Bacon candy is one of the most popular recipes at aol.com, which is as good a reason as any to salute bacon. While you're candying your bacon, order up some bacon salt with which to anoint summer's last grilled veggies, french fries, chops or steak.
A bacon keeper is an inexpensive and indispensable feature for the frosty landscape inside your refrigerator. Now you than you're set to preserve and prepare your bacon, start cooking with it. Cobb Salad isn't Cobb Salad without bacon; here's a great recipe for this American classic. Once you've mastered your Cobb, explore additional recipes at The Bacon Show -- but be warned: after you sample your homemade bacon-infused vodka, you will probably need one of these.
While bacon is nourishing your interior, insulate your exterior with a bacon scarf. Outfit your breakfront, office cubby, or any other environment you choose (bacon-themed bathroom, anyone?) with a selection of novelties from the bacon collection at Archie McPhee. Finally, if you're wondering wherefore this depth of scholarship concerning bacon, consider this: aside from being namesake for one of art's masters, bacon inspired the art of no less a master than Salvador Dali.
A few years back, my pal Tom introduced me to the delicious, sweet taste of "Kaba-yaki," broiled eel served with a sweet sauce. As I'm always game to try new things, I scarfed down the piece that he offered me. As soon as I tasted it, I forgot about the fact that the meat came from a slithering, snakelike creature and began to focus on the flavor. It was tender, moist, and perfectly delicious. I was hooked.
Although time, geography, and economics have kept me from regularly partaking of the delicious Kaba-yaki, I can certainly understand why it is Japan's official summer food. I can even understand, to a certain extent, why Japan Tobacco, Inc. recently came out with "Unagi Noburi," or "Surging Eel," an eel-based carbonated beverage. Made from (among other things) the head and bones of eels, the soda contains several of the vitamins that are contained in the fish. The company is marketing it as a sort of energy drink, designed to extend its drinkers' stamina.
According to reports, the drink tastes more or less like Kaba-yaki. While the idea of a broiled, barbecue-y eel drink initially nauseates me a little, I have to admit that I wasn't all that hot on eel itself when I first heard about it. Given how the Kaba-yaki turned out, I may have to give the soda a try!
Warning: this post may offend people who like cute little furry guinea pigs.
A few days ago, I wrote a post about chicha morada, the amazing Peruvian blue corn drink. Thinking on it further, I am becoming increasingly convinced that Peru produces some of the best dishes in the world; with that in mind, I plan on writing a fair bit more about the wonders of lomo saltado, papas a la huancaina, and other treats. However, in the interests of total honesty, I also have to acknowledge the dark side of Peruvian cuisine, the surreal side, the side that dresses up guinea pigs in colorful costumes then roasts them with cheese.
The twisted tale of the Peruvian Guinea Pig Festival begins in a cute, whimsical way. In the small city of Huacho, located north of Lima, somebody came up with the bright idea of holding a regional carnival to honor the cuy, or guinea pig. Now in its third year, the event features contests for fattest, quickest, and best dressed cuy. People from the surrounding communities primp and preen their top animals, preparing them for the race and dressing them in the height of rodent fashion. It is not uncommon to see the animals dressed in bright silks and taffetas, sporting little hats and crowns, and generally looking like a cross between a fur mitten and the infant of Prague.
While the winners of the fastest and best dressed contests are spared from the final competition, the remainder of the cuy become fodder for the greatest test of all, a battle royale that pits woman against woman, village against village, and cuy against cuy: the fight for tastiest guinea pig. Amidst an orgy of stuffing, roasting, skewering and smoking, the women of Peru demonstrate their skill with one of the country's traditional delicacies.
As I wrote several weeks ago, a pig pickin' is a North Carolina tradition involving a pig, a converted petroleum drum cooker, a bunch of charcoal and a whole lot of time. But a pig pickin' is not the only way to cook a whole hog - cultures across the world have been spit roasting, grilling and burying pigs in hot ash for thousands of years. In many places, pork is the cheapest meal available, making pig roasts an affordable way to have big festive meals for the whole community. Here are a few whole hog traditions from around the world:
Hawaii: Possibly the most famous whole pig preparation of them all, the kalua pig is a staple of the Hawaiian luau. The pig is "dressed" (gutted, the outer layer of skin and hair removed) and salted and placed in an imu - a banana leaf-lined pit filled with hot stones. The pig is covered in more dirt and left for hours until smoky and falling apart tender.
Cuba: Cubans love their lechón (suckling pig), a Christmas Eve tradition. Pigs are often cooked in backyard roasters made from bricks or cinder blocks. One popular version of the homemade roaster is called a "caja china" (a Chinese box), a rather coffin-like device in which the pig is placed on the metal-lined bottom and a tray of coals is placed on top, cooking the meat through indirect heat.
Italy: At the annual Sagra del Maiale festival of pork, Italians grill whole pigs over a food fire and lovingly dis-articulate them to feed the whole village. Skin becomes crispy and meat is buttery soft and succulent. And not a big of the porker is wasted - even the ears and trotters are fair game. Not headed to Italy any time soon? Some Italian restaurants in NYC and other cities have their own Sagra del Maiale.
The Philippines: The image of the golden-skinned pig spinning on a spit over a roaring fire is a reality here in the South Pacific, where Filipinos adore stuffing the pig's belly with herbs and spices, impaling it horizontally, and roasting it until the skin crackles and the meat is meltingly tender. The dish, known as lechon baboy, is a festival day favorite.
Behold the Whatafarm burger, which according to alanbeam.net, via about.blank is "a burger ordered from the Whataburger chain and includes chicken, egg, cheese and bacon. 2 parts cow, 2 parts chicken, 1 part pig."
I'm all for the orgiastic multi-species chow down, what with my penchant for Kentucky burgoo (2 formats of cow -- old and young, lamb, pig, and chicken) and applaud the orderers for their gastronomic gumption. If I were being all harrumphy about it, I could note that the menu offers pig in sausage form and a fish filet as well and they opted for neither, but hey - Michelangelo didn't knock out the Sistine Chapel on his first jaunt up the scaffolding.
We salute you with all hooves, claws and trotters up!
I've always wanted to throw my own pig pickin,' and my departure from North Carolina finally gave me an excuse. So I went for it - whole hog, if you will, earlier this spring.
A pig pickin,' known in other parts of the country as a hog roast, or simply, a barbecue, is a Carolina tradition involving a hog, a converted oil drum cooker and a lot of time.
Pickin' (ALWAYS drop the 'g') have been a stable of church fundraisers, family reunions and political rallies in the South since long before the Civil War, as pork was always much cheaper than beef. You can't feed 100 people much more cheaply than with a nice hog and all the fixin's - baked beans, hush puppies, slaw and sweet tea.
Not long ago I posted about an event at the Astor Center in NYC, the annual Head to Tail Dinner put on by Chris Cosentino of Incanto restaurant in San Francisco. I was lucky enough to attend and want to tell you all about it. We'll go behind the scenes in the kitchen before, and just prior to the meal; and follow all the way through the dinner itself. It all started three days prior when I was invited to join the chefs in the kitchen as they started prepping for the dinner.
Chris and his pal, Chef Jonnatan Leiva of the Jack Falstaff Restaurant in San Francisco had flown in on a red-eye after finishing work late the night before. With what little sleep they had on the plane, they went straight to work in the Astor Center kitchen, as they engaged on a three-day binge of Red Bull to keep them alert and local microbrews to keep them sane. Other chefs from around New York state showed up to volunteer and help put the event together.
Left to right- Aaron Sanchez, Colin Alevras, Chris Cosentino, and Jonnatan Leiva.
It was already late in the afternoon and the Director of the Astor Center, Lesley Townsend, arrived with a emergency shipment of king-size Red Bull's and Chef Aarón Sánchez of Centrico in NYC and Colin Alevras chef/owner of The Tasting Room in NYC showed up with some quart-size brews from Six Points Craft Ales in Brooklyn, their Diesel Stout and Bengali Tiger IPA. I highly recommend both of these brews, especially the IPA.
Here is a nice big pot of tripe that has been simmering in stock for hours.
All the pieces of tripe have to be picked out and set aside for the night of the dinner where they will be battered and fried as one of the appetizers.
Ready to go in the fridge until the big night. Not many folks know that there was a tripe emergency at the last minute. The wholesaler fell through with the order, but the chefs put out a call and another restaurant that had just received a large order sent over enough to save the day.
Chris as he de-bones pigs trotters (feet) that have been braising for hours and hours. The pigs feet were specially ordered from Flying Pigs Farm in NY and were rare heritage breeds like Large Blacks, Gloucestershire Old Spots, and Tamworths.
Seasoning the deboned trotters with a dash of salt.
Laying out the trotters and meat and then carefully rolling them up into loaves to chill. When they have chilled the natural gelatin will hold them together so that they can be sliced into roulades, breaded, and deep fried.
Pierre Lamielle, a culinary student is packing Lardo Butter into ramekins for table service the night of the dinner. This is a combination of lardo or cured pig lard, mixed with olive oil and a few other things. It will sit for several days in the fridge for the flavors to merge and create a deep and luxurious flavored spread for the bread.
Jon and Chris inspecting a tray of cockscombs provided by D' Artagnan that have been candied by simmering for hours in a mixture of blood orange juice, sugar, bay leaves and blossoms, vanilla, and black pepper. Yes, that's right, cockscombs! The red things that sit on top of a roosters head.They are basically pure collagen and have a firm, gelatinous texture. These will be part of the dessert. Yes, dessert.
Don't they look tasty? Like huge, blood orange-flavored gummi's. You can see the vanilla bean and bay leaves sitting among all those cockscombs. Mmmmm...
The host for night of the Head to Tail dinner was Michael Ruhlman. I have his book on Charcuterie that he wrote with Brian Polcyn and it is the best on the subject out of many in my personal library. You should check out Michael's blog, it's very good and Anthony Bourdain is a frequent contributor there. In the background you can see a live video feed to the kitchen where at least a half dozen chefs are hard at work plating dishes. Here's the menu for the dinner.
Head to Tail Dinner: Chef Chris Cosentino, Host Michael Ruhlman
Bits & Bobbles (Standing Appetizers)
Beef Heart Tartare Puttanesca Fritto of Honeycomb Tripe with Picholine Olives and Marjoram Crostino of Salt Cured Pork Heart, with Eight Minute Farm Egg Porchetta di Testa with Radish and Pecorino Wine: Zucchi Pignoletto NV, Emilia-Romagna
Supper
Beef Tendon & Sweetbreads, with Chile and Mint Wine: Nero d'Avelo, Feudo Montoni 2003, Sicily
Turf and Surf: Pig Trotters and Lobster Tarragon Wine: Ribolla Gialla, La Castellada 2000, Friuli-Venezia Giulia
Crudo of Venison Liver, with Beets and Juniper Balsamic Vinegar Wine: Sangue di Giuda, Tenimenti Confalonieri, la Versa 2006, Lombardy
Whole Roasted Spring Lamb Neck, with Sheep's Milk Polenta and Gremolata Wine: Nieddera Rosso, Conitini 2003, Sardinia Dessert
Blood Orange Candied Cockscombs, with Bay Leaf Rice Pudding Wine: Recioto di Soave "Col Foscarin", Gini 2004, Veneto
Here's the Lardo Butter I mentioned. The flavor was magnificent and blew away even the best artisanal butter. I wish I had barrels of this at home, and the bread was great as well. I knew that a feast was in the making, so I only allowed myself just the one piece, which ended up being a very wise decision.
Porchetta di testa: this is pork head boned and marinated for two days with rosemary and garlic, then cooked sous vide for 14 hours at 200 degrees, sliced paper thin.
Porchetta di testa with radish and pecorino was unctuous, creamy, delicate, and delicious. Some of the best charcuterie I have had.
And here's Chris's recipe from his website, OffalGood.com.
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A few years back, my pal Tom introduced me to the delicious, sweet taste of "Kaba-yaki," broiled eel served with a sweet sauce. As I'm always game to try new things, I scarfed down the piece that he offered me. As soon as I tasted it, I forgot about the fact that the meat came from a slithering, snakelike creature and began to focus on the flavor. It was tender, moist, and perfectly delicious. I was hooked. 
Warning: this post may offend people who like cute little furry guinea pigs.
Not long ago I posted about an event at the Astor Center in NYC, the annual 
New York Times Magazine's food issue
Chicken McNuggets frolic at New York City pet store
Eat your broccoli orbs! 
