Roast Pig/Lechon

We attended a 50th Wedding Anniversary Party last Saturday at Ewa Beach and the focus of attention is this wonderful, succulent, crunchy roast pig or lechon. Lechon is from the Spanish word “leche” which means milk. Piglets or suckling pigs are normally used for roasting back then. But I have actually seen on Travel Channel that Spanish people are still doing that and serving a whole suckling pig on a table in restaurants all over Spain. Roasting pig is fairly common in Latin America like Costa Rica or Puerto Rico.
Roast pig or lechon is served only on special occasions like weddings or birthdays but specially during a Town Fiesta or a Patron Saint’s Day in the Philippines. In my hometown, St. Joseph is our Patron Saint, and we celebrate his day every March 19th of the year.
The preparation for roasting the pig is almost like making the Kalua pork in Hawaii. The roasting time varies depending on the size of the pig but almost always, about 8 to 12 hours of turning the pig in a bamboo skewer on top of burning wood charcoals. That’s a real workout. To make the skin crispy, they mop the skin with water every ten minute or so with banana leaves. Roast Pig or lechon is always served with a special sauce.