Fancy holding a hog roast at your next special occasion, whether that be a birthday bash, wedding reception or corporate gig? Hog roast cooking is a historic and delicious method of roasting a pig – centuries of cooking this way can’t be wrong – but it does need a little prep to really make the most of this method at your event. Here’s how:
Hire a top of the range machine
In the Middle Ages, hungry hog roasters would have their whole hog roasting over a fire pit, held in place with a huge timber framework. They had to manually turn the pig by hand occasionally – a lot of hard work. Plus, it would take over 14 hours to cook completely! Fortunately, top of the range machines are now available to buy or hire for your event so you can cook your meat with very little hassle.
Get the crackling right
Though the roast pork itself is going to be the main event (perhaps served with a flour bun and plenty of apple sauce), crackling is a wonderful perk of this form of catering – so get it right! Crackling requires plenty of salt, a good basting juice (a mix of lemon juice and cooking oil works well) and the right scoring technique. Make sure you score right down so that it touches the underlying fat, and don’t ever score in a criss-cross.
Consider the weather
If you’re going to hold a hog roast in Wales outdoors, make sure you get yourself a gazebo or shelter for your hog roast team to stand under if it rains. Not only will it keep your chef happy but, should your guests have to line up to get their meat they won’t get wet either.
Don’t forget the vegetarians
While you are eager to feast on the most succulent pork, don’t forget to think about what your vegetarians are going to have. If you’re going to be serving your pork in buns, choose something that they can also have in a bun, like a spiced bean burger.
