How to Customize Your Meadow Creek Pig Roaster
April 30th, 2015A Meadow Creek pig roaster is super versatile with a straightforward “personality”. Not so many ways to deck it out as the Meadow Creek smoker, yet possessing the ability to smoke or grill anything you can throw on it.
The charcoal pullout (for charcoal-fired models) is the most popular of all the pig roaster options. Next are doors in lid, second tier grate, vinyl cover, and grill pan. We’ll cover these first.
Charcoal Pullout. The pullout is a drawer in the bottom of the cooker that slides out of the end. It’s perfect for adding more charcoal during the cook without opening the lid and removing the grate and drip pan. Plus it helps protect the bottom of your pig roaster from excessive heat. This is an excellent upgrade if you’re going with a charcoal unit. (For charcoal-fired models only; PR36 shown.)
Doors in Lid. These little doors on the front side of the lid let you see and reach inside the cooker without opening the lid and losing so much heat.
Second Tier Grate. The second tier grate sits on top of the main grate and doubles your cooking surface for smaller items such as ribs, briskets, and pork butts. Great investment if you’re going to cook a lot of foods beside whole pigs.
Vinyl Cover. Our covers are Amish-made in Lancaster County from tough vinyl material. If you will be storing your grill outside or even under a covered porch, a vinyl cover will help to keep it clean and dry. Otherwise, it will rust sooner and take more maintenance.
Charcoal Grill Pan. These pig roasters are a great choice for about any kind of meat you want to cook low and slow. They cook ribs, butts, briskets, chicken, turkey, pork loin, prime rib—you name it. But sometimes you might want to grill with direct heat. This grill pan turns the pig roaster into a hungry charcoal grill for cranking through hundreds of burgers, hot dogs, steaks, or whatever your heart desires. Perfect for making a pig roaster extremely versatile.
Charcoal Pan Insert. There is a charcoal pan insert for both charcoal and gas models.
If you pass on the charcoal pullout, consider the insert to make clean up easier. This pan sits in the bottom of the roaster and holds the ashes. To access the pan, you will remove the cooking grate and the drip pan. When you’re done cooking, simply lift it out the top. It also adds another layer of steel under the fire, increasing the life of your pig roaster.
The charcoal pan for gas models straddles the burner and lets you fire the cooker with charcoal. There is a series of holes along the top for cooking with both charcoal and gas at the same time. For example, you could start the cook with charcoal/wood to get a delicious smoke flavor; once it starts dropping in temperature, turn on the gas for the rest of the cooking period.
Rib Racks. Want to cook a pile of ribs? This rack holds ribs on edge so you can cook more at one time.
Solid Tires. Upgrade the pneumatic tires on your pig roaster (non-trailer models only) to a set of solid tires to eliminate the possibility of a flat. (BX50 shown here.)
Chip Tray. The tray is 1′ x 2′ and sits on top of the burner (gas models only). It lets you add wood chips to make some smoke in the roaster. Consider the charcoal pan insert with holes above the burner (explained above) for more smoke in your gas pig roaster.
Propane Gas Tank. We offer a 43 pound tank without OPD and 30 or 40 pound tanks with OPD. They ship empty. If you choose a gas model, you’ll need a tank either way, but you may choose to get one locally.
Meadow Creek pig roasters are available in both charcoal/wood-fired and gas-fired models. There are three different sizes and the two bigger ones come as push-around models or on a trailer with lights and VIN number.
Visit our pig roasters page for photos, charts, and specs for each model.
Also check out my previous blog posts on Meadow Creek options:
- 13+ Ways to Deck Out Your Meadow Creek Smoker
- 15 Smart Ways to Expand the Usefulness of a Meadow Creek Chicken Cooker
Any questions, don’t hesitate to get in touch.
Sizzling regards,
Lavern Gingerich
April 30th, 2015 at 8:30 pm
Lavern I am a member of a local snowmobile club and we are trying to put a chicken cooker together for the up coming fund raising season looking for any help or suggestions you might have,Thanks Skip Wallace Mad River Ridge Runners Waitsfield Vermont.Thanks Again
April 30th, 2015 at 8:40 pm
That sounds great! Check out the chicken cooker options page and you can call or email Marlin. He can answer your questions and guide you in the right direction.
May 3rd, 2015 at 3:08 pm
How much is that rib rack? I really could use something like that!
May 4th, 2015 at 9:38 am
Hey, Wade! The prices for each of the options are listed on the specific pig roaster pages. You can request a shipping quote on our contact page using the general contact form. Let me know if you have any further questions. Thanks, buddy! —Lavern