There is nothing quite like a roasted pig as a centerpiece to your summertime barbeque. This mouth-watering culinary feat not only looks great but will wow your guests with how good it tastes. If you decide to take on this cooking challenge at your next backyard bash, though, then you are going to need to do a lot of food safety homework – the last thing you want to do is make your guests sick. Here are our recommendations, from our pro team at Pig Roast Catering to you, to make sure that your day is fun, safe, and tasty. 

One of the biggest things that you have to consider when roasting a pig is the threat of bacteria and making sure that you kill it off. There are many different types of bacteria, salmonella being one of them, that can live on pork and make sure that you store the pig safely before you cook it and that you cook it all the way through to the correct temperature. Roasting a whole pig is different than cooking parts of a pig, like chops or ribs. When you cook a whole pig, you are dealing with a lot more meat with varying thicknesses and joints. To make sure that everything is cooked to food-safe levels then cook the entire pig to 195°F all the way through – this will eliminate any chance of bloody meat or bloody joints. Pork is white meat and cannot be consumed rare, so make sure that no one gets sick.

Before you get down to cooking though, you will have to deal with the raw pig. If you are lucky and able to pick up the pig from the butcher or grocery store on the day of the event, then you will not have to worry about storing it overnight. No matter what though, your pig should be kept on ice so that it does not begin to spoil and so that bacteria does not start to grow. Your whole pig needs to remain covered and cool when you are preparing it for roasting outside, to keep away the sun, bugs and contaminates.

If you roast a whole pig at your event, then you are going to be putting in a lot of time and energy throughout the festivities to make sure that everything goes as it should. You have to deal with a blistering heat source and a pig that might be as big as you while also hosting the whole event. Considering all of these things, and the fact that your guests could get sick if you do not roast your pig right, it can be a good idea to hire the pros instead. When it comes to pig roasting, the team at Pig Roast Catering are the experts. We will come to your event with a fully roasted, ready-to-eat hog or arrive bright and early to roast a pig on site.

If you need a roasted pig in Toronto or the GTA, we’re your one-stop-shop. Call us today!