Go to the Recipe: Tender, Crispy-Skinned Whole Suckling Pig
Thanks for the inspiration. Curious about using a garbage bag for the sous vide. All I can think about is those awful scented garbage bags. I have two suckling pigs defrosting now and trying to find big bags that will pull a vacuum. Anyone have thoughts on this...
Hi, I want to make porcheta for my dinner. Do you have any recommendations for the cooking? i want the skin to be golden brown, like this pig skin! Thank's!
REVISED BRINE:
The recomended brine is far too little liquid to sufficiently fill the cavity. I revised the brine with the help of a pit master friend of mine here in Houston. Sorry for not converting to grams but here is what I used and it was fantastic and very succulent:
2 gallons of water, 24 tbs kosher salt, 4 tbs sodium nitrate, 2 cups sugar, 20 cloves garlic smashed, 8 bay leaves, 32 sprigs thyme.
I mixed the brine the night before for flavors to meld and then added brine to bag at the time of Sous Vide. Be sure to smash the garlic and not mince it because you run the risk of it overpowering everything else. For the sodium nitrate, I used the pink salt that Chef Steps recommends in their brisket recipe for the smoke ring.
Another question, Can you put a frozen pig in the brine and SV ?
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@chefsteps Hey! I was looking at your medieval suckling pig recipe! So cool! I'm going to attempt it this week! I had a quick question: Is there any harm or advantage to putting the pig in the brine for a certain period of time before cooking? Like overnight?
What would you recommend is the best cover for the cooler?
Wish to know it too, in june i gotta roast 160 pound pig, and have a dilema how to do it was reading amazingribs.com but i got rottesiere instead of their "box pits", guess its totaly different way of preparing
it's more dependent on thickness than weight. You might consider having a look at their pastrami project from a few years back: https://www.chefsteps.com/activities/world-s-largest-sous-vide-pastrami
Good luck!
This question was already asked before, but any suggestions on how to extend the cooking time for a larger pig? Specifically asking for a pig around 40 pounds. Thanks!
What directions are there for using your oven instead of a spit. Most of us do not have one
I live in Singapore and frankly we cannot find a fireplace here. Can anyone advise a convection oven setting for this? I am thinking 400F (max) for no more than 8 minutes or until some charring occurs? How do you guys think?
Would we be able to just throw this on a grill at the end? It's not ideal but it may be our only option.
Hello,
The smallest suckling we could locate is 25-30 pounds. How much would you advise to extend the cooking time by? Thanks!
This pork brine is the last I'll ever use. So glad I tried this! It was a hit. tender, juicy meat all throughout. So flavorful and succulent. The way the fat coats your mouth with flavor is to die for. Even if you don't want to invest in a suckling pig, grab a pork butt or a loin roast and use the brine for that and it'll be delicious. Just a hint though if you're having a boneless loin roast, ask your butcher to cut it from the shoulder end. There's more dark meat on that end of the loin making it more flavorful and it'll help it to stay moist.
Could I use the recipe for honey glazed ham on a whole suckling pig instead? Just scale up the brine and reheat the pig before roasting, right? Ive had success using pork shoulder instead of hocks.
So coolΨThat is really awesome
Seriously awesome. I love the idea of a rotisserie without all the hassle of a rotisserie.
I like the custom yoga mat sous vide evaporation trick
I can't imagine why it wouldn't be possible. Check out this project they did a few years back. You will need to extend the time and increase the ingredients and necessary, but I shouldn't be too difficult to pull off as long as you have the necessary ingredients and equipment. Let us know how it comes out, in possible, make a forum post...with pictures! Good luck!
@chefsteps would this be viable for a moderately larger pig? I have one coming in that's in the neighborhood of 90 lbs. Would I break it down into 20-25lb quarters, adjust cooking time/temp, proceed as normal, or is this just a bad idea?
You'll probably need a wire rack to keep the pig elevated, so there's proper air circulation astounds the pig. Use of a convection oven would be ideal.
If i was going to crisp up the skin in an oven what would i need to do?
I'd check the accuracy and temperature drift of your oven before trying it out. As far as using your Anova: i wouldn't use a polycarbonate container. I would strongly urge you to use the recommended cooler. They recommend a 28 qt, but larger would be better. The cooler is going to naturally hold the great better than the polycarbonate, putting less of a burden on your immersion circulator. I have am anova as well, and there is no doubt that the Joule is a note powerful devise. What you might do is cut a hole in the top of a cooler's lid to slide the anova in. I would boil water on the stove, and mix it with got water from the tap. I'd try to get it 10Β°F to 15Β°F hotter than what you actually need, then poor the pig in. That just what I would do. I'm unfamiliar with your steam oven, however, if it does have accurate temperature control (use a thermocouple or instant read thermometer for more accurate readings), i don't see why it wouldn't work. Let us know what you end up doing, and how it comes out. Good luck!
So far I haven't felt the need of an oven thermometer, since comparing to my immersion circulator the results in the oven are pretty close. I assume the temperature control is reasonably reliable (it's a high end Miele oven). The problem is that I don't know if I can attach my Anova to a cooler (the side seems too thick) and the steam oven seems easier. Actually I have a 30 quart polycarbonate container which I could use for this, but in my experience the Anova struggles a bit with such amount of water at a pretty high temperature. So the steam oven would still be an easier choice.
Thanks for that but I would have thought 1ltr of water for the brine is far to little to allow enough fluid in the bag to ensure it can transfer the heat from the bath?
Also I am surprised its only cooked for 5 hours, most pork I do is 24hours or so, so I assume this isn't falling apart cooked but still quite firm?
Thanks for the recipe its worth a go for sure.
Hi, If I wanted to use just pork belly, rolled like a porchetta, instead of a whole sucking, what temperature should my water bath be & how long should I cook it? Is it better to have it rolled already before sous vide cooking or better to roll it after cooking?
just a guess, but probably King size?
What kind of temperature control does your steam oven have?
In the list of suggested equipment, the cooler links to here. It's a 28 quart cooler, and that should be more than enough. If you think about it, a 15-20 lb suckling pig is about the same volume as a larger turkey, so that should suit anyone's needs just fine. The cooler will also function to keep the heat in more adequately than just a large lexan food service container or pot. That, combined with the thermal properties of water should take care of anything you'd need.
I heard he hasn't seen his wife or child since the wedding day.
Respectfully, most premium members either already have these tools, or would consider getting them to reach new heights in experience. If you can afford a premium account, then you can probably afford an immersion circulator or any other lesser known tools and/or ingredients - they aren't that expensive in the big picture. ChefSteps is known for being the home of the cutting edge mix of science and new techniques - thats why most people (including myself) purchased a Premium membership - we crave new techniques such as immersion circulation to cook a suckling pig! I LOVE this method!
@chefsteps what size cooler would you need for this?
You are right, I'll give it a try. I know this wasn't a premium recipe, it was just that I got carried away. Thnx for the reply, I'll definitely give it a try.
Can I use a steam oven instead of an immersion circulator? Would you suggest any adjustment to the brining/cooking process?
Why? This isn't a premium recipe. Not only that, but they have always been heavily into cooking their food sous vide. This is nothing new. I have reservations regarding the Joule, and probably will not buy it until well after it's release date. That said, I've been cooking sous vide since long before I even knew about ChefSteps. At the time, immersion circulators were still around 800 USD and up, so I built my own for about 80 USD. There are plenty of plans out there on the internet. There are also many other brands to choose from: Anova, PolyScience, Vollrath, Nomiku, Gourmia, you get the idea; some for cheaper, some far more expensive. If you really don't want to keep your premium status: if you legitimately didn't know what ChefSteps was about before you spent money to buy a premium account, you might try contacting them directly so see if there is anyway to have a refund/return to non-premium status. Their email address info@chefsteps.com Good luck.
Yes, that's the point of the spit roast after the water bath. To crisp up the skin.
Will the skin be crunchy crispy?
So... If i don't have an immersion circulator im screwed? Im starting to regret my premium account.
Since its already cook, and I don't have a spit, I guess I could finish it on my charcoal?
Haven't had this dish since my friends' red wedding.
that spit would work well over my widdow fire pit. :-)
Epic.
Can't wait for the lemon cake recipe!!
