Smoking a whole 60lb hog

[john515]

Hello everyone! 

I am hoping to pick some of your brains and get some good advice on cooking a whole hog. A little about me and the equipment i will be using. 

I have been doing "Q" for years and have quite a bit of experience. However, this is my first time cooking a whole hog. I will be using a 500 gallon propane tank that I have trailer mounted and set up as an offset smoker. I also have the option to "grill" with the smoker as well.

I plan to cook with a mixture of oak and probably apple and peach woods at 250 degrees, the pig weighs 60 lbs.

The questions are these:

Approx how long?

Whats a good mop sauce?

Is it safe to cook on galvanized chicken wire?  

Should I tin foil the thin areas? ears etc... 

What dont I know that I dont know? In other words, what are the surprises, if any that I am gonna face? 

I am doing this for a buddys "day after the wedding party" and he knows this is a first for me.. but I want it to come out great for him and his family. Any suggestions/advice/lessons learned that you can share would be GREAT!!!! 

Thanks!

John

 

[kathrynn]

Howdy John!  Noticed that this is your 1st post here on SMF....would you mind stopping by Roll Call and let us give you a proper SMF Welcome?  http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/f/133/roll-call

There is a member who has a recent smoke of a whole pig....here is a link to his thread.  http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/127643/smoking-a-whole-hog

Use the search tool here located above...you can find a ton of information that will help with any questions you may have. If not....just ask....we will help you out!

Good Luck!

Kat

 

[pigman jim]

John,

What a great way to celebrate your buddy's wedding!! Ok, I'll try to help with some answers and I'm sure others will be able to as well.

How long? There are lots of "rules of thumb" out there but grab a reliable meat thermometer and make sure you can't find any pockets with temps below 160 degrees. It can be lower to be safe eating but the pink color makes guests nervous so keep it above 160.

A good mop sauce? Avoid sugar in it which will burn. Here is a link to the one I use (www.wholepigroast.com/pig-marinade-a-mop-recipe) since I like the acid of vinegar or lemons to cut through some of the fat. Make a big production of the pig mop and the crowds will love it!

Galvanized? Stay away from any galvanized metal in your roaster!

Foil? Cover the ears and tail if you want them in the presentation. If the head is left on, discretely put black olives in the eye sockets when no one is looking. Then tell the new groom what you did and let him in on the secret. When serving the pig, make an announcement that for the groom to have a lifetime of good luck, he needs to pluck the eyes out and eat them. Of course he does so with great fanfare and guest will talk about that for years! (if the bride is squeemish you may need to give her an advance heads up too :) ).

As far as things you don't know and need to? It will take longer than you think. Prepare some snacks and events in case you need to stall the hungry mobs. And finally, have a wonderful time!! When you do, everyone else will.

Jim

 

[john515]

KathrynN - Its strange that it says I am a new member, I have been on this forum for years. I have been inactive for quite some time however, perhaps that is why,, I will stop by and say hello to everyone again.. Thanks for the link! 

 

[john515]

Jim -Thanks man! Great ideas and info too! I am excited about it, so having fun will not be a problem! 

 

[Dutch]

Hey John!  Welcome back, man!  Make sure to post up pixs of the whole hog smoke.  Is this little piggy going to be skinned or is it a scalded and scraped hog? If it's skin on, a mop isn't going to do much good once the skin hardens, on the other hand, a mop would work great for a skinned hog.

 A buddy of mine that does skin on whole hog cooks will do a marinade injection into the large muscle areas of the hams, loins and shoulders and then he will rub down the skin with some vegetable oil to give the piggy a nice mahogany color.

About the "Newbie" status-ya gotta stick around and get your post count up before it will change to the next level.