• Certified Segovian Suckling Pig
• Sourced from only 40 farms in Spain
• Frozen
• One ±4kg - ±5kg Pig
• Pairs well with Côtes de Provence Rose

Whole Segovian Suckling Pig

A Certified Segovian Suckling Pig is a real showpiece for any dinner party or gathering of friends and loved ones. Roasted to a deep golden brown, Suckling Pig is one of the most typical dishes in the cuisine of Castilla.

The meat becomes unbelievably tender, so succulent that it literally falls off the bone. The crackling is supreme, and the gentle creaminess of the meat is an experience to remember.

It's the Hitchhiker's Guide to oven roasting a Segovian Certified Suckling Pig. In this blog post you'll find the how to's for getting your suckling pig roasted to a gorgeous golden brown with plenty of crispy crackling. 

For best results, start preparing this recipe 2 days in advance

Your little piggy will require at least a day and a half to thaw. Be sure to take the suckling pig out of the freezer with plenty of time to spare.

There are 2 phases that require an overnight or half day resting period before carrying on to the next step, please read the directions carefully to allow enough preparation time for best results. 

The process for preparing the suckling pig is quite easy, and it requires very little time to actually do. The pig will need about 3 hours in the oven to roast; it rests for 45 minutes and then goes back in the oven for 30 minutes to finish the crackling.

What you’ll need

1 Segovian Certified Suckling pig 4-5kg 

1 cup white vinegar (250ml)

2-3 litres of water to boil

Good quality extra virgin olive oil—around 1.5 cups (375ml)

Sea Salt Flakes—plenty

Regular table salt—plenty           

Garlic-around 5 cloves

Herbs—optional, we had good success with a small packet (20gr) fresh Thyme

1 large onion

XL roasting pan—42cm x 38cm x 8cm is the size we used for our photo shoot

Kitchen Foil

Twine

What you’ll do

Prepping your pig

1. When your pig has fully defrosted; you can get started with the preparations.
2. Boil 2-3 litres of water. Add 1 cup (250ml) white vinegar and pour it over the pig inside and out.
3. This will refresh the skin and assist with the crackling process. Dry the pig well with paper towels. 
4. Place in the fridge for 4-8 hours uncovered to help dry the skin.
5. Score the pig vertically through skin and fascia prior to salting. This allows better salt penetration. 
6. Take plenty of sea salt flakes and LIBERALLY apply to all surfaces inside and out. You can also use normal table salt. We used both as the flakes were not sticking to the dry pick well. Don’t worry about over salting as we will remove the excess later.
7. Cover the pig and put it back in the fridge overnight.
8. Roughly chop 5 cloves of garlic into the olive oil and fresh herbs, set aside.
9. Put the olive oil infusion in a glass container, preferably. Place it in the fridge overnight.
10. Remove the pig from the fridge by 7am  on the morning of cooking—I pulled mine out while I put the kettle on.
11. There should be moisture on the outside which the salt has extracted. 
12. Take a paper towel and wipe off the excess salt and moisture. Take the infused olive oil mixture and liberally apply to all surfaces.
13. Leave the pig out for 5-6 hours. It will come to room temperature while marinating in the oil.
14. Next we’ll bind the legs to prevent the limbs from burning during the cooking process. 
15. Allow the pig to warm slightly before binding it; otherwise the legs will be too stiff. 
16. Take kitchen twine and bind front and hind legs tightly into the pig’s body as shown below.

 Cooking your Pig

1. Next we need to protect other vulnerable parts from burning. Take kitchen foil and cover snout, ears and tail.
2. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. We are going to blast the pig to start the crackling process.
3. Now mount the pig upright in the pan. It will tend to fall over so you may need to prop it up, against the sides or wedge it into a corner. We used the onion to help keep the piggy upright. The protein in the meat will firm as it cooks, so the pig will stay in whatever position you leave it.
4. Place the pig in the oven at 250 degrees for 30 minutes.
5. Drop the oven temperature to about 130-140 degrees and cover the pig for the first 2 hours. Remove from the oven every 30-60 minutes to baste with pan juices and monitor.

 Final Stages

1. The meat will be done once the juices run clear. This should take somewhere between 2 ½ -3 hours.
2. Remove from the oven, cover with foil. Allow to rest 45 minutes.
3. The final stage is to finish the crackling and involves a hot oven—preheat to 270 degrees.
4. Place the rested pig uncovered in the hot oven. This crackling process should take 30 minutes or less. Use your judgement.

We suggest you carve and serve at the table.