Giant Roaster Cooks 6 Hogs At A Time

2012 - Volume #36, Issue #6, Page #07

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Bob Prom started roasting hogs back in 1981. Over the years the St. Joseph, Minn., man has built 14 hog roasters and has catered as many as 3 parties in one day, with the help of friends and family.
  He recently outdid himself by building a barbeque tandem axle trailer fitted with six 5-ft. long cookers on it. Two 100-lb. propane cylinders mount on back of the trailer. He uses his Chevy 3500 1-ton pickup to pull the trailer.
  “I’ve served up to 5,000 people at a single event,” says Prom. “I’ve catered company picnics, weddings and college toga parties. I even provided food for a divorce party, five years after I catered the couple’s wedding.
  “I usually start cooking the pigs at home and keep them cooking on the road. Most of the food preparation takes place right at the party site. I’ve used as many as 10 roasters at one location. I roast whole hogs and grill steaks and chops as well as burgers, brats, hot dogs, beans, and potatoes. I can turn out about 2,000 brats an hour on my 6-place roaster. I built enough corn boilers that I can boil 200 dozen cobs of sweet corn an hour.
  “I studied metal working in vocational school and build all my own equipment, including an 8-ft. long char broiler, portable deep fryers, kettle corn poppers and coolers on wheels.”
  At first he used old fuel oil barrels to build the roasters, but in recent years he has been using new barrels. All pigs are roasted on stainless steel removable trays. The roasters are designed so that air moves inside like a convection oven, which results in more even cooking. A drip tray covers the burners to prevent flare ups.
  “The roaster lids are heavy, but I don’t use counterweights to help raise the lids and hold them in place because I don’t want people looking in and possibly getting hurt,” says Prom. A temperature gauge and a smoke stack are located just above each lid’s handle. “I can adjust the temperature on the roaster and also adjust the damper to control the temperature of the roasting chamber,” notes Prom.
  His tip for backyard chefs: “Don’t be in a hurry and enjoy the moment. Cook slow and serve no swine before its time.”
  Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Bob Prom, 8882 315th St., St. Joseph, Minn. 56374 (ph 320 363-4108; mprom83051@aol.com; www.promsroasting.com).

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Giant Roaster Cooks 6 Hogs At A Time HOG EQUIPMENT & IDEAS Bob Prom started roasting hogs back in 1981 Over the years the St Joseph Minn man has built 14 hog roasters and has catered as many as 3 parties in one day with the help of friends and family He recently outdid himself by building a barbeque tandem axle trailer fitted with six 5-ft long cookers on it Two 100-lb propane cylinders mount on back of the trailer He uses his Chevy 3500 1-ton pickup to pull the trailer “I’ve served up to 5 000 people at a single event ” says Prom “I’ve catered company picnics weddings and college toga parties I even provided food for a divorce party five years after I catered the couple’s wedding “I usually start cooking the pigs at home and keep them cooking on the road Most of the food preparation takes place right at the party site I’ve used as many as 10 roasters at one location I roast whole hogs and grill steaks and chops as well as burgers brats hot dogs beans and potatoes I can turn out about 2 000 brats an hour on my 6-place roaster I built enough corn boilers that I can boil 200 dozen cobs of sweet corn an hour “I studied metal working in vocational school and build all my own equipment including an 8-ft long char broiler portable deep fryers kettle corn poppers and coolers on wheels ” At first he used old fuel oil barrels to build the roasters but in recent years he has been using new barrels All pigs are roasted on stainless steel removable trays The roasters are designed so that air moves inside like a convection oven which results in more even cooking A drip tray covers the burners to prevent flare ups “The roaster lids are heavy but I don’t use counterweights to help raise the lids and hold them in place because I don’t want people looking in and possibly getting hurt ” says Prom A temperature gauge and a smoke stack are located just above each lid’s handle “I can adjust the temperature on the roaster and also adjust the damper to control the temperature of the roasting chamber ” notes Prom His tip for backyard chefs: “Don’t be in a hurry and enjoy the moment Cook slow and serve no swine before its time ” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Bob Prom 8882 315th St St Joseph Minn 56374 ph 320 363-4108; mprom83051@aol com; www promsroasting com

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