Serving whole hog?

WOW :shocked: You have dug yourself a very deep hole. This should not be your first time cooking whole hog. This is something you need to practice in advance with a smaller pig. I don't think you realise what you are getting yourself into.

I make my Eastern Carolina Pig Pickin' Sauce about 2 weeks in advance, shaking the container every other day (it's worth the effort).

I make the injection for the pig about 2 days in advance.

I don't know how far in advance you are getting your pig but make sure the pig you are getting is not frozen. It takes days to thaw out. It should fit in a 120 quart cooler with a few bags of ice. I inject and rub the pig the night before. A pistol injector with a hose is good for this.

You are gonna have to cook the pig is the racer position. When you put the pig on the grill, rub oil on the skin, wrap the ears and tail in aluminum foil to keep them from burning and put a wood chunk in the mouth (replace it with an apple when the pig is done).

Use a plywood board wrapped in aluminum foil to remove the pig from the grill and to move around.

Hope this helps.

What are you cooking it on? Can you pull the rack out its on? At least you are cooking a small one. How big is the crowd and is it just friends and family. You probably will get a lot of different opinions. I would cook the hog butterflied laying on his back. I would remove his ribs and then make a cut along the spine just below the neck about 8 to 10 inches this will allow the hog to lay flat. A hatchet works great for that. I also would sprits the skin. Rub it inject it. I would smoke it for about 4 hours to get some good flavor then I would wrap the entire hog in foil so it doesn't get to dark. After the hog reached 170 I would inject it again and remove foil and cook shoulders to 185 and hams 170. Then it's time to glaze the hog. Cook it for about another 45 minutes or until your likening then before serve I would spritz it again. Don't be nervous you can pull this off. I did my first hog at a district work party with 20 other chefs there and they loved it. I would decorate it and let everyone pick it.

I have a "tray" made of plywood and 2 inch sides. I cover it in foil, lay finished pig on it belly up. I garnish it with lettuce, pineapple, apples etc. I put apple in pigs mouth and cherry tomatoes in the eyes. I always leave one side as is for people to pick what they want. I either debone and pull the other side using the skin as a serving tray or leave it as is also. Let it rest for an hour before serving.

I take all the meat out, coarsely chop and toss with vinegar pepper blend. This way everyone gets a consistent portion of pork that has great complexity from the different parts of the hog, mixed with a slightly tangy flavor from the vinegar blend. I cook mine in the style of Eastern NC, though. I actually cook mine on a pig cooker, so would have a different process than if using a smoker. I see you have a MC120, is that what you're using?

I don't know how to post pics on this forum, but will try to figure it out.

serve it all pulled together, not enough ribs to go around, let the flavors meld.

its not as hard as some are saying, hit your temperatures, and have fun .

if people want to oogle it then set it up while resting, for pics, then just pull it all.

Here is a thread I did;
http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=186934

You are right! You are very capable of cooking it. It is very do-able. I bought the kale, fruits etc., printed a picture of what I wanted it to look like and turned the decorating over to the young ones of the party. They had a blast and the involvement was enjoyed by everyone. We had 2 friends picking it apart and setting it out in trays in front of the pig, with buns and 3 very different sauce types to choose from.

A 50lb pig is not very big. I'd serve it whole, make a nice presentation.

Sometimes it depends on the people you serve, some like to pick their own and some shy away from a whole critter on the table. You can set a pan of meat out for them.

Cowgirl nailed it. Let it rest? Hell no you will have a riot on your hands. Start picking it apart as soon as you won't get burned too bad thru your rubber gloves.

I would think about a bigger pig. I know there is a lot of difference going from 90-100 pound pigs to 110-120 lb. it seems like you get almost twice the meat for just 10-20 more lbs of pig. I dress mine for pics while still in the smoker like stated above, after all the "wows" and "looks great" pull it out and start pulling ( trust me a lot will get ate at the pulling table, I encourage a few guest that are interested to glove up and help). I to like to mix it all and will try and trim the ribs out and place them around the platter( make sure you cut them before you cook). Some people that love pork wont go near it while its still in the skin, mostly kids.