First whole hog in my smoker

Hello all (from sunny England!),

First post here and also a first whole hog cook too.

I have a wedding on Saturday for 130 people (including 20 kids) and they wanted a twist on a standard hog roast so asked us to quote for a whole hog smoke and we got the job.

I have a 70kg (154lbs) free range pig at the butchers ready for me to pick up tomorrow and plan on cooking for 16 hours at 250f allowing for a 2/3 hour rest. I also need to drive the smoker with pig in it about 30mins down the road to the venue so will be strapping it down well so I don't end up with pulled pork by the time we arrive!

Planning on doing a simple apple juice/cider vinegar injection to the big joints and doing a simple rub to the cavity.

Pig will go on at 9pm and I will tend the fire through the night so hopefully it is ready by 1/2pm Saturday which gives us time to get the smoker over there whilst it's resting and get the gazebo up in case of rain. Going to be served in a white bap with a couple of homemade sauces. (They are providing the rest of the buffet themselves).

Any hints or tips?

lantern said:

How are you cooking/presenting the pig? Racer style or split and on his back? If split are you flipping part way through to finish on the back?


As far as tips go the biggest I can give is to keep your eyes and NOSE on the lookout for problems that come from fat leaking through a hole or crack in the meat. It seems simple, but the amount of fat rendered from a whole hog can sometimes take you by surprise and next thing ya know you have either a grease fire or a big black smokey mess. Just keep things to handle such a situation close by just in case.


Also....I salute you sir!! It takes some very large attachments to do something their first time for a large crowd!!:clap2::thumb::thumb::thumb:

Click to expand...

Plan on cooking racer style, going to cook on a couple of layers of foil with a few holes in it to direct the grease to a couple of gastronorm trays underneath.

First event - forgot to discuss presentation with the client but if they wanted a classic UK hog roast then anything we can present will be a whole lot better than what they'd originally wanted!

My smoker is a big ole reverse flow so hopefully no grease fires but don't want the plate filling up with grease either!