An ordinary campfire would not be long enough. One possibility would be a monumental hickory blaze, banked down to coals and raked into the right shape. A spit would of course be required, and the basting would be complicated and require liberal quantities of sauce. As with any whole barbecue, there would be some risk of the "charred on the outside, raw on the inside" syndrome.
My own suggestion would be marinating overnight in the special sauce, then encasing in clay. A large pit would be dug and lined with good-sized stones (labor should be provided by the victim, who deserves it), then an extended bonfire built in the pit. When that dies down, we add the clay-coated piece du resistance - though resistance would be futile - and cover with more hot stones, building a supplemental blaze on top. After a few hours, we unwrap the whole thing, and voila. A lot of work, but the clay keeps the juices in, and no basting would be required; we would be free to carry out our wine-tasting-around-the-fire program during the cooking process.
Which would be fun. |
