kalua pig roasted in a barbecue grill « the tasty island

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Kalua Pig Roasted in a Barbecue Grill

March 6, 2007 in Hana Hou, Hawaiian

You can make Kalua Pig either the traditional way in an Imu (underground oven) or the easier fauxmethod using liquid smoke in a conventional oven. Well leave the hard labor and the liquid smokebehind this time, as I’ll show you how to make Kalua Pig using a barbecue grill!

The natural smoked flavor from the Kiawe (or mesquite) is unbeatable, and it’s relatively easy todo, only requiring a few simple steps, time and some TLC. If you like barbecuing (like me), thisshould be a fun and rewarding project!

Tender, moist and smokey Kiawe-roasted Kalua Pig… Ono!

Kalua Pig Roasted in a Barbecue Grill « The Tasty Island http://tastyisland.wordpress.com/2007/03/06/kalua-pig-made-on...

1 of 21 8/11/08 3:05 AM

What you will need for the fire:

A large coal-burning barbecue grill that has a cover (in this case, I’m using the classic 22″Weber Kettle Classic)Kiawe Wood Logs (if you don’t have this, use mesquite wood chips found at most groceryand hardware stores)CharcoalDisposable foil panLighter fluidNewspaper (to start burning coals)

What you will need for the pig:

Pork butt (bone-in with plenty of fat is preferable for better flavor), in this demo, I’m using a5 pound cut.Hawaiian rock saltTi leaves (prepared by washing thoroughly and stems cut off), enough to completely wrap thepork butt(s). If you can’t get Ti leaves, use Banana leaves. You need this for proper flavor, sodon’t omit it!18″ width heavy-duty aluminum foil

First, prepare the pig…


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Begin by laying a large sheet of foil on the work surface. Then layer the Ti Leaves (or Bananaleaves) on the foil as shown above. Place the pork butt on the Ti Leaves, then sprinkle HawaiianSalt on all surfaces of the Pork Butt. Enough just that it’s evenly, but not heavily covered (don’tover salt it!). If you want, you can lomi (massage) it in. Make sure the fat-side is up when wrappingit (as shown).

To wrap it all up, first gather up the Ti Leaves and wrap it over the pig, leaf by leaf, then hold themtogether with one hand, while with your other hand, bring up the foil to form a “packet”, which willlook like this…


3 of 21 8/11/08 3:05 AM

One thing critical in how you wrap it is that you provide a sealed “bottom” to retain all the flavorfuljuices from the pork. If there’s a leak on the bottom, the juices will drip off and your pig may turnout dry. So keep that in mind.

Finally, using a sharp knife, poke holes on the TOP SIDE of the packet to allow the smoke(flavoring!) in. Poke all the way through until it penetrates the meat. I’ve made 8 holes here.

Repeat this process for however many pork butts you plan on cooking. In this demonstration, I onlymade one. I’d say the 22″ Weber I used could fit about 4 total.

Put wrapped up pork butts in refrigerator and prepare the fire…


4 of 21 8/11/08 3:05 AM

Before you begin, remember to WORK SAFELY. Just cook the pig. Not yourself or your house!

Build the fire by laying a (small) bed of 10 charcoal briquettes on one side of the bottom grate, withthe Kiawe log sitting on top of it. Drizzle the coals and kiawe with enough lighter fluid for a lightsoak, then get the fire started with a crumpled newspaper on the side.

Here are several pieces of dried out Kiawe wood logs (hana hou photo added 3.13.07)…

The shorter dark ones on the left came from a more mature tree and are much more DENSE, hencethey burn much longer. They’re a struggle to cut, even with a chainsaw; almost like cutting a metalpipe.

If you’re using Mesquite chips, use more coal (about 25 briquettes) and add the chips only whenyou’re ready to cook. Pre-soak the chips in water (for smoking).

When the lighter fluid has fully burned off, the coals are almost ashed over (white) and the Kiaweis burning consistently (usually takes about 30 minutes), it’s ready for the pig…


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Place a foil pan filled with water next to the fire. This will create some steam in the chamber thatwill help keep the pig moist. Place the cooking grate on the grill then place the wrapped pig on it.In this case, the fire was REALLY HOT, so I kept the pig on the opposite end. This is INDIRECTcooking, where you’re only using the fire as heat source. DO NOT place the pig near the flame uparea (shown on the left side).

If using Mesquite chips, this is the time to sprinkle them over the burning coals. It will immediatelybegin smoking.

Cover the grill.


6 of 21 8/11/08 3:05 AM

Notice the billowing Kiawe smoke!

With the heat source on one side and the cover on, you’re basically turning your grill into anoutdoor oven. Albeit, one with all that flavor-enhancing Kiawe smoke!

Set all the vents open, underneath and on the lid. Let the “Kalua’ing” begin! It takes about 6 hoursfor the pork to fully cook and reach fork-tender, fall-apart consistency. Because of this longduration, you’ll need to feed more Kiawe and Charcoal to the existing burning coals every hour orso. The charcoal briquettes can be slipped through the side opening of the grate, but you’ll need toremove the grate when adding the larger Kiawe log. You want to keep the heat inside the grill (notthe meat) maintained between 250 to 325 degrees maximum. If in doubt, use a BBQ temperaturegauge. I use the “hand-testing” technique, as I’ve done this many times already.

About 5 hours into the cooking time, it looks like this…


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As you see, I’ve just fed more charcoal and a new chunk of Kiawe. The existing burning emberswill eventually start to burn the new batch. The foil wrapper has taken on a bronzed color from theheat and billowing smoke created by the Kiawe wood (or Mesquite Chips if you use that). That newchunk of Kiawe will burn long enough for the final 2 hours of cooking it needs.

Remember to keep the grill COVERED throughout the cooking process (even though it’s temptingto look!). This is how you maintain and keep a stable cooking temperature. Only uncover it whenyou need to add more coal and/or Kiawe or Mesquite.

After approximately 7 hours, it should be done. Check it by opening the foil slightly and taking afork to it, try to “pull” the pork. If it shreads easily, it’s done! Remove the pork butt(s) from thegrill, bring into kitchen and prepare to shred the meat. Here it is just unwrapped. Yum!….


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IMPORTANT! Before you open the foil, poke a whole on the bottom of the packet and drain theprecious liquid into a clean transfer pan that you will use to shred the pig in. Then set the packetdown, open the foil and Ti leaves and remove the cooked pork INTACT and place in transfer panwith cooking juices…


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Discard foil and Ti leaves.

Using two forks, shred the Kalua Pig (that’s what it is now!) in the pan while it’s still hot. Taste testfor saltiness. Adjust with more if necessary. After several times, you’ll get the hang of how muchsalt to use at the prep’ stage. Remember, you can always add, but you can’t subtract.

The finished result will look like this…


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After shredding, that (originally) 5 lb. pork butt filled this entire 9″x11″x2″ deep pan… that’s alotof Kalua Pig!

That’s it. All pau cook. Now time to kaukau!


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Notice how moist it looks. This is why you need to retain those cooking juices, so you can mix itwith the Kalua Pig. Whinnahz.

This might be a good time to bust out that Squid Luau and Poi!…

If done properly, you can get “almost as good as the Imu” results in the oven thanks to the liquidsmoke. Yet this barbecue grill method tastes that much closer to the Imu thanks to the naturalsmoke, without nearly as much work.

Hana hou photo added 3.13.07…


12 of 21 8/11/08 3:05 AM

A full pan of about 13 lbs of Kalua Pig made from two very large pork butts. Next to it is a freshbowl of 3 lbs. of Taro Brand Poi, which currently costs 11.99/bag at Costco. Ouch. The pork buttwas on sale at Foodland for $1.49/lb. Cheap! Most of that pan will be bagged and frozen for a luauwe’ll be throwing for a family visitor from the mainland a week from now.

Note that it took longer than 6 hours to cook those larger pork butts (about 8 lbs. each).Taking about 10 hours total and using more coals and Kiawe.

Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)

Throwing your own Pig RoastSmokey and the BanditKalua Bear Recipe!Extreme Grilling: Go whole hog

22 commentsComments feed for this article

March 6, 2007 at 11:37 pm

alan

Nice! I’ve made crock-pot kalua pig more times than I can count, but never on the grill. Like you


13 of 21 8/11/08 3:05 AM

say, it’s one step closer to the imu. Next time, I’m trying this way.

March 7, 2007 at 1:32 am

Anuhea

Mmmm…looks soo good. Now that I know I don’t have to dig myself an imu and sweat over it allday, I’ll definately have to try this one!

March 7, 2007 at 3:49 am

LanaiLady

Your instructions were very clear and precise; it sounds so easy and looks so ono! Do you think apropane powered BBQ would work just as well? I would use the indirect heat method and mesquitechips. Mahalo!

March 7, 2007 at 6:15 am

pomai

LanaiLady,

Yes you certainly can, as long as you have a double burner gas grill. You will use only one of theburners as a heat source, which is also where you’ll be placing the wood chip foil packet.

Soak the mesquite chips in a bucket of water for at least 1 hour first. Then wrap a large handful ofthe chips in tinfoil and poke holes on top to allow the smoke to escape. Place it near the activeburner where it will get enough heat to make the wood chips smoke. Put the wrapped pig on thecooking grate on other side with the inactive burner and close the cover. Make more mesquite chipfoil packets so they’ll be ready to add when the current ones burn out.

This method is part-smoking, part-roasting and part steaming; similar to what an imu does. I wouldstop adding Mesquite after the 2nd half of the cooking time, as it might make the kalua pig tasteover-smoked. Just keep the heat going from the gas burners for the last 3 or so hours.

Thanks for the nice comments folks!

March 7, 2007 at 10:40 am

Anonymous


14 of 21 8/11/08 3:05 AM

My mother makes her kalua pig on the grill, too. It definately is delicious that way. Too bad I’m inan apartment complex and can’t grill. But I will be attempting crock pot kalua pig after seeing this,it has made me crave some!

March 9, 2007 at 8:20 am

Nate

Anybody try it in those stovetop smokers?

March 10, 2007 at 1:42 am

James Rubio

*mouth waters* Wow… Man, I wanted to try this with my weber, but I have the smaller version…and i dunno if everything can fit in it. Nothing beats real smoke.

I find it interesting how this technique is so similar to southern style bbq, but without the sauce andspices… might also try this with a beef brisket!

thanks

March 10, 2007 at 8:36 am

lindy

oooh that does look so ono!! ii love kalua pig! your photos and instructions are just wonderful !! ialways look forward to your new entries.

March 13, 2007 at 8:05 pm

Chubbypanda

Thanks for the instructions, Pomai! You rock!

March 14, 2007 at 2:32 pm

veggielove


15 of 21 8/11/08 3:05 AM

Wow… that looks incredible!Why oh why was I vegetarian last time I went to Hawaii?At least next time I’ll know (I don’t have a grill yet, and being a small-apartment dweller, probablywont anytime soon)

April 12, 2007 at 2:54 pm

JoAnn vs JoAnn » No Imu Kālua Pig

[...] Smoked Hawaiian-style pork on the grill Method adapted from Pomai’s The Tasty Island blog[...]

April 17, 2007 at 5:47 pm

Greg Kemp

You can get kiawe and guava wood chunks from hawaii through the internet.Visit hawaiiguava.com for details.

Aloha,

Greg

June 1, 2007 at 5:23 am

Gwen

Can anyone tell me what I can use in place of ti leaves? Cannot find in California. Will gingerleaves work?

June 2, 2007 at 9:43 pm

pomai

Gwen,

I’ve heard mainland folks have had favorable flavor results using Banana leaves, although it givesoff a slightly sweeter flavor. I’m sure banana leaves are available in California at the local farmer’s


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market, or wherever produce imported from Mexico are sold.

What’s insteresting is my Aunt who lives in Maryland says she has a Ti Leaf plant growing in heryard. I don’t believe it!

May 15, 2008 at 1:52 pm

The Founding Father

Great post, but LIGHTER FLUID!!! Dont go through all that work and kill it with even theslightest chance of lighter fluid ruining your fire and contaminating your pork. Use a weed burneror charcoal chimney to start the fire and you’ll be much better off!http://themantuary.wordpress.com/2008/03/18/throwing-your-own-pig-roast/

June 16, 2008 at 6:09 pm

Joe

Decided to try this myself and it was ONO!!!

My friends loved it so much that they wanted me to make more for a surprise party she is throwing.

I used a gas smoker instead of a charcoal grill though. Used mequite chips instead of kiawe since Idon’t have that around the Bay Area. I was able to find some Ti leaves where I usually get mygroceries.

I didn’t rub too much salt on it but I added more after I shredded the pig.I used kosher salt instead of hawaiian salt, any difference between the two? I also added someliquid smoke when I added the salt to add some more smoky flavor to it.

Thanks for the post, now I am looking forward to your future posts.

June 16, 2008 at 7:35 pm

pomai

Howzit Joe.

Glad to hear the recipe/method worked out for you!

Kosher salt is perfectly fine, which just has a slightly smaller grain texture to it.


17 of 21 8/11/08 3:05 AM

Main thing is you had da’ Ti leaves! That’s a very important ingredient that separates Kalua Pigfrom just being “pulled pork”. It gives the meat that unique “Hawaiian” flavor.

I’ve read on the net about folks who use either Banana leaves or just tin foil, but I’m skepticalabout that.

Let me know how your next batch turns out when/if you do that one for your friend’s surprise party.

Aloha,Pomai

July 18, 2008 at 7:29 pm

Matt

This spring we went to Kauai and I loved the food, so I am hooked. I wanted to start cookingHawaiian style dishes so I tried this for the 4th of July this year.

It turned out awesome, lots of compliments from the guests. I used a 9lb roast, which took about 7hours to cook. I did it on my Weber Kettle using natural mesquite charcoal and soaked mesquitechips. I used a chimney starter to get my fire going.

I went to an Asian market and found frozen bananna leaves which I used instead of the ti leaves. Idon’t have any Hawaiian salt, so I used kosher. I am going to buy the Hawaiian salt for next time.

The flavor was fantastic! Great for parties.

Thanks

July 20, 2008 at 9:28 am

pomai

Matt, that is awesome to hear! Even better that you went out of your way to seek out Bananaleaves.

As far as buying Hawaiian Salt, I’d place more priority on getting Ti Leaves than Hawaiian Salt.The Kosher Salt is perfectly adequate. It’s the Ti Leaves that put the true “Kalua” in Kalua Pig,from a flavor point-of-view. I swear by that.

It sounds like you nailed the mesquite (a.k.a. Kiawe) smoking element of the process. A true pro!

July 22, 2008 at 4:10 am


18 of 21 8/11/08 3:05 AM

Shawn

pomai

Thank you for posting such a great receipe and instruction!!!!! I have been doing research for awhil but have not seen anything like yours.

My daughter asked me for a Luau party for her 6th birthday. As a father I could not tell her no. Ilooked and looked and found your receipe. I am newer to this and thought I would try it before Iserved it. I tried it this weekend and it rocked. I followed this site the whole time. I cooked abone-LESS, all I could get, 6 lbs pork butt for 7.5 hours in a vertical smoker with bannana leaves,kosher salt, and mesquite chips. The temp was between 200- 290 the whole time. It was great,although not perfect due to loosing juice. I want to make the real party the best ever. Could youanswer a few things for me?

* How long would you smoke two 6 pound butts using the above stats?* What should the temp of the pork butt be at the end?* how much Salt???*do you let the salt and pork sit overnight?

Sorry for the questions but there is no one else to help me make this party great.

July 22, 2008 at 4:45 am

pomai

Shawn,

First of all, you mentioned “loosing juice”, which is critical for the ideal flavor and texture of thefinished Kalua Pig. If in doubt, place the two wrapped pork butts in a disposable pan while roastingto catch the drippings. Ideally, just make sure you wrap them properly with the aluminum foil tocatch “the goodness”!

Now to answer your questions:

Q) How long would you smoke two 6 pound butts using the above stats?A) As mentioned at the ending of this write-up, I had roasted 2 eight pound Pork Butts, and thosetwo took 10 hours. I think you could reduce that time if you kept the heat on the higher side, likethe 290 F. degree range. Then lower it towards the latter part of the cooking time.

Q) What should the temp of the pork butt be at the end?A) To be honest, I don’t check the temperature of the meat itself, only monitoring the temperatureof the Weber Grill’s roasting “chamber” while it was covered and cooking. If I were doing steak or


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Prime Rib, where medium-rare doneness was a requirement, of course I’d have a thermometerprobe in the meat, not the cooking vessel.

With that, the cooking temperature in the chamber maintains a variable range between approx.250-325 F. Towards the end of the 10-hour duration, I let the coals and Kiawe (Mesquite)completely burn off, then checked the meat for it to be “fork-tender, pulled-pork” done. <—-Onlyat that point will it be ready to serve. The only other variable I think you might have to considerand compensate by is the climate outside, wherever you live.

Q) how much Salt???A) If you look at the photo I provided, you can see a sort of semi-liberal sprinkle. Kosher is a finergrain than Hawaiian Salt, yet perfectly fine. Think of how you would apply salt to table food, thenkinda’ increase your “sprinkle rate” by about 50% more than that. The goal is to season the porkbutt evenly enough to flavor its entire mass. If in doubt, go light, then you can easily compensateAFTER it’s done by taste-testing it. Add more salt while it’s still piping hot, just after you pulled itwith the forks. You can’t go wrong that way. As you know with salt, you can always add, but youcan’t subtract! Kalua Pig is not salty by any means. It should have balance.

Q) do you let the salt and pork sit overnight?A) No. Not necessary. Even when a pig is “kalua’d” whole, the Hawaiian Salt is added just beforeit goes into the Imu. Same for this method.

Tip!…

Since you’re trying to recreate a Luau party for your daughter (very cool), based on your ratheryoung guests, I’d recommend you complete the experience by looking online for recipes for:

• Chicken Long Rice• Pipikaula (kinda’ like “Hawaiian style” Beef Jerky, but not as tough)• Lomi Salmon (this is really good with the Kalua Pig!), besides, kids should learn to eat more fish.It’s healthy.. especially Salmon!• Chicken Luau (this can be made using Spinach leaves). Everyone might be frightened by itsappearance, but will revel in its flavor!• Haupia dessert

The ingredients for these dishes should be readily available in your neck of the woods.

Most likely your 6 year old won’t like Poi, so don’t worry about that. And Laulau requires Ti leavesand Luau leaves, which are hard to get, sometimes even here in Hawaii! You might also want toconsider making Poke (diced raw tuna with seasonings), which is easy and the grown-ups will(should) especially like it.

I’d also steam some sweet potatoes, whichever variety you can get. Not only does it provide thestarch, it also compliments the savory flavors of the main entrees suggested above. Chances are,you’re gonna’ get that one person who will rave just about that. lol

Hope this helps. Keep us posted on the results!


20 of 21 8/11/08 3:05 AM

Aloha,Pomai

July 29, 2008 at 2:24 pm

4th of July in Oz « Desperately Seeking Crab

[...] Missouri brought homemade baked beans and I made kalua pork (Hawaiian-style pulled pork,recipe here), lomi lomi salmon (Hawaiian-style salsa), potato salad, clam dip and a large RedVelvet cake. [...]

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kalua pig roasted in a barbecue grill « the tasty island

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