AboutEnrique Torres Expertise How to cook meat (beef, poultry, pork, fish, shrimps, lamb) using pan friying, grilling and steem systems.
Experience My company has been deveploping studies in meat cooking since 2000, my expertise is based on the last studies in meat histology changes related to cooking process and recipes. My expertise is focused on juciness, tenderness and yield increasing.
Education/Credentials La Salle Univ. Animal Scientist 1986-1992
National University of Colombia Food and Science Technology focused on meat processing.1992-1994
Andes University (Colombia) Marketing Specialist 1997-1999
Saint Joseph's University (Philadelphia) Food Marketing 2001
Meat processors consultant since 1995.
Question Hello,
We have an approximately 110 lb (dressed) pig we will be cooking via rotisserie over a charcoal pit. I don't have exact numbers on how thick some of the meat is. We can vary the heat with cooking height and coal distribution, and from what I gather it is best to start with a lower heat for several hours and then increase it closer to the end of the cooking time. I have heard cooking times estimated from 6-8 to 16-18 hours for this sized pig. Can you recommend a cooking temperature and provide any clearer estimate of cooking time based upon that temp?
Thank you,
Randy
Answer Randy:
Initial cooking temperature could be around 300 F.
Final cooking temperature 350 F.
Cooking time depends on the capacity of the charcoal pit, its heat's transfer capacity, meat thickness, if meat has or not bones, how thick are bones and the uniformity of the meat pieces (the more different meat forms you're going to cook, more difficult is to define a cooking time).
What I recommend is to start cooking the bigger pieces you have and check inside the bigger bones , if they are red, they need more cooking time, if they are brown, it is the right time. The time you define using this method could be useful for next pieces.
