Roasted Whole Suckling Pig

fatboy's menu five

I know this post is going to offend some readers. So, I’m placing this little warning here. If you’re among that part of the population that doesn’t condone the cooking and eating of cute, baby animals, please don’t scroll down. If, however, you live to eat and absolutely love the idea of tucking into a gorgeously roasted suckling pig, keep reading.

Over the years I have prepared pork in many different ways. And while I have long considered myself pretty pig-proficient, there was always one style – one rather amazing dish – that I never got around to making. Truth be told, I always found the idea of roasting our own suckling pig hugely daunting.

I’m not sure why, but I had always assumed that preparing a roasted, whole suckling pig would be incredibly difficult, time-consuming and complex. The idea, quite simply, scared me. It’s the kind of dish you could eat in a restaurant but not the kind of thing you’d make for a Sunday lunch. Then I read through a copy of Fergus Henderson’s "Beyond Nose to Tail: More Omnivorous Recipes for the Adventurous Cook" and it took a lot of fear away.

It is a surprisingly easy recipe. The hardest part, aside from finding a suckling pig, is getting over how cute the piglet was.

Roasted Whole Suckling Pig
Roasted Whole Suckling Pig	You can order our little piggy online. Click on over to McReynolds Farms.com (URL is http://www.mcreynoldsfarms.com/) and then select "Suckling Pigs" from the menu. While there, check out their recipes for comparison. Read these instructions carefully well before hand.
Ingredients	Pig 1 small suckling pig, gutted and cleaned, with the kidneys left within Olive oil Sea salt Black pepper Stuffing 4 red onions A dollop of duck fat 375 ml (half a bottle) red wine kidneys of the pig, chopped 1/2 loaf of day-old white bread, cubed 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed 8 sage leaves, chopped
Cooking Instructions	A day before cooking, salt and pepper your piglet liberally, both inside and out, and place it uncovered on a wire rack, over a tray, and into your fridge. You want it to be cool and dry. Cook the red onions in duck fat over low heat until the onions are soft. Pour in the red wine. Let this simmer and reduce until the mixture becomes a yummy, dark red confit. If you find that the onions are becoming a tad dry but aren’t soft enough, you can add a little bit of water to the pan and keep cooking. Add the chopped-up kidneys to the mix. Then add pieces of bread and stir well. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Take off the heat and add the garlic and sage. Set aside until cool to the touch. When ready, stuff your piglet. Turn your piglet over onto its back and fill the cavity with the stuffing. Sew as much of your piglet shut as you can. I used kitchen twine and a large needle and was able to sew up about two-thirds of its front. Preheat your oven with the fan on to 150 degrees Celsius. If you don’t have a fan function, heat to 160 degrees Celsius. Lightly oil a roasting pan or oven tray and place your piglet on it, “sphinx-like”, i.e. belly down, with its legs close to but on the side of the body. Shove a small ball of aluminum foil into the piglet’s mouth. Also wrap the piggy’s ears in foil. Rub a healthy amount of olive oil all over the piglet’s back and sprinkle a little more sea salt over it. Pop it into your oven and roast for between 3 hours 30 minutes to 4 hours. Note: if you don’t have a fan-assisted oven, you may want to spin your pan around after about 2 hours
Comments	Your pig’s skin should be crisp and the meat tender and moist. Carve it at the table or inside your kitchen. Enjoy!

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