Okay, so you’re rustling your grass skirt to the melodious tunes of Don Ho. But what to eat? Pineapple, okay, poi, okay, but the piece de resistance of any luau is the pig. A whole pig, roasted in the traditional manner—i.e. underground. A lot of preparation and advance planning is required for this dish, so give yourself enough time!
First, the pig. You’ll need to order one, either from your grocery store, a specialty butcher shop, or a local farm. Ask them if they can remove the hair, otherwise you’ll have to shave or singe the hair off yourself. The pig will need to hang (by its back feet) overnight, to allow fluids to drain. You’ll want a large plastic tub to put underneath the animal’s head. Wash the pig with a wet cloth, cleaning well.
The word for the underground pit is imu, and that’s where you want to begin, preferably a few days before the luau, but at least the day before. Gather up a few of your strongest friends and ask them to bring shovels. Dig a pit. How big? Well, you want it to be a little bigger than your pig is, about six inches on each side. You want to bury the pig, but you don’t want it so deep you can’t get it back out. Five feet should be your maximum depth—you will be putting in wood, rock, and leaves in there under (and, in the case of the leaves, over) the roast. Three feet will be enough for smaller pigs.
Next step, wood. Mesquite (known as kiawe in Hawaii) wood is a great choice, as is guava wood, if you can find it. Any hard wood will do, however—do not use soft woods as the sap can (and will) ooze out and cover the meat in a tarry inedible goo. Smaller kindling pieces on the bottom, to get the fire started. Larger pieces on top.
Then cover the wood with lava rock (aka volcanic rock). This is important! Regular rock will not do—lava rock is porous and can hold the high temperatures required. Regular, non-porous rock can explode, ruining the luau for everyone. Lava rock is available online, and in some aquarium stores.
Light the fire and allow the wood to burn away, getting the rock to a white hot stage.
While the fire is going, prepare your pig. Salt the meat inside and out with Hawaiian rock salt (available at ethnic grocery stores and online). Put hot lava rocks in the stomach and foreleg cavities, and tie the legs together (use hefty amounts of strong kitchen twine).
The next step is to create steam. This is done by placing a six inch layer of banana leaves and stumps, or ti leaves over the hot coals. If you can’t find these leaves, some people have had success using cabbage (although this will give the pork a cabbage flavor), watercress, or lettuce. The important thing is to use edible leaves that contain a lot of water.
Place the pig on the leaves, belly side up. Cover pig with more leaves. Cover the leaves with wet burlap bags, going all the way to the edge of the pit. Cover the bags with canvas and secure—rocks work well. Carefully layer dirt over the canvas. These layers help the steam stay inside.
So how long do you leave the meat in the imu? A long time! Don’t worry about overcooking it—this slow steam cooking will result in tender meat. You do want to make sure that the meat reaches at least 140 degrees for safety, and it will be tasty up to 185 degrees. For a fifty pound (very small pig) this will take about 3 hours. For a two hundred pound pig, at least nine hours will be required. A meat thermometer with a long cord separating the prong and the readout can be helpful, here—put the prong in the meat and carefully keep the readout side to the side of the multiple layers—a little tricky, but can be worth it.
When time is up, very carefully remove the layer of dirt and the other layers. Wear gloves! How to remove the pig—get the friends that helped you dig the imu. Everyone should be wearing gloves. You can try to carefully lift the pig out onto a board by grasping the feet and hoisting. Otherwise, you can use your Very Clean (and perhaps covered in plastic wrap) shovels to carefully lift the meat out onto the board. Take your time and be patient—you don’t want to rush things and drop the pig at this point.
Let the meat cool, and then enjoy!
Shopping List:
Whole pig
Mesquite, guava, or any hardwood, in small and large sizes
Lava rock
Hawaiian rock salt
Kitchen twine
Banana or ti leaves (banana stumps, too, if available)
Burlap bags
Canvas
Meat thermometer
Large board
