Fill the coal basket of a barrel or drum smoker with charcoal. Fully open the bottom vent - this will allow for plenty of oxygen and maximum heat.
Ignite four large pieces of natural fire starter and nestle them into the coals. Leave the lid off the smoker and allow the fire starters to burn undisturbed for five minutes.
Place the lid on the smoker and leave it to heat for 45 minutes. The coals should become very hot during this time and be turning white from the heat.
Prepare the poaka by removing any sinew or hairs. If the hairs are excess, you can use a blow torch to singe them off but scraping along the skin with a sharp knife also does the trick. Score the skin by slicing lengthwise.
In a small bowl, combine the sea salt and ground black pepper, stir together and liberally sprinkle on. Rub the seasoning into the skin and meat so that it is well coated.
Take the lid off the smoker and place the split poaka head on the grill grate skin side up. Put the lid back on the smoker and leave to cook for 4 ½ to 5 hours. To test if the meat is ready, insert the tip of a knife into the cheeks. The knife should go easily into the meat with little resistance. If you have a kitchen thermometer, the internal temperature should be sitting around 90c (195f).
Turn on an oven to the grill setting and preheat to 225c (430f), or 200c (390f) if using convection.
Take the poaka out of the smoker and place on an oven tray skin side up. Put the tray in the oven and leave to crisp under the grill for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and rest at room temperature for 15 minutes.
Once rested, you can pull the meat off the bones using tongs, a knife, or even just your hands - it’ll be super hot so take care.
Recipe notes:
The meat is fatty and rich so it can go a long way and the bones can be used for stock.
I used a barrel smoker for this recipe, but you can achieve the same result with an offset smoker.
