The phrase "farm to table" is used a lot in foodie circles. In the second half of this Sky Full of Bacon two-part podcast, I'll complete the picture of what that really means with visits to restaurant kitchens... and to a slaughterhouse.
Mike Sula of the Chicago Reader has been writing about the rare mulefoot pig for the last year and a half. (See here: chicagoreader.com/wholehogproject) Now the Reader has enlisted award-winning chef Paul Kahan, of Chicago's Blackbird, to plan an elaborate six-course dinner showcasing the meat of these pigs and the sustainable, humane way in which they're raised. In Part 2, Mike Sula and I watch as the chefs prepare for the big night and talk about why supporting and promoting good pork matters to them. And we go to the rural slaughterhouse with one of the chefs to gain a better understanding of what really lies behind the meat we eat. (Warning: although we were not allowed to film the kill itself, the video does contain frank footage of everything else that goes on in a slaughterhouse.) More info at skyfullofbacon.com/blog (19:56)
Update 3/23/09: The two There Will Be Pork videos have just been nominated for James Beard Foundation Awards, in the multimedia category along with the "Whole Hog Project" Chicago Reader stories they accompanied.
