hog roast

[crookcook]

I am doing a hog roast for a wedding in June. Any good ideas for marinades and sides? Nothing to fancy they want to keep the cost down just new spins on the old sides

[Suzanne]

What will be in season and ready then? That should probably guide you for the raw materials to use.

Corn? If so, maybe a corn pudding with some different spicing?

[W.DeBord]

My mind isn't on sides right this second, but I had to post:

GREAT idea Suzanne, love the corn pudding idea w/pork! In season or out.

[brian1e4]

I made pulled-pork sandwiches for an office party a few years back. One of the side dishes was hand-cooked potato chips made on site as the sandwiches were being served. The other side dish was a slaw.

Brian

[Isa]

What is pulled pork???

I made pulled-pork sandwiches for an office party

[Kimmie]

Shredded Pork

[kuan]

More than just any old shredded pork! The pork is barbecued in the traditional style. The traditional cut is pork butt. It is smoked slowly on a spit using real wood and basted continually with a vinegar mop. The whole process takes about eight hours and half a case of beer. A whole case if you're sharing basting duty. After 3/4 of the case is gone you start your pot of barbecue sauce simmering on the edge of the grill. To make a pulled pork sandwich, you use a fork and "pull" the meat of the pork shoulder, mix it up with the barbecue sauce, and slop it on a bun.

Kuan

[shroomgirl]

Shoulder is good too.....I lived in Memphis long enough to slap slaw on my BBQ.....nothing like pulled pork. I've also spent 15 years in southern Louisiana with whole pig cooking....

Depending on what's growing....
obviously you'll need a slaw or variety of acid based salads to cut the fat.
Morels are here in April/May depending on where you are and when in June you may have shrooms.....
Good rolls...rosemary chiabattas go well with pig
fun mustards...coarse and smooth
Maybe a beet/carrot salad...well if there is substanual white around that may not be a good choice.
I'm stalling out....need more input.....outdoors? everyone dressed for a wedding? how casual? How innovative? what part of June and what's growing then?

[Gretchen]

Here is a recipe for the best Carolina Pulled Pork you can get. You might not want to do the whole hog--just lots of shoulders or butts
Carolina Pulled pork
I posted it a long time ago. It is truly easy and delicious.
1 pork shoulder or butt, bone in or out--any size--the cooking time is the same for a 3#or
8# piece.
BBQ rub of your choice (I will post mine if you want) or just rub the meat with a mixture
of coarse ground black pepper and brown sugar. Let marinate 8 hours or overnight.
Method 1--IF you have a smoker that can control the temp (I have a sidebox smoker and can keep the temp at 200*-250*) smoke the meat for 4 hours, keeping the temp low.
Then place the meat in a 250* oven for 4 hours to finish. It will be meltingly tender and have a wonderful smoky flavor.
Method 2 (and this is the one I have really used for 30 years). Place the meat in a 250*oven for 8 hours. I have often done them overnight. It will still have the melting tenderness. You will have to slap your hands to have any left over as you take it out of
the oven.
When ready to serve pull chunks of meat off and then "pull" the meat into shreds by pulling between 2 forks. Do not discard the fat--mix it in. This is not a low fat dish and to really enjoy, use it!!!

For a traditional Carolina serving method very lightly moisten the meat with sweetened vinegar (1 qt. vinegar + 1/4C sugar and 2TBS coarse black pepper).

To warm before serving put the vinegared meat in a pan (black iron frying pan is good) and cover tightly. Heat at 250* until heated.
To serve, offer bbq sauces, cole slaw (in the Carolinas, it goes ON the sandwich), baked beans, rolls, and banana pudding.
For fall bbq's Brunswick Stew is also offered.

For BBQ sauce here is my tomato based:
1 bottle ketchup (28 or 32 oz.)
1 ketchup bottle of cider vinegar
6 oz. yellow mustard
6 oz. worcestershire sauce
1/2C brown sugar
3 oz. liquid smoke
2-3 TBS coarse black pepper
Tabasco to your taste
Simmer for 45 minutes.
If you use commercial bbq sauce I suggest diluting them 1/2 with vinegar for this use.
Eastern NC uses vinegar sauces--sweetened vinegar with 1/4C (at least!!) cayenne pepper
OR black pepper. It is too hot for me!
South Carolina uses a mustard based sauce but don't know the recipe.

[marmalady]

What about a three-potato potato salad?

I use yukon golds, reds, and sweet potatoes; cook all three separately, the sweet potatoes well done. blend the sweet potatoes with the mayo, add scallions, salt/pepper, garlic powder, and celery seed.

Or a sweet/vinegar marinated slaw.

Or a 'sunshine carrot salad' - shredded carrots, raisins, mandarin orange slices, coconut, almonds, in a vanilla yogurt base.

Or bourbon baked beans?

Love pig roasts!