Plz to provide

My buddy just bought a pig cooker so we're looking to learn more about making some eastern bbq.

Some things I thought of:

Best place to order pigs from?
Prep before cooking?
Cook with rubs, marinades, brines or anything like that? Or just cook it plain and add sauce later?
Any sauce tips?
How many pounds of pig = people it can feed? Is there a rule of thumb?
6 hours of cooking for a 70 pound pig sound right?
Any other tips?

3/22/2011 4:20:49 PM

Scotts ftw

3/22/2011 5:59:52 PM

how about slow cooker recipes, too

3/22/2011 7:16:31 PM

a quick google search turns up this page: http://www.3men.com/bbq_whole_pig.htm

some excerpts:

Quote :

"- We’re looking for about a 200-pounder "on the hoof." Anything bigger is just too hard to handle. Don always tells us to figure on about two pounds, on the hoof, per person. We usually have about 100 people at our parties and we always have plenty of leftover pork. - sprinkle the inside of the pig with a good amount of barbecue rub. Then, we place up to four chickens (also covered with the rub) in the cavity of the pig. This serves two purposes. First, it helps to keep the stomach cavity of the pig from sinking in from the cooking. Secondly, it provides some fantastic chicken that falls off the bone - At about 10:00 PM we fire up the largest smoker made by J.R. Enterprises. It is the Model S28-72 and it’s the pride of Alpine. You need a big one like this to cook a big pig. This is a wood burning smoker and we’re cooking with mostly oak and a little bit of mesquite. At around 11:00 PM, with the temperature in the cooking chamber up to about 350 degrees Fahrenheit, we wrestle the beast, literally, into the cooking chamber of the smoker. We tend the fire and add water to the cooking chamber (a water chamber is a feature on most big smokers) to maintain the cooking temperature at 325 degrees to 350 degrees for the first four hours. Then, we reduce the heat to 225 degrees to 250 degrees for the remainder of the cooking period."

[Edited on March 22, 2011 at 8:40 PM. Reason : i want to try this now...]

3/22/2011 8:39:26 PM

Nahunta.

3/22/2011 9:12:48 PM

this thread is relevant to my interests

3/22/2011 9:34:47 PM

My hubby cooks a pig on a regular basis.

He just buys a whole hog that's been dressed and puts it on the grill around 9 or 10pm at night. Sets the temp at 200 and lets it cook all night long. He gets up to check the temp and the conditions several times during the night. Typically by 7 am it is done but he will sometimes cook a little longer.

We then take it off and run it through a commercial chopper but you can do this by hand (just have good knives). He'll add some Moe's BBQ sauce that he has diluted w/water. The amount of sauce you use would be your preference.

Not a very difficult process. Just maintaining a constant, even temp is important.

3/22/2011 9:47:36 PM

^There you go...LOW AND SLOW...

For the most part, if you maintain 200 to 225 degrees, you damn near can't overcook it...but it will take all night and a watchful eye. It's kind of hard to just set it and forget it...you need to look at your thermometer every now and again, because temp will rise as the pig gets more done.

3/22/2011 10:02:18 PM

We normally start a whole (dressed) pig at about 5 AM, and plan on it being ready at about 5 PM. We flip it around noon. As far as sauce goes, we just grab a couple gallons of vinegar and add red pepper flakes to it, its as simple as that.

3/23/2011 6:16:56 AM

used to stay up all night and cook a pig before football games back in college. Well one of the more rednecky guys in the frat would do the work, and a couple of us other guys would just stay up and drink while it was going down.

However, I was always drunk as shit, so I don't remember what was going on. Would have been a good life skill to learn.

3/23/2011 7:48:15 AM

protip: get you some 6"x6" woven wire mesh the size of the cooking surface of the grill and put it on the grill before you put the pig on.

then have another piece to put on top of the pig when it is time to turn it. this makes it simple for two people to turn the pig halfway through without pulling it all to pieces.

3/23/2011 8:15:06 AM

some people flip some people don't. what's the benefit of flipping it and if you do wouldn't you want to end up with the skin side down when its finished?

3/23/2011 8:25:12 AM

I personally don't see any benefit of flipping if you keep your temps between 200 and 225...not hot enough to crunchify the outside, and there's not a huge differential in temperature to cause big gradients in the meat.

Most, if not all, pig cookers have a drip pan/baffle under your grate which prevents direct radiant heat exposure and gives you convective heat flow, so flipping really becomes pretty academic.

3/23/2011 10:16:54 AM

yeah and i've seen flipping go horribly wrong especially if the helper has had a few. i don't think its worth the risk.

3/23/2011 10:19:38 AM

we always start cavity down and flip halfway through

at the time of the flip, thats when you pull the ribs out as an appetizer.

3/23/2011 11:00:01 AM

this thread is making me hungry

3/23/2011 11:03:40 AM

you should flip it when there is only about an hour or two left to go... at least that's how i've always done it. Once you flip it, you pour your sauce in the cavity. none of this "lets add red pepper flakes to vinegar" shit either. that is NOT eastern style sauce.

3/23/2011 1:17:57 PM

adding chickens is new to me, has anyone ever done this and tell us how that worked?

3/23/2011 1:28:36 PM

I've cooked chicken with it before, but i wouldn't put the chicken under the pig... that's just odd.

3/23/2011 1:53:12 PM

supposedly it helps to time the cooking of the thicker parts (shoulders and hams) with the ribs and tenderloins.

3/23/2011 2:02:52 PM

How much does the pig usually cost, in other words, what is a good price?

Do you buy it the same day you cook it assuming you don't have an enormous fridge to store it in?

What does it mean to buy the hog "dressed?"

3/23/2011 6:18:34 PM

dressed means "ready to cook" basically.....no head, organs, hooves, etc

We never flip ours when we cook. I agree that a low, steady temp acts as a convection oven.

The price depends on the size. Pricing varies and is currently going up. A good price around here is $200 for 110lb dressed hog. We usually order at least a week or more ahead of time and pick up the day we cook.

The hubby also wanted me to add that he sometimes ups the temp to 250-300, always cooks it skin down, never flips, and usually has it on for about 14 hours.

[Edited on March 23, 2011 at 7:06 PM. Reason : lkjlkj]

3/23/2011 7:05:58 PM

why doesn't he flip it? I've always flipped it when I've done it.

3/23/2011 9:26:34 PM

^^^ i've seen people buy the pig the day before and put it in the bathtub covered in ice until ready to cook

3/24/2011 9:23:11 AM

I understand this thread is about cooking a whole hog...

but if you want more return, buy shoulders. you get a better yield per pound of green meat (because there is no spine, ribs, etc)

most of the churches, civic organizations, etc. that do bbq fundraisers cook shoulders instead of whole hog. granted it is not as much fun, but if you are serving +100 people, your $/person goes down.

3/24/2011 9:42:58 AM

Quote :

"most of the churches, civic organizations, etc. that do bbq fundraisers cook shoulders instead of whole hog. "

Not in Onslow County, I aint never heard of people grillin shoulders til i got to raleigh

unless they are buying pints of BBQ at these functions and selling plates off em or somethin, round my way if theres a grill, its ALWAYS a whole hog

cuz my people gnaw the ribs, the skin, someone takes the head home (theres some good ass meat on the head...pause) i gnaw the gristle, everything man

3/24/2011 1:40:16 PM

T.L. Herring - wilson nc

http://www.facebook.com/pages/TL-Herring-Company/130570227153

[Edited on March 24, 2011 at 2:00 PM. Reason : dd]

3/24/2011 1:59:54 PM

whole hog is much better.

3/24/2011 2:03:26 PM

Pause.

3/24/2011 5:09:19 PM

biggest tip, make sure whoever stays up all night to cook the pig gets plate when he/she wakes up from their nap...very pissed off people if all the pig is gone

3/24/2011 9:54:03 PM

I get my hogs from ole time bbq on hillsboro. last time i checked prices they were the cheapest place around. My brother and I dont get too fancy when we cook a pig though. we do flip but just use vinegar and pepper for a basic sauce and fill the body cavity with it after flipping. sort of steams the entire pig in the sauce.

3/25/2011 12:59:33 AM

has anyone cooked bbq in an oven?

i've got some butts i want to cook overnight at 220 or so, and then finish on the grill. i don't want to leave my gas grill on all night, so it sounds like this might be a decent alternative.

here's what i'm thinking about doing. i've got two 9 pound boston butts. i'm going to put a rub on them, wrap them in foil, pop them in the oven at 220 at 12-1am, pull them out 9-10am and finish them for the last hour or two on the grill. then shred them, throw the meat into pans with some sauce and keep them warm on the grill.

what do you all think about this plan? should i use any liquid smoke in lieu of smoking on the grill? if so how and how much?

2/28/2012 1:39:22 PM

Quote :

"I understand this thread is about cooking a whole hog... but if you want more return, buy shoulders. you get a better yield per pound of green meat"

That's some western style bull shit.

2/28/2012 2:06:13 PM

^^ That's not a bad plan for doing it that way. If you want to use the liquid smoke I'd mix a bit in with some of the sauce you're planning on using later and inject it into the meat. best way to make sure you get a bit of smokey flavor throughout.

2/28/2012 2:16:41 PM

Quote :

"pound of green meat"

I suspect you're buying the wrong thing if your meat is green.

2/28/2012 2:21:50 PM

TIL BobbyDigital doesn't like green eggs and ham, or at least green ham

2/28/2012 5:34:18 PM

Quote :

"has anyone cooked bbq in an oven? i've got some butts i want to cook overnight at 220 or so, and then finish on the grill. i don't want to leave my gas grill on all night, so it sounds like this might be a decent alternative. here's what i'm thinking about doing. i've got two 9 pound boston butts. i'm going to put a rub on them, wrap them in foil, pop them in the oven at 220 at 12-1am, pull them out 9-10am and finish them for the last hour or two on the grill. then shred them, throw the meat into pans with some sauce and keep them warm on the grill. what do you all think about this plan? should i use any liquid smoke in lieu of smoking on the grill? if so how and how much?"

a couple of things...

First, START the butts on the grill with wood chips... once the outer layers get cooked after a few hours they won't accept much more smoke flavor, and you want the smoke flavor. then FINISH the pork in the oven. (I use a very sturdy roasting pan, but one of those cheap aluminum pans with aluminum foil sealed around over the top would work just as good) That is honestly how I do mine almost every time because I have a cheap smoker that is really hard to get it to hold onto heat for the entire cooking time... i mean i can do it, but once the smoke is absorbed into the meat in the first few hours it really doesn't make a difference.

Then, as far as the wood chips go... soak them in water, put in aluminum foils and poke some holes in the aluminum foil.

Finally that rub... man that has ketchup in it (blah western nc bbq) AND mustard in it (blah sc bbq)

[Edited on February 28, 2012 at 7:38 PM. Reason : ]

2/28/2012 7:36:27 PM

Quote :

"Finally that rub... man that has ketchup in it (blah western nc bbq) AND mustard in it (blah sc bbq)"

You're confusing the rub for the sauce. I'm using their rub (as a base), but not their sauce.

Thanks for the tips tho.

2/28/2012 9:51:53 PM

I'll make you up a batch of sauce yo

2/29/2012 1:18:11 AM

^^haha ok

I've had the best luck with only a little bit of kosher salt on the exposed meat and no rub when either doing whole hog or just shoulders.

2/29/2012 8:29:04 AM

Quote :

"you should flip it when there is only about an hour or two left to go... at least that's how i've always done it. Once you flip it, you pour your sauce in the cavity."

this is what we do. We cook it skin side up first to let some of the extra fat drip out and then flip it over to add the vinegar. We load ours up with red pepper flakes though, i like it spicy.

Just bought a pig for a pick pickin' this weekend. $1.99 per lb for a pig less than 80lbs, $1.79 per lb for a pig more than 80lbs (which is why we always buy a 81 lb pig).

We usually start early in the morning and have it ready by the afternoon.

2/29/2012 7:56:08 PM