A few weeks ago, my next door neighbour Chris yelled over the fence wall and said, “Hey Maureen, interested in blogging about roasting a suckling pig in the pizza oven for Australia Day?” I couldn’t say yes fast enough.
The first Christmas we were in this neighbourhood, Fran and Chris had all their family visiting and they cooked a pig in their pizza oven outdoors. I smelled that pig from morning until mid afternoon. It was the most wonderful aroma and I’m sure I wasn’t the only person along the canal who wanted to call in for a cup of sugar. I didn’t – I held back only because we were new here.
Chris hasn’t been well for the past few months and after a cancer diagnosis and surgery and all the other things that they do to insult your body when you get this nasty disease – he got the all-clear from his doctors just before he asked me if I wanted to blog the piglet. They have a bbq nearly every Australia Day, the 26th of January and they are the best fun.
We all get to catch up with our neighbours both beside us and across the canal. Honestly, we’re physically pretty close to one another and there’s not a lot of privacy unless you close the blinds. Nobody closes the blinds because then you can’t see what’s going on out on the canal.
Chris told me he had contacted Cotton Tree Meats about sourcing a suckling pig and that he was picking up the pig on Saturday morning. When I went next door to take a photograph of piggy, Chris said he couldn’t have gone anywhere and gotten the service he received from Cotton Tree Meats.
“Maureen, the young fella who waited on me was superb. He got the pig, talked about cooking it and even offered to take it to my car. The pig came wrapped in muslin, ready to pop in the cooler overnight,” said Chris.
The fire was started in the pizza oven early in the morning and when I arrived about 10am, it was nearly ready for the pig. While the oven was hot, they cooked a beautiful pork belly – just in case they ran out of meat. (as if!)
At about 11am it was time to put the pig in the oven. He was too big for one pan so piggy went into the oven head first and his feet dangled in another pan.
Folks started arriving around noon and it wasn’t long before everyone had a drink and was busy catching up with friends and neighbours. I had the best time. Ros and Bryan live across the street and she is one of the most entertaining women I’ve met. This is how Ros arrived for the bbq.
And this is a quiet moment I intruded upon.
Every little while, the pig was turned so he would roast evenly and in less than 2 1/2 hours, it was time to eat.
When I said I was only next door, I wasn’t kidding. In this one I noticed I could see my office door.
While we were waiting for the main event, we had lots to drink and some of these Aussie sausages or prunes wrapped in bacon and cooked on the BBQ. There weren’t many of the prune left because maybe I ate too many.
Not everyone is old-ish, there’s Elle from My Kitchen Rules fame. She and her brother now run Chitty Banh Banh at Brisbane’s trendy Eat Street Markets at Hamilton Wharf every Friday and Saturday.
Then it was time for the main event! Out came the pig and Chris was very happy!
Along with the pork there was a lovely Mediterranean salad that I couldn’t get close enough to photograph because so many people were digging in and there was a tossed salad with chopped raw beetroot and feta and a roasted vegetable and pasta salad.
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I didn’t know Albert but he deftly carved the pig for all of us to enjoy. Albert’s a retired doctor so it was right and fitting that he use his knife skills.
Then it was nearly time to serve. I’ll confess that I went around the table and stuck my fingers in and pulled off a piece of the most succulent pork I’ve ever tasted.
There were onlookers waiting to be fed. I might be married to one.
Once we had stuffed ourselves it was time for dessert. This is Dee who lives several houses up the street from us.
Dee made this really cute AND delicious koala cake.
We also had this beautiful pavlova made by Jan who lives next door to John and I (on the other side). She and her husband David are a joy to be around.
Jan and Ros – two really nice people that I’m privileged to know.
If you’re Australian, you’d know what it’s like to roll a Jaffa down the floor of a movie theatre but these men looked at this dessert table and saw the bowl of Jaffas and then…
Yes, you guessed it, they rolled the Jaffas down the bridge to the pontoon to see if they could get the Jaffa into the water. Think they’d let me get in to photograph it? Absolutely not – it was a championship!
It was a wonderfully relaxed way to celebrate Australia Day 2014. I’m ready for another suckling pig any day! Whatever national holiday you celebrate (I celebrate both the 4th of July and Australia Day) give a suckling pig a try. You can roast one in the oven too.
- 1 suckling pig - well scored by the butcher (or do it yourself with a very sharp knife)
- Carrots (you could also add baby fennel and/or celery - whatever you like)
- Fresh Rosemary sprigs
- Onions
- Salt
- Lemon juice
- Oil
- Bring oven temperature to about 145°C / 300°F
- Salt cavity well and add onions, carrots and rosemary. Close the opening by sewing the skin if you can.
- Cover the snout, ears and tail with foil to prevent burning.
- Place in a large baking sheet with the pig's back on top - this gets the best crackling
- Roast until the pig is cooked to at least 71°C / 160°F and remove from oven and cover.
- Crank up the oven to 260°C / 500°F and slide the pig back into the oven until the skin is blistered and crackled. It should take no more than 30 minutes.
- Remove from oven and rest the pork for about 30 minutes before carving (if you can stand the wait)
G’day! What a FANTASTIC way spending Australia Day with priceless friends Maureen, true!
AND suckling pig…does it get any better? Oh yes, it’s in Australia too! 🙂
Cheers! Joanne
Great photos and Happy Australia Day…good health to all wishes!
I never experienced a roasted pig before (in a pizza oven!). Thanks for sharing the pictures and how it’s made.
Wow that looks incredible, what a feast for Australia day. Love the koala cake too, lovely idea.
What a fantastic spread – my mouth if watering at the thought of the suckling pig. And what a lovely neck of the woods (side of the canal) you live in, Mauzza. Lovely post.
Wow… that looks like some hardcore partying with some suckling pig. 🙂 All the food looks amazing…loved that Koala cake. I’m glad your friend is feeling better and on the mend. Wishing him the best.
You know, I really like what you’ve been doing with your blog, particularly the last year or so. It’s always just a fun read. I really enjoy being invited to share your life — thanks so much. Anyway, Happy Australia Day! You did it right. Wonderful pictures, and I know the meal was delish. I’ve been thinking about doing a suckling pig, and probably will someday. I’ve eaten them (of course!) but never cooked one. Sounds like a ton of fun!
wow, such a fun gathering with a fine quality food…
i adore you Maureen, roasting sucking pig is such a huge effort for me, hehehe
Oh my gosh, so jealous…..AND so wish I could have been part of the fun celebration!!! Hubby and I have talked about making suckling pig, it sounds amazing:-) I will be sharing this delicious post with my hubby! Cheers, Hugs, Terra
Wow Maureen… you did more to celebrate Australia Day than we did. Love this post… wish I could have been there… what a great event!
It would have been fun with you there, Lizzy! You’re the most Australian woman I know. 🙂 and fun.
I was salivating all day yesterday watching the progress of your Australia Day on instagram. Looks like you all had a blast. You picked yourself some good neighbours there.
We are the luckiest humans alive when it comes to getting great neighbours, Nancy. Seriously, we have had the best people living next door wherever we’ve gone. Very lucky indeed.
Happy Australia Day – Sounds like it was a blast – wonderful set of neighbors – great looking pig and (for someone nursing a rather bad sweet tooth) that dessert table looks FANTASTIC!
I was pretty full by dessert time but I did the right thing and had some anyway. 🙂
Wow, Maureen, this is so cool! Interesting post and the recipe is definitely worth saving for later (when I have a piglet and an oven). Can’t wait for summer to come here to fire up our fire pit. So, my friend, you have to celebrate the Australia Day and the Independence Day. Lucky you! 😉
Wonderful news for your friend and neighbour and this roasted pig and all the accompaniments sounds like a wonderful way to celebrate both the health report and Australia Day. So many wonderful pork dishes too … I would have been snagging the Aussie sausages.
I wasn’t expecting the recipe to go along with this great story, so thanks for that too! I really enjoyed reading about your neighbors and I hope Chris keeps in the “all-clear” for good! Lovely friends.. lots of fun.. a sunny day and great costumes, what more could you ask for. I think living that close is what makes you all such great friends? xx
Maybe. I suspect because it’s a canal community and land is at a premium we’re all cheek by jowl. We’re pretty used to it by now. You certainly can’t get angry with your spouse and yell because the whole canal can hear it. 🙂
What a fun gathering! And all that amazing food! I wish I had such wonderful neighbours.
What a way to celebrate Australia Day. Congratulations! I can hear the sounds of fun and the smell of the piggy in the oven, all the way to the Blue Mountains. 🙂
Our Pizza Oven is finished and working. We have had a few gatherings of brave people to experience our burnt offerings. Now it is time to do the right thing and prepare a piggy for our Pizza Oven. Thanks for passing on your valuable recipies:) 🙂
OH! Maureen! What a fab lady you are and what fun we had too on Australia Day!
Never have we had such wonderful, caring and truly thoughtful neighbours as Chris and Fran. Nothing gets in the way of them creating a marvellous fun day for us all. SPECIAL!!
Love your blog too Maureen – must visit it often – not that I can cook but I will marvel at your ability and amazing way with words. Love you!!! thank you for sharing!
Ros! You beautiful woman. Folks, this is Ros, the one in the fancy sunglasses who possesses perhaps the most delightful personality in the world. 🙂
Happy Auzzie Day Mate! Wow what a feast! I have never been to a whole pig roast before unless a luau in Hawaii counts. I love the pork crackle and that meat looked super moist and delicious. You guys sure know how to party. Take Care, BAM
What a fantastic gathering of friends and neighbours to celebrate Australian Day. Wish I was there to “pig out” on all that delicious food, especially the suckling pig.
Norma, if you make it to Australia, we’ll roast a pig in your honor!
Looks like a great time Maureen. Oh to have sunshine, short, and BBQ’s 🙂
Hi Maureen!
Glad to know you had a wonderful Australia day! Your party looked like a lot of fun. Many happy smiles and plenty of delicious foods. The sucking pig looked divine and the koala cake looked way too cute! Our Australia day in Sydney was a lot of fun too. Best wishes! 🙂
Hello and thanks so much for coming by and leaving a comment. It’s very much appreciated. Lovely to meet you!
Lovely to meet you too and thank you also for Easy Recipe – it’s awesome!! By the way, I meant suckling pig.. 🙂
We are crazy about suckling pigs here, specially if the skin is very crispy!!! I miss having a barbecue!
The crackling was the best bit! People were fighting over the last bits of skin. 🙂
I kinda want to recreate this entire event for Canada Day…
You should! We share the same queen and all.
Loved this post; seeing the water and short sleeves ‘almost’ made me feel warmer. What a wonderful group of people and even though I only know your friend through these few words; I am, more than ever before, always glad to hear of someone beating ‘stupid cancer.’
Thanks for sharing…now I’m trying to peek into that office door a bit!
Aaahhh I dream of suckling pig. This looks like a wonderful friend filled day with fabulous food. If only I had a wood fired oven – the things I could cook! Love the jaffa rolling contest, we used to have a holiday home near the coast, in the autumn if you rolled the apples from the tree hard enough, you could get them onto the hill and down to the beach. People used to wonder how so many apples got there! GG
What an amazing feast. The suckling pig would turn the hardest of non meat/pig eaters. I’m just want some now.
That koala cake is so cute 🙂 Almost a shame to cut into him! (But, you know… *almost*. Cake is cake, after all.)
What a spread! I’m very interested in those wrapped prunes now—and the pork most definitely looks very succulent!
Maureen, I saw your pics on FB (I’ve peeked in now & again during my hiatus) and thought it was SO cool that you actually photo-chronicled how to roast a suckling pig, complete with an apple in his mouth! The ambiance of your get-together mirrors our “spontaneous lake neighbor gatherings” (few and far between though they are) when everyone contributes the best of their best dishes and comes for a tasty meal and the company of good friends. I can see why you had so much fun at this celebration. Such marvelous (and tasty) FUN!
This post, so filled with Australian-ness (in all its sunny, multicultural, love-feeling glory), makes my heart sing.
I saw your Facebook photos, this pig looks absolutely fantastic!
What an awesome Australia Day 😀
Cheers
CCU
Imagine if they hadn’t invited you and you had to sit at your office door observing all the goings-on! What a lovely neighbourhood you live in and it looks like they’re all a lot of fun – especially the woman who came with all the Australia Day oddities. I remember Elle from MKR. I thought she was lovely but the brother? Not so much. It sure looks like this was a very memorable day with great food and fun company xx
Oh my…..the trail of drool is as long as there are miles to Australia. That salad is to die for too. Nice to have such wonderful neighbors.
What a gorgeous celebration Maureen! That suckling pig sounds divine (I would have done the same and pinched a sweet, succulent slice) and how fabulous are your neighbours? 😀
How wonderful Maureen, what a party, roasting sucking pig and the cake!! It all looks delicious!! 🙂
What a delicious and delightful day Maureen. Sounds like you had a ball and what nice friends you have!
I wish I had an oven big enough for a sucking pig! What a great way to celebrate. The koala cake is adorable!
That looks so good! I’ve never had suckling pig, but it’s one of the things that I so want to try!
Such fun neighbors…and it looks like a wonderful feast!
OMG! What a fun gathering…roasted suckling pig in a pizza oven…I enjoyed every picture Maureen…
Have a wonderful week my dear 😀
Oh my. I’m ready to become an Aussie. It looks like a delightful day was had by all except maybe that cute little piggy! But at least everyone enjoyed him! Loved the koala cake and seeing your office and all the happy faces. And where you live looks totally glorious! Happy Aussie Day!
Our location is smashing but our house is pretty old and in need of a makeover. 🙂
I love eating pig! It’s my favourite animal and I’m always cooking a lot of pork recipes but never suckling pig as I don’t have the facilities. How awesome to have a pizza oven to do the job with such great views too!
As soon as I saw that little piggy, I had a flashback at my parent’s summer parties. For several years they would roast a pig (a big guy) on a spit with neighbor and family. Quite an event and lots of fun eating all the food! 🙂
How wonderful! What a perfect Australia Day offering. Your sucking pig looks divine. It is great to see it cooked in a pizza oven like this – an absolute treat for you. Healthy desserts too, that koala is adorable and the pavlova sensational. It makes many of our Australia Day celebrations pale by comparison. Just delightful Maureen 😀
I grinned the entire way through this post, Maureen. 🙂 What a jolly gathering of talented and lovely people. The pig looks GORGEOUS!!! Bear and I will be off to pick up our piglets for spit-roasting very soon. I can’t wait!!
Ooo that looks so delicious and fun too! And all that summery fun makes me long for better weather here too. But well, we’re in the middle of winter here so no BBQ here for a while!
Wow look at that lechon, definitely thats a feast!
What a fun event!
Happy Australia Day! I was watching Australian Open final so I joined in the celebration! Wawrinka won! The pig looks great, I love meat prepared this way! 🙂 ela
Wow! What a great way to get everybody together! The pig looks fabulous and that pavlova is just too cute!
no way you did this in a pizza oven! That is too cool and it looks like you have the best group of people to enjoy it with!
I love roasted pig! Yum!
Maureen, what a fabulous experience! I love the community feel of your neighborhood—the photos tell a story of friendship and fun. Suddenly, I’m hungry for roast pork.
Is there anything better than a street (or canal) party? Oh yes, that’s right, one where there’s a roasted suckling pig to share! Sounds like you had the best time ever, Maureen, so happy to hear that! 🙂
We had a terrific time. I love the opportunity to catch up with all the neighbours who are now friends.
Hi Chris and all you lucky porky eaters.
What a wow of an Australia Day nosh!!! Superbly barbied pig – made my mouth water just looking at the pix!! And what a great street party!! Especially good to see my old mate Chris looking so well – Fran too!! Long time, no see, but it was so good to get this wonderful blog!! Happy times ahead all of you!
Noel.
Noel, it sounds like you should have been there with us. Chris looks SO good, you’d smile just seeing his happy face.
You have all the fun! What a great time – and look at that warm weather. So jealous! Roasting a pig in a pizza oven – just having a pizza oven alone is magnificent but roasting a pig – incredible.
I know. I’ve been to pizza parties over there and every time I hanker for a pizza oven of my own.
I could hardly keep up with all your pig photos on Instagram, love that you cooked it in a pizza oven! And that koala cake is the cutest!
Dear Maureen, A great way to celebrate Australian Day and a good all-clear report from Chris’s doctors. I am very happy for him.
It looks like you have lovely neighbors. The food looks good too.
Blessings dear. Catherine xo
What a fun, fun time!!!! Look at all of that yummy food and the pig…. OMG! Thanks for sharing!
Obviously the roasted pig looks good, but that Mediterranean salad look pretty fabulous as well!
Hi U 2,
I miss you both in Mosman, it’s sooooooo boring!
You both look so well and happy and I’m jealous.
Don’t usually it pork, but I wouldn’t say ‘no’ to crackling!
I spent Oz day eve. on the harbour. During the fireworks, 2 huge cruise ships showed up, Thankfully we didn’t hit them, as we had 160 people on board… ha ha!
All my love to both of you,
Deana
Chris and Fran will be pleased to see this comment!
Well, I had to see it to believe it… Roasting a pig in a pizza oven. And I bet it was delicious! And what a great party. Thanks for sharing all of the photos.
So this is what your Facebook posts were all about (regarding the piglet)! Looks like it tasted delicious, but the poor thing had to have his hind legs ‘dangling into a second pan.’ What a way to go! Hopefully, when it’s my turn to go, I will have my whole body in one ‘container’ (i.e. coffin) instead of being spread around the place!
Now I want a pizza oven, and a piglet. Looks like you all had a wonderful afternoon. What a lovely invite to get!
You have a wonderful neighbors, Maureen! He even cares about your blogging material. LOL! So nice of him, and WOW… roasting a whole pig in front of you, in a pizza oven!! I enjoyed reading this. 🙂
When I travel south of the border I have a friend in Seattle who built a pizza oven in his backyard that he s very proud of. I should suggest a suckling pig along with his stellar pizzas.
You should, it was a wonderful party.
How Nice! I like this Hog Roast. Really good recipe.
I love your website! All those photos made me so hungry. I would have left a comment on your blog but you don’t allow them, so I’ll say it here. I always thought the water in the pan was to keep the fat from making a big mess. I’ll give the pork belly method a try!
Great Article, I think one of the most pig roast cooking tips is here.
A wonderful party. It was delicious! . Roasting a pig in a pizza oven. 🙂