High on the hog

This weekend, Saturday afternoon found us gathering with a huge group of family and friends to celebrate the fortieth wedding anniversary of my cousin and his wife. It was a surprise party, hosted by the couple's children, and held outdoors at their home in the country across town from us.


The setting was lovely, the weather was perfect and the special occasion provided a fine reason to celebrate. Give this branch of my family any excuse for a party and they are on it! The same group also gathers every year for an outdoor swim on New Year's Day, after cutting a hole in the iced-over pond, but that's a whole other story. Another well established family tradition, and one that was part of yesterday's anniversary celebration, is roasting a pig. And, when it comes to pork, these folks know their business.

The process begins early in the day and the prepared hog is wrapped in chicken wire and placed on the large rotisserie-pole inside the giant roaster that was built years ago for this purpose. With the heat kept regulated to the correct temperature, the pig is slowly roasted over the course of several hours, until the meat is so tender that it would fall right off the bone if not for the chicken wire. When done, large sections of the hog are removed from the roaster one at a time, placed in large pans and then cut and shredded for immediate serving.

The end result of this long, hot and rather messy procedure is true pork perfection. Chunks of tender and juicy meat are coated with a crispy bark of caramelized skin and the flavors combine to make each and every forkful a delicious bite.

Accompanied by simple sides like boiled potatoes and onions, macaroni and cheese, and crispy fresh vegetables, the roasted pork makes for one awesome meal. We went back for seconds and actually found ourselves contemplating going back for thirds. Talk about hog heaven!