Savoring all the flavor at annual roast in Mundelein

An amazingly simple rub mix and plenty of patience were keys to the succulent meat dished out Sunday at St. Mary of the Annunciation's Pork and Corn Roast near Mundelein.

Roughly 3,700 pounds of pork, freshly picked corn, ripe tomatoes, beans and more were available at the 34th roast. The event, at Erhart Road and Route 60, was billed as Lake County's largest roast and the Roman Catholic Church's top fundraiser.

Adding to the festivities were a children's petting zoo, craft show, band and other activities.

But make no mistake, the pork was the star. Preparations began about 6 p.m. Saturday, with Tom Quille of Mundelein and Jason Beauvais of Round Lake in command of a six-to-10-man crew of slow-roasters.

As usual, the team got to work with prime hogs that church members selected from the Lake County Fair in Grayslake after it concluded July 31.

"The hogs are so fresh," said Quille, 25. "They're here so fast. I think that's a big thing."

Quille said a blend of onion and garlic salt - no other ingredients - was rubbed into the pork before hitting the large, steel cookers. The hogs were rotated every 15 minutes overnight because slow cooking is vital to success.

No fancy wood was used to impart flavor into the meat.

"We use regular charcoal, whatever brand we can find," Quille said as an intoxicating pork aroma wafted over the grounds Sunday. "It's kind of hard to maintain a constant temperature with (the meat). We just use as much charcoal as we possibly can."

Once ready for serving, the hogs were carried from the roasters to a shack where a volunteer squad chopped, pulled and cut the meat. Aluminum serving pans and visitors' plates were the final resting spots for the pork.

Beauvais, 28, said he and Quille became interested in taking over the pig roasting after helping their fathers over the years.

"I look forward to it every year because the food is so good," Beauvais said.

As for the corn, which shares top billing with the pork, each batch was steamed for about 20 minutes in a double boiler made from an oil drum. Albert Hertel, 65, of Fremont Township, who was part of the corn crew, said the 3,600 ears were picked early Sunday.

"It is fresher than fresh," Hertel said.