How to Roast a Whole Piglet

A Gutted Piglet

You'll need to order a piglet from your butcher, and should ask that it be cleaned and scraped. Francesco's piglet weighed about 25 pounds, and he picked it up the day before he fired up the oven.

He also had:

5 ounces (weight, 125 g) coarse salt -- Kosher salt will be perfect
1 1/2 ounces (weight, 50 g) freshly ground pepper
1 1/2 ounces (weight, 50 g) fresh sage leaves, finely chopped
1 1/2 ounces (weight, 50 g) rosemary needles, finely chopped
Several cloves of garlic (up to a head), finely chopped
A large roasting pan
4 pounds (2 k) dried cannellini beans
A 2 1/2-gallon (10 liter) pot
10 pounds (5 k) potatoes, with more salt and pepper to season them