Whole Pig recipe needed

[milsurp mike]

I am going to be smoking a Whole Pig for our Church for our 4th of July Service.I will be killing it the day before our Dinner so I can smoke it all night if needed for lunch the next day. Anybody got a proven method of doing this.I have smoked lots of turkey's and deer hams ect but never a whole Pig.I will have to skin him as i have no way of skalding and scraping him.The Pig is 100 lbs. on the Hoof.I will be using my Propane and Pecan wood smoker.I can Produce heat from 200 degrees to 600 degrees.Any info will be great.This is Domestic Pig and should be good if I do my job.Thx Mike

[GRS1]

Hi milsurp mike
If you want the skin left on the pig, a good alternative to scalding the pig is to heat it with a propane"tiger torch". Get a friend to run the torch, and heat an area until the skin starts to bubble then scrape this area with a big knife and the hair will scrape off with the thin layer of bubbled skin. Then move on to the next area until the pig is done. Spray it off with a pressure washer and it will come out nice and clean. It doesn't take too long and may help to keep your meat from drying out. Also, to cook a 40-70 lb [dressed] pig at 250-300 degrees , takes approx. 7 hrs and a 80-120 lb pig, takes approx. 8 hrs at 350 degrees, but this was not smoked, just cooked with BBQ sauce added later. I hope this helps you out some, and I'm sure it will turn out great.
Gord

[waksupi]

Mike, I would kill it a couple days ahead of time, and cool the carcass. Usually makes for a bit better tasting meat.

[MT Gianni]

I agree with Waksupi. Even if you have to rent a chiller to cool them down for three or four days. I think the best way is in a pit, skin on, hair burned off, stuffes with a few lemons, oranges and limes, then garlic inserted whereever possible. Get back to us with pics.

[milsurp mike]

I think I am going to burn the skin off then chill it for several days.I have a big Marine cooler with a drain I can use,Thx for the info.Mike

[BABore]

It's all going to depend on if your going to cook/smoke the hog or truely smoke it at low temperatures. From the sounds of your cooker, I would guess you'll be cook/smoking it similar to a typical BBQ. 250 F or so til it's well done and falling off the bone tender. The smoke will be just added flavor that will create a bark and a smoke ring in the meat. Note: it will have a hard time penetrating the skin side. With this method I would be most concerned with botulism forming inside the body cavity. Lack of O2, high moisture, and 100-130 F for a considerable amount of time is the perfect breeding grounds. If your not planning on brining and injecting the hog with potasium nitrate soulution to prevent botulism, I would keep the cavity open or split the hog. This will allow for faster cooking and more exposed area for the smoke to flavor. Personnally, I detest a cooked hog that was not seasoned prior. After butchering and cooling out, I would be brining it in a salt solution for a couple days and injecting the hams, shoulders, and loins with the same. About 1/3 to a short 1/2 cup of canning salt per gallon of water is about right. Then you can get creative by substituting some or all of the water with wine or other tasty liquid. White wine is ok but reds can leave a distinct aftertaste that I don't like myself. Apple wine or just plain old apple cider is the best. Adding a goodly amount of Frank's Red Hot and a handfull or two of garlic powder is a great addition. For smaller pork shoulders, I like to make of a mop solution of 1/2 cider vinegar and 1/2 Frank's to keep things moist. This wouldn't be out of place on the exposed inside. If you leave the skin on it doesn't make any sense to use a dry rub on it. If you expose the inside by cutting the hog in half, that would be a good place for a rub.

[fourarmed]

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=90640