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I have a huge (for me) leg of pork that's 5.9kg/13lb. I'm thawing in the fridge for the next 4 days before cooking.

How do slow cook for tenderness/fall off the bone as well as great crackling?

DaveO
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  • See also https://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/29494/roasting-large-leg-of-wild-boar – Rob Mar 29 '18 at 06:20

4 Answers4

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Slow cooking and great crackling do not go hand in hand. Your best bet will be to remove the skin, score and salt it well, and grill/broil it separately.

For the leg itself, low and slow is the way to go. How long depends on how long you've got, but 5 or 6 hours in a low oven will do the trick. Start off with the oven on as high as it will go, throw some garlic, onions and herbs in the pan with the pork, add a splash of water, and cover with foil, then put the meat in and lower it to 160C/320F and go read a book.

You want to make sure the meat reaches 70C/160F internally, incidentally.

ElendilTheTall
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  • What temperature should I use for the slow cooking? Thanks! – DaveO Jul 08 '14 at 11:25
  • About 160C/320F. – ElendilTheTall Jul 08 '14 at 13:17
  • Amended my answer and added a further tip – ElendilTheTall Jul 08 '14 at 14:45
  • Most importantly, get a meat thermometer and put it into the thickest part of the meat. Once it gets past 120F check it every 20 minutes to make sure you don't overcook it as it will get dry. Meat thermometers are cheap and make a huge difference. – GdD Jul 08 '14 at 16:50
  • Sorry - for the crackling you mean remove it when the roast is done and grill it while the slow-cooked pork is resting? – DaveO Jul 10 '14 at 09:14
  • That depends - do you happen to have a double oven? – ElendilTheTall Jul 10 '14 at 09:26
  • No I don't. I plan to blat it for the first 20-30mins at high heat, then slow cook, then remove and grill the crackling at the end while the roast is resting, if it needs it. – DaveO Jul 10 '14 at 20:56
  • That sounds like a good plan to me. Just watch it like a hawk when it's under the grill, it goes from crispy to cremated pretty damn quick. – ElendilTheTall Jul 10 '14 at 21:17
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I roasted a 6 kg leg of boned, rolled pork on low heat for 12 hours (overnight) with the skin on (rubbed with crushed marjoram, fennel seeds, caraway seeds and a smidge of salt). When I removed the pork from the oven, I took the skin off and spread it on a baking tray (I wrapped the pork roast in foil and set it aside). I turned the oven up as high as it would go and put skin in for about 20-25 mins. Perfect crackling, and the pork melted as we pulled it apart - delicious, and I will be doing it again.

Debbie M.
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Peta-Julie
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Same as for BBQ smokers - 120C (255F), dry rub, maybe an injection, 12-14 hours. Fall of the bone is low and slow, conventional ovens can do the same thing as a bbq pit, just without the smokiness!

Ilya Grushevskiy
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6kg pork with no bones in it takes 7.5 hours at 180C (350F) and I get great crackling at the end of it.

Cascabel
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Donna
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