Saucing the Pig

Chris and I are commissioned to prepare three gallons of vinegar-based barbeque sauce for Saturday’s Pig Roast at Crabtree Farms. For several seasons, we’ve struggled with creating the perfect sauce. Often ours are too spicy, too tart, or simply too complex for a good stand-by sauce. However, for our current attempt, I decided to start on a new path. Borrowing from the salsas of Mexico, I began by boiling chilies de arbol in vinegar and water. When soft, I pushed them through a sieve to produce a spicy—but fruity—liquid and pulp. This pulp mixed with tomatoes, vinegar, mustard, and seasonings produces a hearty sauce with a punch of back-of-the-tongue heat and a good balance of vinegar and sweet tomato. I suppose I may be sorry about my give-it-some-muscle sieving process halfway through the three gallons but that can be Chris’s contribution to the saucing!

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Lastly, here are pictures of the spit being assembled for the big day!