Summer Tradition Pig Roasts

Today's New York Times Dining section had an interesting and detailed article on pig roasts. They're a big tradition in almost every part of the US., topping church picnics and barbecues. They're rare in the Big Apple and with good reason.It takes a lot of heat and space to create one.

Steve Rinella who wrote the article had a hankering to recreate a pig roast from his Midwestern youth. He tried, with the help of his best friend, Matt Weingarten who oversees the restaurant at the famous St Bart's Church on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Unfortunately they tried in Mr. Rinella's small Brooklyn backyard only to have the local fire department douse the fire pit for cooking. Weeks later a second attempt was made , this time on a friend's family farm in the very rural Middleburgh,New York., It was huge success here and with good reason. There was enough land to build a substantial fire pit to cook a 240 pound pig.

Pig roasts can be fun but remember that you need a lot of land to do so.It also helps to have a big back yard and only a few neighbors. A pit is the size of a large bathtub and requires several hours of digging and lining large stones. Cooking is an involved affair to, from prepping (pictures accompanying the piece show four men carrying the carcass to the pit) to actual roasting time which can take a full day. The result is incredible however, with tender succulent meat and joints. The pig was stuffed with pineapple and butternut squash to name a few and was covered with a sweet-peppery dry rub that included spices, brown sugar and juniper. Again this is labor intensive and requires a lot of help.

Pig roasts are a fun part of summer eating and celebrating, However they are also complicated to execute. If you have the space and the time, they're well worth it. After all there's nothing like the taste of fresh barbecued pork for a warm weather feast.