Anyone ever cooked a whole steer in the ground?

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Labor day, we may have to cook a 700-800 pound steer. Intial thought was to put it on a spit like ou see on the western movies. But, that will take a lot of time and a lot of wood to make coals. And in 90+ degree weather, some one would have to keep a fire going, shovel coals, and stand by the thing to turn it for hours. Someone suggested putting it in a pit like you do a whole hog. HAs anyone ever v cooked a beef that way?
 
Labor day, we may have to cook a 700-800 pound steer. Intial thought was to put it on a spit like ou see on the western movies. But, that will take a lot of time and a lot of wood to make coals. And in 90+ degree weather, some one would have to keep a fire going, shovel coals, and stand by the thing to turn it for hours. Someone suggested putting it in a pit like you do a whole hog. HAs anyone ever v cooked a beef that way?
Never done a cow that way but I ain't that far from you so let me know when the party is going down I'll be glad to come and help....eat it !!!
 
Don't they flip the hog? I imagine it would be difficult with that much weight.
Just googled this video, not much help but was pretty entertaining.

Wow. That is quite the grill, cooker, smoker, or whatever you call it pretty awesome and I love that he started out cooking in a refrigerator !!
 
Don't they flip the hog? I imagine it would be difficult with that much weight.
Just googled this video, not much help but was pretty entertaining.

My partner was talking about putting it on a spit and someone standing there rotating it continuosly. This will be done opening day of dove season, in a palce with no electricity, drinking water, etc.
 
Labor day, we may have to cook a 700-800 pound steer. Intial thought was to put it on a spit like ou see on the western movies. But, that will take a lot of time and a lot of wood to make coals. And in 90+ degree weather, some one would have to keep a fire going, shovel coals, and stand by the thing to turn it for hours. Someone suggested putting it in a pit like you do a whole hog. HAs anyone ever v cooked a beef that way?
I think your idea on that other thread would be best. Make sausage. If y'all gonna kill it that morning and put it on a spit over the fire, it won't hardly be edible. If you could kill it in July and let it hang for 45 days, it would taste better. But, the calf will just get weaned about then, and you won;t have time to feed it out. Feeed it out til Labor day, and it will weigh 7-800 lbs, which will yield I am guessing about 3-400 lbs of meat? You make 1/4lb sausages and that would be 1200 sausages. You have maybe 3-400 people there every year , plus the stew, ribs, briskets, chicken and pork loin. I'd do that, carry maybe 300 sausages at the most over there to grill, and put the rest in the freezer. When they are grinding it get them to make 20-30 lbs of ground beef for the stew. Save ya about $120 not having to buy it.
 
As I said in the other thread, with you having had health issues last year, I wouldn't be too all-fired and in a hurry to participate in such a labor. I'd find young help that understands staying hydrated. If somebody insists on doing a whole steer then I'd look into doing a big azz Louisiana microwave so nobody has to spin or continously brush. I'd do it up as backyard meats as said, except I'd also ask for a few steaks so y'all can eat them while you cook the rest :cool:
 
never did it but saw some friends do it in Puerto Rico decades ago. They had it tied with wire, on to a crude metal rack leaned over at an angle against a cinderblock wall about5-6' from the fire and coals. Had a sheet of tin on the opposite side of the fire to reflect the heat toward the beef. Every once in a while (hours) they would get men to grab the rack (had handles stuck out each end) and flip it around where the other side faced the fire.

It was kinda hokey looking apparatus and I don't know how long they cooked it because I got there about4 hours before they started slicing off big chunks of it.
Looked vaguely like this:
deadcowonfire.png
 
I think your idea on that other thread would be best. Make sausage. If y'all gonna kill it that morning and put it on a spit over the fire, it won't hardly be edible. If you could kill it in July and let it hang for 45 days, it would taste better. But, the calf will just get weaned about then, and you won;t have time to feed it out. Feeed it out til Labor day, and it will weigh 7-800 lbs, which will yield I am guessing about 3-400 lbs of meat? You make 1/4lb sausages and that would be 1200 sausages. You have maybe 3-400 people there every year , plus the stew, ribs, briskets, chicken and pork loin. I'd do that, carry maybe 300 sausages at the most over there to grill, and put the rest in the freezer. When they are grinding it get them to make 20-30 lbs of ground beef for the stew. Save ya about $120 not having to buy it.
I think if we do it, sausage is the way to go.
 
never did it but saw some friends do it in Puerto Rico decades ago. They had it tied with wire, on to a crude metal rack leaned over at an angle against a cinderblock wall about5-6' from the fire and coals. Had a sheet of tin on the opposite side of the fire to reflect the heat toward the beef. Every once in a while (hours) they would get men to grab the rack (had handles stuck out each end) and flip it around where the other side faced the fire.

It was kinda hokey looking apparatus and I don't know how long they cooked it because I got there about4 hours before they started slicing off big chunks of it.
Looked vaguely like this:
View attachment 25512I saw this very same thing on youtube while ago. I bet it would work great
 
As I said in the other thread, with you having had health issues last year, I wouldn't be too all-fired and in a hurry to participate in such a labor. I'd find young help that understands staying hydrated. If somebody insists on doing a whole steer then I'd look into doing a big azz Louisiana microwave so nobody has to spin or continously brush. I'd do it up as backyard meats as said, except I'd also ask for a few steaks so y'all can eat them while you cook the rest :cool:
I thought of that too. Last year I did it 5 weeks after I got out of the hospital, and I was wiped out by the time I got home. Most of the moeny we make at our dve shoot, goes to the local FFA and $H, there, and we usually have as many as 40 kids there helping. We have a fish fry for lunch the day of the dove shoot. Then after the shoot, we have Brunswick stew, brisket, pork loin, Butts for pulled pork BB, and grilled chicken halves.. Plus all the sides to go with it. Brunswick stew is a 2 day affair. Friday night you boil the chickens( but we don't use chicken...we use quail, rabbit, duck, turkey and squirrle for the chicken.. Saturday at daylight we all get our hands in the pot and get all of the bones out, then you fire the pot back up and add the other ingredients, and stir it all day til supper time. We use venison sausage for the beef, and wild hog sausage for the pork If we did a whole beef on a spit, then we'd need about 10 more helpers.

You are right about old age creeping up on me, though. That El Paso run about got me. I just don;t want to give up anything I do now, though. Like Neil Young said: "It's better to burn out that to fade away".
 
We used to cook whole hogs buried in the ground in 4-H. I have never seen a steer done this way though.
I see no reason that it wouldn't work, especially if it is quartered.
 
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We used to cook whole hogs buried in the ground in 4-H. I have never seen a steer done this way though.
I haven't seen a steer done either. It is hard work to dig a whole big enough for a 200 lb hog, I imagine it would take a lot younger people, or a backhoe, to dig one big enough for a steer. Plus you have to set it down in there, and have someway to lift it back out after it is done. I am 99% sure it is gonna be Brahma/Chianina / Corriente brats on the grill!
 
I haven't seen a steer done either. It is hard work to dig a whole big enough for a 200 lb hog, I imagine it would take a lot younger people, or a backhoe, to dig one big enough for a steer. Plus you have to set it down in there, and have someway to lift it back out after it is done. I am 99% sure it is gonna be Brahma/Chianina / Corriente brats on the grill!
Getting it out is why I said quartered. You can probably lift quarters if it is wrapped in burlap, or rest the covered carcass on some sort of wire rack on top of the coals. I think a cattle panel would work.
 
But the place we do this..at the Corriente- Kudzu place, is down below Perry. Do you dove hunt?
I haven't Dove hunted in many years, love them bacon wrapped on the grill... quit deer hunting a few years after I left the corn fields of southern Illinois..( No real deer in S Florida).
I still fish, but only shooting we do is for fun....it got crazy expensive to shoot for 3-4 hrs with a few people.
I would be in for dove hunting.
 

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