Tasty Trotter Hog Roast Spit Pig BBQ Rent Buy Spit Roast Oven Hog roast Machine BBQ For rent Spit Roast for Rent Spitting Pig Hoggboss Event supplies

• Oven Preparation

The Tasty Trotter Mini Spit Roast requires little to no preparation prior to cooking. Really the only thing to remember is to make sure you thoroughly clean the machine before its first use to ensure any manufacturing oils are removed.

 

Please note that we recommend always carrying a screwdriver and spanner with you to ensure that you can tighten any bolts or screws that have come loose during cooking or transportation.

 

• Meat Preparation

The mini spit can cook many different types of meat and is suitable for suckling pig, dressed hind or lamb. However we think the most popular is pork and with this in mind our meat preparation guide has been written using pork as the main meat.

 

There are several different schools of thought on how to prepare a pig for roasting; the best advice would be to consult with your local butcher or meat supplier. The most important point is to firmly secure the pig to the spit distributing the weight as evenly as possible; ensure you fit the spit as close to the top of the rib cage as you can. Most butchers will do this for you but if not then please see our video guide. Basic rules are that the U shaped retainers will go through the middle (back of the animal) and be responsible for the majority of the meats weight. The 4 pronged retainers are used on either end on the spit shaft to secure the ends of the meat in place.

Keep in mind that you will need to remove the head and feet; the mini spit isn't quite big enough for this and in our experience customers tend to shy away and not like to see this anyway.

 

• To score or not to score

Scoring requires cutting into the skin about 1cm deep in several places, ensuring lines do not cross. Tasty Trotter Event Supplies do not recommend scoring every time, you are cooking the meat for the meat and not the crackling, the crackling, in our opinion, is an added bonus.

We believe that scoring the meat increases the risk of the meat falling off the spit and more importantly it can increase the risk of dry meat. Not scoring the meat means the juices are kept inside which we believe makes for far more succulent and tasty meat. The only drawback with this is that the cracking may require some good, sharpe scissors to cut through it once cooked.

 
There is very little preparation required for the meat but best results can be obtained by sprinkling the skin with salt and rubbing it in. If you decide to score then it is important that the score lines are not linked and cannot form islands of skin that can fall off. Use short score lines of around 5cm long and NOT criss-crossing other lines.

 

• Cooking Guidelines

There are many different opinions on methods of cooking meat in spit roast machines, scoring or not, seasoning, temperatures etc. all of these are down to personal preference and with time of you using your machine you will inevitably have your own methods to share. This being said below is a brief how to guide of the basics.

 

Cooking times will depend on the weight of the meat and some varying factors (outdoors temperature etc.) If possible the meat will always cook better and quicker if it is has been brought up to room temperature. It is likely to have been refrigerated at around 3°C so it will ideally need around 2-5 hours or so to get to room temperature prior to cooking.

 

There is no need to preheat the oven prior to cooking which allows you to fully ensure the meat is in place and secure once placed inside the oven.

 

For filled bread rolls with stuffing & pork, you will need to allow approximately 160g to 225g per person; 175g per person is usually adequate for most calculations as this is equivalent to a normal average appetite.

We recommend that for the first 45mins or so of cooking you put both burners on full to cook the meat at around 250°C, this should sear the meat and result in a less visible loss of juices. Meat fibers contract when heat is applied, squeezing out juices from the inside, with a high heat applied first these juices will be burnt into a crust on the outside of the meat; sealing it and retaining more of the juices on the inside resulting in more succulent, tasty meat.

 

Following this, reduce the oven temperature to around 200°C for the remaining cooking time, slower and lower heat cooking results in better meat flavor. One burner should be adequate to provide enough heat to achieve this temperature. A generally rule of thumb for pork is one hour of cooking for every 10 kilo of meat. This time will need to be increased if you want to serve pulled (shredded) style pork.
For lamb the cooking time is reduced. The way lamb is severed is down to personal preference as it can be served pink so it requires less cooking time.

 

Test the meat is fully cooked with a suitable temperature gauge and visually check the juices are running clear.

 

NOTE Pork must reach 75°C to be classed as safe (78°C in Scotland) so test meat is fully cooked with a suitable temperature gauge and visibly check the juices are running clear.

 

PLEASE do not solely trust the temperature gauge on the oven. Due to its position it takes some time for the true temperature to soak through to this gauge. 

 

IMPORTANT
Only cook in a well-ventilated area, ensure that no combustible materials are within 1 metre of the oven, ensure vents are not obscured in any way and that the oven isn't in a windy location. Do not leave unattended and check that the burner(s) are lit and the spit is rotating on a regular basis.