Spanish Iberico Cochinillo Vs the Chinese Suckling PIg

Gonna put this to the taste test.

Wiki says that the pig is probably one of the earliest animals to be domesticated for food. And thus the Roasted Suckling Pig is probably enjoyed all over the world like in the Philippines, Vietnam, Peru, Columbia, Brazil, Germany, Spain and China.

Recipes are different but the most important criteria for a good roasted pig could be the crackling skin and moist meat.

I love pork, more so than Chicken, beef, fish and definitely much more than vegetables and fruits. I have a pork sensor which blinds out all other food in the menu except the words, Pig, Pork, Lechon, Schwein, Schweinefleisch, pollo, hamon, cochinillo and 猪。

So the Spanish Iberico Cochinillo versus the Chinese Suckling PIg (烤乳猪).

Bistro Bo Tin Tin @ Pasar Bella

Walked past the bistro, took a 2nd look and could not believe my eyes. What ? Iberico suckling pig right here in Singapore ?

Just out of the oven, its gamey, fragrant with the unmistakeable smell of pork bits, at Eur 8 (SGD12) for 100g, its a little expensive. Skin is thin and crispy with little fats between meat and skin. A little too thin for me, not enough crunch. Meat is a juicy and succulent around the thigh part but  dry further up the ribs. Seasoned simply with Salt and Pepper.

There is no way to resist when you see a sheen like this. Buy !!

El Yantra De La Ribera

I have to compared what i had with the exact thing in Spain. After all, its from Spain is’t it ?

I arrived at 810pm that night in this restaurant in Barcelona. The guy speaks no english and points to the door which says “2030hours”. Okie, i get it…… A look at that wood fired oven got me a little excited with anticipation. And i was not disappointed. The wood fire added another dimension to the overall smell and taste. Again Crispy skin and the meat was even juicier here. Perhaps its because this look slightly bigger than that at Bo Tin Tin.

Secret Restaurant in Singapore

I cannot write where i had this. But if you want to know where, just send me a message. Cannot risk having this dish banned due to the authorities ! Yeh its a pain,  the authorities say all must be done in the kitchen and no BBQ fire thingy. To all those that has been eating the blistered skin kind…..you are not having the real thing. This style of roasting a pig dates back 30-40 years.

The Chinese Version basically uses the same 3 weeks old pigs. Only this time, the seasonings are much more complicated with bean paste sauce and 5 spice powder added. I must say this does it for me… the winner !! Crispy Smooth Skin, succulent meat, depth of flavours besides just being gamey. It must be consumed within 15 mins before the skin changes its texture.

At this moment, the score card reads…… Spanish Suckling Pig 0 Chinese Suckling Pig 1    !!!!!