"Cajun Microwave"

[George Collins]

Yesterday I donated a pig to a local hunting club. A club that has been renting the hunting rights from Youngblood and a few of our neighbors for about 20 years now. The same Cajuns that helped me through my first hog killing. The same Cajuns that have fed me, on average, one meal per week during the whole of hunting season for the past 20 years.

I figured it was the least I could do. Plus, they invited my whole family to eat supper with them. It was an offer I couldn't refuse to make.

They roasted the pig in a "Cajun Microwave." (FYI, this unit was built by the Cajun that cooked the pig. To purchase this same model new is $5000.)

For any that are unfamiliar with a "Cajun Microwave" here are pics of the unit and what the done pig looked like:

[George Collins]

[George Collins]

[Lollykoko]

Is that a firebrick lined box with the meat inside, underneath the coals, George?

[matt walker]

That looks absolutely incredible.

[George Collins]

It was just as good as it looks. It was also an interesting learning experience. Meat from different part of the hog do in fact taste different. BY FAR the best meat on that pig came from the area of the Boston butt. The least flavorful meat came from the hams. Seemed as if there was a gradual transition from the front of the hog, where the flavor was best, to the back of the hog, where things became less flavorful.

Lolly, there were no firebricks used in the construction of this unit. In principle, it is an aluminum Dutch oven with a drain hole in the bottom held aloft and insulated by a cypress box. I think there might be some insulation between the wooden box and the metal cooking chamber but I could be wrong about that.

"Cajun Microwave" is a brand name of the original that this fellow hand made for himself. They have a website if you want more information about the different styles they have and possibly construction methods. I'd be willing to bet that somewhere on the Internet resides plans to reproduce this unit.