Due to kids birthdays, Independence day, and various other events this week, we didn't get much work done on the house. Instead, my brother-in-law and I built a fire pit in his backyard and roasted a pig. Fair play. I'm willing to delay progress for the sake of pork.



Roasted over charcoal and hickory wood for about 5 hours, this 85 pound porker was tender and delicious. I didn't even marinate or season it. The smoke took care of all that. It came out great!

I use the 3 Guys from Miami method for building the pig pit. I got the hog from Snapps Ferry Packing (5900 East Andrew Johnson Highway, Afton, TN; 423-638-7001). They were great to deal with. Despite giving them less than a week's notice, and even with the holiday rush, they hooked me up with a perfectly butchered hog at a reasonable price. I plan on doing another one of these when my house is done, so I'll definitely keep them in mind.