How to Roast a Pig Cuban-style

"La Caja China" loosely translated from Spanish means "Chinese box." It's also the name of the essential cooking device used for roasting a whole pig Cuban-style. This is particularly a Christmas tradition for Florida's Cuban-American community.

The Chinese box was actually invented in Miami, not China, by a father and son named Guerra. They designed the Box after hearing about a Vietnamese style of roasting pork. This was the origin of the product name, "La Caja China," a geographic stretch, but a well-made product nonetheless.

It resembles a square wheelbarrow and consists of several large parts including the wooden box, a large metal grease tray, two metal roasting grids, a charcoal container, a mesh grill and a metal lid.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• La Caja China
• 30 to 40 lbs of Charcoal
• Oven mitts
• Split, dressed whole pig (up to 70 to 100 lbs)
• Marinade syringe
• Pre-made or homemade "Mojo" marinade
• Other Spices (optional)

How to Roast a Pig Cuban-style

1. Before deciding to buy a Chinese box, guesstimate the maximum number of people that you'd ever expect to invite to a house party. This number will determine the amount of meat that you'd need to accommodate, and the model size of the Chinese box that you'd want. There's a 70-pound maximum model and a 100-pound maximum model, priced respectively at about $320 and $330. A smaller model under $300 will only accommodate two pork shoulders.

2. The bad news: the Chinese Box comes disassembled. You'll have to put all pieces together. The good news: assembly is fairly easy.

3. Find a butcher that will dress and prepare a whole hog for a roast. Place an order. Make sure that the butcher splits open the hog flat.
   
   Pick up the pig when it's ready.

4. "Mojo" is a traditional garlic and citrus-based Cuban marinade. You can purchase a bottle online at the La Caja China website or at your supermarket if you're lucky enough to live in a neighborhood with a sizable Cuban-American community. Or you can follow a recipe and make your own.
   
   Marinate the pig by injecting the Mojo with a marinade syringe.

5. Place the split pig between the two metal grilling grids, and strap or hook the pig and the grids together. At this pre-cooking step, don't puncture or slice the pig's skin.

6. Place the drip pan on the bottom of the box's interior. Place the pig (skin-side-up) and the metal grilling grids on top of the drip pan inside the box.

7. Place the charcoal ash pan over the pig. Place flat charcoal grid over ash pan. Add about 10 pounds of charcoal to the grid. Figure that every hour you'll be adding another 9-10 pound batch of coals. You'll probably be using three batches of charcoal for the entire process.
   
   Light the first batch of coals.

8. After three hours of roasting, remove the lid and charcoal containers from the Caja China box with oven mitts. Reach inside and turn the pig and grilling grids over (rib-side-up). Put lid and coals back on top of the roasting pig.
   
   Let the pig cook for another hour. It won't hurt to keep checking on its progress every 15 minutes.

Tips & Warnings

• Only use self-igniting charcoal for the first batch of coals.

Resources

• Roasting Tips from La Caja China
• Washington Post article about La Caja China
• Order a Chinese box.
• Mojo recipe