40lb hog time frame?

[dano]

Hey Guys...planning on cooking a 40lb pig for New Year's Eve and was wondering if anyone had an idea on how long it would take to finish? I was planning on getting the hams and shoulders to 195 and pulling everything. Thanks in advance!

 

[daninnewjersey]

At 250-275, a ballpark time frame would be about 1 to 1.25 hrs per 10 pounds....

 

[landarc]

40 pounds is just past a suckling pig. They cook fast, 20-30 minutes per pound at 275f to 300F. The body is much thinner with a lot less connective tissue than a mature hog.

 

[dano]

40 pounds is just past a suckling pig. They cook fast, 20-30 minutes per pound at 275f to 300F. The body is much thinner with a lot less connective tissue than a mature hog.

20 minutes per lb would would put it at just over 13 hrs. That sounds a bit long. I was thinking this would take 4-6 hrs overall.

 

[SGH]

Brother there are few things that will make the cook time vary. Examples- Cooking direct or indirect, how the hog is prepped and laid out. However here is a rough guide based on what I have personally saw when cooking small hogs. A 40 pounder cooked raised direct (block pit or Carolina rig) at 250 degrees will take 3.5 - 4.5 hours depending on how well you maintain temp and how the hog is prepped. Cooking this same weight hog at the same 250 degrees indirect will take 4-5 hours, again depending on how well you maintain temp and how the hog is laid out. I think it was landarc that mentioned above that the sucklings cook much faster than mature hogs. This is absolutely true. They lack the mass and connective tissue of their grown counterparts. With all that said, no matter how you chose to cook your small hog you should easily be able to have it done in less than 6 hours.

 

[dano]

Brother there are few things that will make the cook time vary. Examples- Cooking direct or indirect, how the hog is prepped and laid out. However here is a rough guide based on what I have personally saw when cooking small hogs. A 40 pounder cooked raised direct (block pit or Carolina rig) at 250 degrees will take 3.5 - 4.5 hours depending on how well you maintain temp and how the hog is prepped. Cooking this same weight hog at the same 250 degrees indirect will take 4-5 hours, again depending on how well you maintain temp and how the hog is laid out. I think it was landarc that mentioned above that the sucklings cook much faster than mature hogs. This is absolutely true. They lack the mass and connective tissue of their grown counterparts. With all that's said, no matter how you chose to cook your small hog you should easily be able to have it done in less than 6 hours.

Thanks! I am going to cook it on my Good One Rodeo so it will be indirect with a firebox going the entire length of the backside of the cooking chamber. It holds temp really well so it should cook at 250 the entire time. I was hoping to have it ready for 8-9pm so I am thinking about throwing it on around 2 or so. Sound good to you guys?

 

[SGH]

If this is your first one, start it early just to be on the safe side. If it gets done early you can hold for many, many hours by dropping your pit temp to 140 degrees. I have held massive hogs this way in excess of 8 hours with outstanding results. Good luck my friend.

 

[dano]

If this is your first one, start it early just to be on the safe side. If it gets done early you can hold for many, many hours by dropping your pit temp to 140 degrees. I have held massive hogs this way in excess of 8 hours with outstanding results. Good luck my friend.

Thanks again! I will post pics once it's done.

 

[landarc]

trust SGH

 

[ssv3]

The guys covered it all. I've done two similar sized pigs the last two years and averaged 6 hours or so. I'd also recommend stuffing the cavity with cabbage (if you're cooking/positioning it racing style) for even cooking since the hams pretty much take the longest to cook as opposed to the rest.

 

[Trailer Trash]

I just did a 41 Lbs pig 3 weeks ago on a Meadow Creek PR60. The temp was around 275-300°. I expected the pig to hit 175° in around 5 hours (1 hour peer 10 Lbs + 1 hour for luck). It actually took 6 hours... As a word of personal experience, I found that the thermometer that is mounted on my cooker was running as much as 50° off (low) from my digital thermometer which is why the cook took longer than expected. It is better to plan on getting done a good hour before you eat as the meat will easily hold it's temp for a long time provided you don't cut the skin open. Good luck to you!!!

 

[smoke ninja]

I did one about that size. I remember it taking about 6 hrs or so. Average temp 275.

It was butterflied on a block pit, direct heat. Old school style, shoveling coals.

 

[Untraceable]

I'm thinking the 6hr suggestions are plenty. I did a 130 in a cinder block pit in wind and rain with wet wood (poor coal production) and at 11 HR it was 10 degrees over

 

[mchar69]

I will post pics once it's done

.
PLEEEEZ!

Trailer Trash yours looks so excellent.

 

[Trailer Trash]

Hey Brethren, What internal temperature are you shooting for. I mentioned 172°ish. I shoot for 197-205 on pork butts. What say you?

 

[bbqwizard]

I just did a 41 Lbs pig 3 weeks ago on a Meadow Creek PR60. The temp was around 275-300°. I expected the pig to hit 175° in around 5 hours (1 hour peer 10 Lbs + 1 hour for luck). It actually took 6 hours... As a word of personal experience, I found that the thermometer that is mounted on my cooker was running as much as 50° off (low) from my digital thermometer which is why the cook took longer than expected. It is better to plan on getting done a good hour before you eat as the meat will easily hold it's temp for a long time provided you don't cut the skin open. Good luck to you!!!

Beautiful looking pig!

 

[dano]

.
PLEEEEZ!

Trailer Trash yours looks so excellent.

I injected/rubbed the night before and let it rest for about 15 hrs.
The pig went on around 12:45pm and came off around 9pm (shoulder hit 190) Since it took longer than expected and since I had a hungry group, I figured that temp would be fine. Everything was super tender/moist and everyone was very happy with the results. Guess because it was a younger pig I didn't have to take it quite as high.
Thanks for all the help...no place better than here! Thanks Brethren!