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| What You Need: |
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½ cup Japanese soy sauce
¼ cup dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons finely chopped garlic
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
A 10- to 12-pound oven-ready suckling pig
¼ cup vegetable oil
3 or 4 ti leaves, if available
FRUIT GARNISH
16 canned litchis, drained
8 one-inch-long chunks of ripe banana
1 kumquat drained and cut in half crosswise, plus 16 whole drained kumquats
9 small fresh limes
8 one-inch chunks of fresh pineapple
1 fresh carambola (star fruit), if available, cut crosswise into ¼ -inch- thick slices
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| How To Cook: |
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1. Combine the soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, salt and pepper in a small bowl and stir them together until the sugar is completely dissolved. Wash the pig under cold running water and pat it completely dry inside and out with paper towels. Rub the soy sauce mixture in the cavity and all over the outside of the pig. Marinate at room temperature for at least 1 hour or in the refrigerator for 2 or 3 hours.
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2. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Crumple a sheet of aluminum foil into a ball approximately the same size as a lime and insert it in the pig's mouth to keep it open as the pig roasts. Curl the tail and cover both the tail and the ears of the pig with small squares of foil to prevent them from burning.
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3. Place the pig on a rack set in a large, shallow roasting pan and with a pastry brush spread the vegetable oil evenly over the entire outside surface of the pig. If the head extends beyond the edge of the pan, double a strip of aluminum foil and place it on the rack under the head to catch any drippings.
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4. Roast the pig undisturbed in the middle of the oven for 1½ hours, then remove the foil from the ears and tail and continue roasting for 15 to 20 minutes longer.
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5. To test for doneness, pierce the thickest part of the thigh with the point of a small, sharp knife. The juice that trickles out should be a clear yellow; if the juice is still slightly pink, roast the pig for another 5 to 10 minutes.
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6. To serve, transfer the roast pig to a large heated platter-covered with a layer of fresh ti leaves if you have them. Replace the ball of foil in the pig's mouth with one of the whole fresh limes. Use the kumquat halves to cover the pig's eyes. Let the pig rest at room temperature for about 10 minutes to make carving it easier and to allow time to prepare the garnish.
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7. Meanwhile, thread 8 small, sharp skewers with the tropical fruits: one litchi, one banana chunk, one kumquat, one lime, another litchi, another kumquat and a pineapple chunk on each of the skewers, pressing the fruits together tightly.
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8. Insert two of the skewers of fruit into the back of the pig just be-hind its ears, and arrange the six remaining skewers in sets of three along each side of the body.
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9. If you can find fresh carambola (or star fruit), make a ti leaf collar for the pig and stud it with slices of carambola. You may also place another slice of the carambola at the base of the pig's tail.
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10. To serve, display the garnished pig to your guests, then remove the skewers to a separate plate. Accompany each serving with a skewer of fruit.
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