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In Latin American cultures, Christmas Eve is Noche Buena and time for a big family celebration, often featuring a pig roast. There are lots of ways to cook a whole pig. But at Noche Buena parties in South Florida and, increasingly, around the country, the preferred method for roasting a pig involves something known as a “China box.”
The first thing you need is a pig. In the Miami area, the place where most people get their whole pigs is a ranch on the outskirts of neighboring Hialeah. It’s called Matadero Cabrera. Matadero is Spanish for slaughterhouse.
Bobby Damas drove nearly an hour from the next county to reserve his pig, a 70-pounder, butchered and dressed for Noche Buena. Like every other cus…