ll all be with our kids. So it’s all DJ music that is from the Ibiza/Mediterranean beach vibes. I put it on shuffle and let it play. It’s a celebratory playlist designed to celebrate the light at the end of the tunnel after a long year in isolation 

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4S9o8L7ELUSzSBKmSSV4xc?si=9DY3srKOR92xv89t7Ttd0w&dl_branch=1

[tekobo]

11 hours ago, Troble said:

@tekoboyou are welcome to listen, although I’m not sure you’ll like it or not.

Thanks @Troble.  I've taken a look and I know and like a fair few of the songs.  Makes me think you would like "Apricots" by Bicep.  I suspect the time difference will mean that I can't quite dance along at the right time but will fit in a pre-dance.  

[Troble]

@tekobo it should be noted that my wife’s name is Kusi, which in the native language of Peru is Quechuan and means “happiness”. When you meet my wife you will see that she personifies her namesakes. So since I redid my yard last year but wasn’t able to share it with our friends, I started calling our house “club Kusi” last summer as I  posted pics of the pool and the food that was being produced from my KK. I’ve gotten a lot of grief /ribbing from my family and friends about how serious I take my BBQ/grilling over the past year and this year I finally get to share that with them. So hence the title of the playlist is “Club Kusi” so I mostly entertain my wife’s close friends and the theme is middle aged parental  dance grooves since we all got kids and can’t party too hard but we still think we’re young enough to be cool 

Edited May 6, 2021 by Troble

[tony b]

Nice backstory!

[Troble]

Pig has been ordered. Picking it up in two weeks 

[tekobo]

6 hours ago, Troble said:

Pig has been ordered. Picking it up in two weeks 

Countdown!  You are making me want to do it again.  Our COVID restrictions ease a little more on Monday and we will be allowed 6 people indoors and 30 outdoors.  A pig cook, when the weather is better, would be a lovely way to celebrate.

[Troble]

@tekobo that is my plan. My parents, my wife’s parents, her two best girlfriends and  their husbands and two kids each, my brother and my two best buddies that were in my wedding. 20 people including kids, a pool, a playlist. No masks required. Everyone’s vaccinated. Why not? I’m a bit nervous I’ll screw it up but I’m planning on staying up all night to watch it. 250 degrees with apple wood. Planning to season with salt and pepper for 48 hours prior. I’m mildly  optimistic/confident I won’t screw it up

going to make Cole slaw, corn bread, baked beans and a watermelon salad. Two homemade bbq sauces, one spicy and one sweet 

Edited May 15, 2021 by Troble

[tekobo]

That sounds like a good plan @Troble.  The combination of good meat, a KK and your experience should make it really difficult to screw up.  Enjoy!

[Troble]

@tekoboalso plan to get everyone drunk so they hopefully won’t notice if I screw it up

Edited May 17, 2021 by Troble

[tony b]

Always a good plan! 

[Troble]

@tekobo I’m am getting prepped for my cook this weekend, I feel fairly confident on everything but the serving part. Any tips on you you carve and serve or is it more like just pulling all the pork like pulled pork? That’s what Rodney Scott said to do but I’m just nervous about serving at the moment 

[tony b]

1 hour ago, Troble said:

That’s what Rodney Scott said to do but I’m just nervous about serving at the moment 

He's the King of whole hog BBQ. I wouldn't question it!

[tekobo]

7 hours ago, Troble said:

@tekobo I’m am getting prepped for my cook this weekend, I feel fairly confident on everything but the serving part. Any tips on you you carve and serve or is it more like just pulling all the pork like pulled pork? That’s what Rodney Scott said to do but I’m just nervous about serving at the moment 

Interesting that you should ask.  I didn't think about the serving bit before I started cooking mine and I was a bit daunted when I started to cut into my cooked pig.  In particular, I had no idea how much meat there was overall and so I was a bit parsimonious with the first few sandwiches that I  made.  I think I ended up in the pulled pork space but I might have preferred to separate some of the joints out and to make a deliberate mix of different parts of the pig for each person.  Whatever you end up doing, don't sweat it.  It'll be the best roast pig your guests will have eaten - that day, if not ever.  

[Troble]

Thanks @tekobo although I had to look up parsimonious 

[Basher]

[mention=3070]tekobo[/mention] I’m am getting prepped for my cook this weekend, I feel fairly confident on everything but the serving part. Any tips on you you carve and serve or is it more like just pulling all the pork like pulled pork? That’s what Rodney Scott said to do but I’m just nervous about serving at the moment 

Troble we have carved a few whole pigs amongst Pacific Islander friends.
First step is to get a really big carving knife( this adds to the theatre). Minimum 16 inch blade. And an old but clean bed sheet or large table cloth to spread over a dedicated carving table.

While it’s cooking, remove the trotters when they look like detaching easily. This will likely be when you are 70- 80% into the whole cook.
Ultimately you want to remove the whole pig on the rod and place it on a table with the old bed sheet or large table cloth.
Carve away. For me, best meat is the delicate cheek oysters.
Everyone will have their preferred piece- see if you can talk one of the daring kids into the snout. That child will be the legend for years later
The cloth will soak up the juices so they don’t run everywhere and can wrap over the meat between carving. You can soak and wash it afterwards.
Have a second and third sharp knife handy- I’m sure one of your mates will want to help you carve.


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[Troble]

Thanks @Basheri have a table I plan to put it in and was going to lay down a sheet to carve it up but had not thought about the “trotters” I don’t know that I have equipment to saw off the feet but I do have a couple of knives that you recommended to me. 
 

im also still a big nervous and time and temp. I ordered a 20-30 pound suckling pig. I was planning on smoking it at 250 temp for 10-12 hours but I’m not sure that enough time or now. I’ve done multiple 8-9lb pork shoulders that have taken longer than that so it feels wrong instinctively, but that’s what Rodney says to do in his book and he cooks much bigger hogs. Any thoughts on timing/temp anyone? 
 

I made out my menu today and started a ingredient list for grocery shopping but I stayed second guessing the timing/temp after I made the list. Menu attached 

 

Edited May 25, 2021 by Troble

[tekobo]

Hey @Troble, it is great to be feeling like I can advise you on the strength of one suckling pig cook of my own.   

I think your time and temp should be fine for this young animal.  I cooked  mine slightly hotter 150C (300F) and it took approximately four hours in the roti basket.  Don't worry about needing to saw the trotters off.  Once the pig is cooked they will either fall off or be easily pulled off.    How are you planning to get the pig off the grill?  I guess you could actually lift out the grate if you don't have an alternative holder in place during in the cook.  I didn't have the issues with juices running out that @Basher described but we will learn more when you try it out.  

[Basher]

As Tekobo said Troble, you will see when the trotters can be pulled off with tongs and a light flick of a knife.
I’m with Tekobo on the temps. Reverse engineer back the cooking times for your convenience. Minimum 4 hours will be plenty. It’s a big enough day for you with the guests without fussing over the cook for 12 hours.
Maybe 6 hours at 250f or 4 hours at 300f?
Are you cooking in the roti basket or flat over the grill?


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[Troble]

@tekobo you know removing it from the grill was something I hadn’t thought of. I just assumed I’d pick up one end and get my friend to pick up the other but the meat would likely fall apart and be too soft. Now that you brought it up I think I’ll have to lift the grates and carry it over to a table where I’ll have a sheet laid down and then perhaps I can slide it off the grate on to the sheet/table 

@Basherafter @tekobofirst adventure I’m keen to try to putting it on the top grate and avoiding the basket for the time being. I’d like to keep things as simple as possible this first attempt and I’m also planning on using the double bottom drip pan on the lower grate to ensure there’s no big flare ups from Joyce’s going into the fire. I don’t mind the longer cooks and frankly I have a loose plan that will all be finalized once I see the pigs actual size. I don’t mind starting low and slow and then needing to turn up the heat later if needed, hence why I was planning a longer cook. Like I said I regularly do pork shoulders at 225 that take 12-15 hours so I just can’t wrap my head around a 25lb hog taking 4 hours. 

Edited May 25, 2021 by Troble

[MacKenzie]

Troble, lifting the grate and then sliding the pork off at the table sounds like the perfect solution to me. Hopefully with be able to keep the meat in tack this way.