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Bacon
cookingnews

Win a Year of Bacon from Whole Foods Market

by David Dadekian December 9, 2020
written by David Dadekian
Bacon

Whole Foods Market is holding a bacon contest through the end of July. You can enter by submitting your best recipe or creative use for bacon via their Meat Department Facebook page where you can also vote for your favorite entries (and tell your friends to vote for yours!). The complete details are here:

Win A Year of Bacon! To celebrate our sizzling hot bacon, we’re holding an online contest on Facebook to find the next big bacon idea. Bacon chocolates, cocktails and salt have been hits. What’s next? Share your idea and be entered to win a Year of Bacon. (Yes, a Year of Bacon!) Enter and vote for your favorites in the Bacon Smackdown going on between now and July 31 at facebook.com/wholefoodsmeat.

The grand prize winner chosen by Whole Foods Market receives a Year of Bacon, and the top 10 ideas as “liked” by the Facebook community receive $50 Whole Foods Market gift cards. Winners will be announced August 10, 2012. We expect the competition to be smokin’ hot, so good luck to all!

Theo Weening, Global Meat Coordinator for Whole Foods Market, had this to add about the bacon they sell at Whole Foods Market, “Bacon is one of the most versatile meats out there. I love it with blue cheese on a grass-fed beef burger. My daughter loves to dip it in maple syrup with pancakes. It’s tasty no matter how you slice it. Plus, all of the bacon we sell at Whole Foods Market comes from approved producers who raise the animals without antibiotics and cure the bacon with naturally-occurring salts, rather than synthetic nitrates or nitrites. So it’s naturally delicious.”

Berkshire pork belly after curing for bacon, prior to roasting (reverse view)
Berkshire pork belly after curing for bacon, prior to roasting (reverse view)

Regular readers of this site may recall last year’s Charcutepalooza posts, one of which involved curing your own bacon from pork belly (see above photo).

So to say I’m a bacon fan is a bit of an understatement. One of my favorite uses for bacon (actually two very similar ones) involves putting it in a sandwich, specifically a BLT or a grilled cheese with bacon and tomato. We’re coming up on the prime time of year for both those sandwiches and I cannot wait. For this Whole Foods Market bacon contest I would offer up something a little more indulgent and very local.

Bacon

BAMT

Print
Serves: 1
Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat
Rating: 5.0/5
( 1 voted )

Ingredients

  • Seven Stars Bakery baguette OR Olga’s Cup + Saucer foccacia
  • 4-6 strips of cooked bacon
  • 2 thick slices of a freshly picked RI tomato
  • kosher salt
  • 2-3 slices of Narragansett Creamery mozzarella
  • fresh ground black pepper
  • handful of RI arugula
  • extra virgin olive oil

Instructions

  1. Slice in half either an 8" length of baguette from Seven Stars Bakery or a square of focaccia from Olga’s Cup + Saucer. Layer bacon, tomato, a sprinkling of salt, mozzarella, ground black pepper and arugula tossed in a tiny bit of the olive oil, in between the slices, adjusting the salt, pepper and oil depending on the saltiness of the bacon and the strength of the arugula. Eat!
December 9, 2020 0 comment
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chefs & restaurantsfarmsnewswine & drinks

Chef Jamie Bissonnette Wins Cochon 555 Boston 2012

by David Dadekian March 26, 2012
written by David Dadekian

Chef Jamie Bissonnette's Bánh Mì of Coppa, Kidney Spread, Head Cheese and Ham

Chef Jamie Bissonnette's Bánh Mì of Coppa, Kidney Spread, Head Cheese and Ham

Chef Jamie Bissonnette of Coppa and Toro in Boston was the winner of the fourth annual Cochon 555 Boston competition. The event, held this year at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Boston was even more over-the-top than years past with a packed ballroom of people eating outstanding pork dishes from Bissonnette along with the four other competitors, Chefs Barbara Lynch and Colin Lynch of Menton, Barry Maiden of Hungry Mother, Tim Cushman of O Ya and Steve Postal of Fenway Park.

To underscore how Cochon 555 brings out the best competitors, last week Chefs Bissonette and Cushman were named James Beard Foundation award finalists for Best Chef: Northeast. One of Chef Lynch’s other restaurants in her Barbara Lynch Gruppo, No. 9 Park, is a finalist for the Beard Foundation Awards’ Outstanding Wine Program. Also at the Cochon 555 Boston event was a third Beard Foundation Award Best Chef: Northeast nominee, Chef Matt Jennings of Farmstead & La Laiterie. This was the first year that Providence, Rhode Island favorite Jennings did not compete in the Cochon 555, having won all three of the previous Boston events. Jennings was on hand as part of the Le Creuset challenge.

Cochon is the brainchild of Brady Lowe who now hosts fourteen culinary events around the United States each year with the goal of supporting sustainable agriculture. The journey begins every January when Cochon 555 embarks on a 10-city culinary competition and tasting tour. Fifty chefs are selected to prepare a “snout -to-tail” menu created from heritage breed pigs. The ten local winners are flown to the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen for the final competition, Grand Cochon. Three other national events—Cochon All-Star, Cochon Heritage Fire and a BBQ competition—bring even bigger voices to the cause of whole animal utilization.

As the winner, Bissonnette will now compete in Aspen, Colorado at the Grand Cochon U.S. Tour Finale during the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen. Congratulations to Chef Bissonnette and his entire team. Good luck in Aspen. Below is a selection of fifteen photographs highlighting tonight’s event. You can view posts and photos from previous years here.

Chef Jamie Bissonnette with his trophy (Chef Tim Cushman to left)

Chef Jamie Bissonnette with his trophy (Chef Tim Cushman to left)

Chef Bissonnette's plate, clockwise from upper left: La Lot Vietnamese Sausage, Bánh Mì, Pig Foot Rillette, Pork Belly Pho

Chef Bissonnette's plate, clockwise from upper left: La Lot Vietnamese Sausage, Bánh Mì, Pig Foot Rillette, Pork Belly Pho

Chicken Fried Head Cheese with bacon waffle and maple syrup from Chef Colin Lynch of Barbara Lynch Gruppo

Chicken Fried Head Cheese with bacon waffle and maple syrup from Chef Colin Lynch of Barbara Lynch Gruppo

Chef Colin Lynch of Menton slicing ham

Chef Colin Lynch of Menton slicing ham

The Hungry Mother team, Chef Barry Maiden in center, preparing their platter of six dishes

The Hungry Mother team, Chef Barry Maiden in center, preparing their platter of six dishes

O Ya's ingenious menu presentation, "printed" on pig skin

O Ya's ingenious menu presentation, "printed" on pig skin

 

Chef Steve Postal brought a large display of Red Sox items with him from Fenway Park, including . . .

Chef Steve Postal brought a large display of Red Sox items with him from Fenway Park, including . . .

. . . yes, that's a World Series trophy! Chef Postal brought both the 2004 & 2007 Red Sox World Series Champion trophies for display. That's Postal serving his Pork Blood Ice Cream over a "Pork Crispy Treat"

. . . yes, that's a World Series trophy! Chef Postal brought both the 2004 & 2007 Red Sox World Series Champion trophies for display. That's Postal serving his Pork Blood Ice Cream over a "Pork Crispy Treat"

The crowd watching the Lemay & Sons Beef butchery demo of a whole Berkshire from Brambly Farms

The crowd watching the Lemay & Sons Beef butchery demo of a whole Berkshire from Brambly Farms

All that beautifully butchered Brambly Farms Berkshire pig

All that beautifully butchered Brambly Farms Berkshire pig

Daniel Hyatt from The Alembic in San Francisco prepared the perfect Manhattans with an assortment of small batch bourbons

Daniel Hyatt from The Alembic in San Francisco prepared the perfect Manhattans with an assortment of small batch bourbons

Hyatt's beautifully presented Manhattan in a Mason jar

Hyatt's beautifully presented Manhattan in a Mason jar

Chef Bissonnette with a magic ingredient Blis Small Batch Bourbon Barrel Aged Fish Sauce

Chef Bissonnette with a magic ingredient Blis Small Batch Bourbon Barrel Aged Fish Sauce

from left to right: Chef Barry Maiden of Hungry Mother, Chef Colin Lynch of Menton, Chef Steve Postal of Fenway Park, Cochon 555 founder Brady Lowe, Chef Barbara Lynch of Barbara Lynch Gruppo, Chef Tim Cushman of O Ya and Chef Jamie Bissonnette of Coppa and Toro

from left to right: Chef Barry Maiden of Hungry Mother, Chef Colin Lynch of Menton, Chef Steve Postal of Fenway Park, Cochon 555 founder Brady Lowe, Chef Barbara Lynch of Barbara Lynch Gruppo, Chef Tim Cushman of O Ya and Chef Jamie Bissonnette of Coppa and Toro

Chef Jamie Bissonnette and Cochon 555 founder Brady Lowe embrace after Lowe announces Bissonnette as the Boston winner. Chef Matt Jennings cheers in the background

Chef Jamie Bissonnette and Cochon 555 founder Brady Lowe embrace after Lowe announces Bissonnette as the Boston winner. Chef Matt Jennings cheers in the background

March 26, 2012 0 comment
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cooking

Charcutepalooza February: The Salt Cure: bacon & pancetta

by David Dadekian October 31, 2022
written by David Dadekian
pancetta with slice
pancetta with slice

Pork belly.

I’m going to let those words roll around your tongue for a while. Perhaps I’ll type them again.

Pork belly.

Beautiful words, yes? Before February’s Charcutepalooza challenge was even announced I had acquired a thick, fatty, gorgeous pork belly from a pasture-raised Berkshire pig. It had been delivered on a Friday morning by Patrick McNiff of Pat’s Pastured farm in Jamestown, Rhode Island and then butchered in front of my camera by Chef Champe Speidel of Persimmon Provisions butcher shop in Barrington, Rhode Island. When the photo session was done (the photos will be in the upcoming spring issue of Edible Rhody) I said, “I’m buying that pork belly.” David, who works at Persimmon Provisions, also said, “I’m buying that pork belly.” Fortunately, there’s two sides to every animal, so we avoided pork belly tension. Have I achieved any kind of record for the number of times one can type “pork belly” in a paragraph?

Charcutepalooza

I put the belly in my refrigerator, planning on spending some time that weekend curing it. I have often made un-smoked slab bacon (essentially slab pancetta) and had come very close to a recipe I liked the last time I had done it, so I had hoped to perfect it with the nine-plus pounds of belly now wrapped in plastic in my refrigerator. Clearly the pork belly has mystical powers because it was revealed on Saturday morning that the February Charcutepalooza challenge was The Salt Cure. How often do you find yourself with a large cut of pork belly and the possibility of winning a prize by curing that pork belly? I know what you’re saying: not often enough.

First thing I did was split the belly into two pieces. The extremely thick end weighed in at about 3 1/2 pounds and that was set aside for bacon. The rest, which was still pretty thick and proved a bit difficult to roll, I cured with the pancetta recipe straight out of Michael Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn’s Charcuterie: The Craft of Salting, Smoking and Curing. I still haven’t completely decided if I’ve perfected my bacon cure yet, but if you like your bacon a little on the spicy/savory side, you can give this a try:

Bacon Cure

Print
Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat
Rating: 5.0/5
( 1 voted )

Ingredients

  • salt cure (how much and what color I leave to you to decide, my bacon never leaves a refrigerator or oven, so I used a cup of kosher salt)
  • 1 Tbs Ecuadorian whole black peppercorns
  • 1/2 Tbs whole coriander
  • 1/2 Tbs whole cumin
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1/2 Tbs Herbs de Provence
  • 1/2 cup maple syrup

Instructions

Toast and grind the whole spices, crumble the bay leaves and mix it all up in a zip top bag with the pork belly. From there follow the directions in Charcuterie. I use Ecuadorian black peppercorns because they have a bit of heat. I wouldn’t say hot like cayenne, but definitely more heat than you’d get from Tellicherry peppercorns. I get them from The Spice House. If you don’t have them you could use standard peppercorns and a dash or two of ground cayenne or perhaps a few shots of Tabasco.

Before closing, a quick story about my wonderfully faithful and protective black Labrador named Bayou (yes, she was born in Louisiana). I hang most of my charcuterie out in the open in our basement. Each time I hang a piece of meat, Bayou wanders down to the basement and sniffs every square inch of the floor, hunting for something she knows smells delicious, but she can never find it. I’m not sure if I’ll be upset or proud on the day Bayou finally figures out that all she has to do is look up.

Photos and captions will tell the rest of my curing tale. Thank you again to Mrs. Wheelbarrow and The Yummy Mummy.

Berkshire pork belly after curing for bacon, prior to roasting
Berkshire pork belly after curing for bacon, prior to roasting
Berkshire pork belly after curing for bacon, prior to roasting (reverse view)
Berkshire pork belly after curing for bacon, prior to roasting (reverse view)
pork belly cured for bacon, seen after roasting, fresh from the oven
pork belly cured for bacon, seen after roasting, fresh from the oven
close-up cross section of bacon
close-up cross section of bacon
the bacon now having cooled
the bacon now having cooled
full view of bacon cross-section
full view of bacon cross-section
cooked bacon, soon to be inside grilled cheese sandwiches, alongside a jar of glowing bacon fat
cooked bacon, soon to be inside grilled cheese sandwiches, alongside a jar of glowing bacon fat
bacon fat, strained through cheesecloth
bacon fat, strained through cheesecloth
portion of pork belly cured for pancetta
portion of pork belly cured for pancetta
belly rolled, tied and ready to hang
belly rolled, tied and ready to hang
pancetta tie job 1
pancetta tie job 1
pancetta tie job 2
pancetta tie job 2
close-up of rolled belly and trussing
close-up of rolled belly and trussing
hung
hung
finished pancetta, cut in two
finished pancetta, cut in two
one half of the rolled pancetta
one half of the rolled pancetta
one thin slice
one thin slice

One more time: pork belly

October 31, 2022 0 comment
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chefs & restaurantswine & drinks

Seasons at the Ocean House New England Harvest dinner at the James Beard House

by David Dadekian January 5, 2011
written by David Dadekian

Turned vegetables prepped for the Pork Belly dish

Turned vegetables prepped for the Pork Belly dish

This past November the chefs from Seasons at the Ocean House prepared a six-course meal with wine pairings from local winery Jonathan Edwards as part of their New England Harvest dinner at the James Beard House in New York City. Led by Chef de Cuisine Eric Haugen, several items stood out as testaments to not only the Ocean House’s experienced staff, but also the local New England ingredients they work hard to source. A Duck Liver Mousse Crostini had the perfect amount of richness with a great offset of crunchy texture. The Celery Root Panna Cotta with Watch Hill Honey Glaze, Casteveltrano Olives, Meyer Lemon and Coriander had an incredible combination of flavors. The Vermont Pork Belly with Toasted Farro, Native Winter Root Vegetables and Juniper-Scented Consomme was perfectly cooked—the pork belly prepared sous vide before searing it—and the richness of the belly was greatly tempered by the earthy faro. As much as we all love dessert I rarely clean my final plate after a meal like this, but I actually did eat every bit of Pastry Chef Adam Young’s Local Squash and Dairy Study. The wine pairings from Jonathan Edwards (I was at the dinner as a guest of the winery) were spot on, beginning with an excellent match of their 2009 Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc with the Panna Cotta and an even more perfect pairing of their 2007 Napatree Point Zinfandel with the Pork Belly dish.

Vermont Pork Belly, cooked sous vide and then seared to crisp the top

Vermont Pork Belly, cooked sous vide and then seared to crisp the top

Pork Belly close-up

Pork Belly close-up

Chef de Cuisine Eric Haugen signing the framed whites at the James Beard House

Chef de Cuisine Eric Haugen signing the framed whites at the James Beard House

Pastry Chef Adam Young preparing the Acorn Caviar by dropping acorn squash blended with calcium into alginated water to encapsulate spheres of squash

Pastry Chef Adam Young preparing the Acorn Caviar by dropping acorn squash blended with calcium into alginated water to encapsulate spheres of squash

Pastry Chef Adam Young's multi-colored macarons

Pastry Chef Adam Young's multi-colored macarons

Pastry Chef Adam Young's multi-colored macarons

Pastry Chef Adam Young's multi-colored macarons

Chocolate mignardises with gold leaf

Chocolate mignardises with gold leaf

Candied hazelnuts

Candied hazelnuts

Stove-top with Glazed Chestnuts and Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Stove-top with Glazed Chestnuts and Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Chef Haugen plating the Duck Liver Mousse Crostini

Chef Haugen plating the Duck Liver Mousse Crostini

Chef Haugen plating the Duck Liver Mousse Crostini, Pastry Chef Adam Young to the left

Chef Haugen plating the Duck Liver Mousse Crostini, Pastry Chef Adam Young to the left

Vermont Pork Belly with Toasted Farro, Native Winter Root Vegetables and Juniper-Scented Consomme

Vermont Pork Belly with Toasted Farro, Native Winter Root Vegetables and Juniper-Scented Consomme

January 5, 2011 0 comment
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