And Now For Something Completely Different In Reading Material
On the cookbook front I have the album Au Pied de Cochon, which I have been wanting to test and review for some time now. It is not to every one's taste or philosophy, which makes it all that more interesting to ponder. For those not familiar with the Montreal institution, Anthony Bourdain captures it best.
" A one man Dionysian orgy of my favorite things ... a completely unrestrained in-your-face feast of crispy duck fat, unctuous duck livers, moist flavourful blood sausages, marrow-filled bones, tender, lovingly slow-cooked birds, stuffed rabbit, sumptuous and hearty stews - and always: pork, pork, pork - in all its fatty, crispy, and inspiring glory." He has "his own madly enthusiastic signature takes on Quebecois sugar-shack staples like poutine, heaping thick slabs of melting foie gras, foie gras sauce and foie gras fat on the already artery-clogging goodness of hand-cut frits, demi-glace and fresh curds."
As you can see, the book and restaurant has the potential to be unpopular with some folks. Myself, I am looking forward to trying out the recipes, and would love to experience Martin Picard's enthusiasm in person. I don't like to eat slabs of foie gras for the simple reason that I get full so fast from all the richness. But if prepared perfectly I enjoy it. Thankfully my friends who are better human beings allow me my occasional forays into the forbidden. You can be sure the politically correct will not be invited to the recipe testing feast coming up this summer!
OK, I am a tinge troubled by my enthusiasm in looking forward to eating foie gras. Perhaps this calls for a post on how it produced. For now I will provide two articles on foie gras production. The first is on production in France. The smallish farm produces goose foie gras, and the article is from the perspective of someone who eats foie gras. The second is from an animal rights group. Foie gras production is not for the squeamish.
On the cookbook front I have the album Au Pied de Cochon, which I have been wanting to test and review for some time now. It is not to every one's taste or philosophy, which makes it all that more interesting to ponder. For those not familiar with the Montreal institution, Anthony Bourdain captures it best.
" A one man Dionysian orgy of my favorite things ... a completely unrestrained in-your-face feast of crispy duck fat, unctuous duck livers, moist flavourful blood sausages, marrow-filled bones, tender, lovingly slow-cooked birds, stuffed rabbit, sumptuous and hearty stews - and always: pork, pork, pork - in all its fatty, crispy, and inspiring glory." He has "his own madly enthusiastic signature takes on Quebecois sugar-shack staples like poutine, heaping thick slabs of melting foie gras, foie gras sauce and foie gras fat on the already artery-clogging goodness of hand-cut frits, demi-glace and fresh curds."
As you can see, the book and restaurant has the potential to be unpopular with some folks. Myself, I am looking forward to trying out the recipes, and would love to experience Martin Picard's enthusiasm in person. I don't like to eat slabs of foie gras for the simple reason that I get full so fast from all the richness. But if prepared perfectly I enjoy it. Thankfully my friends who are better human beings allow me my occasional forays into the forbidden. You can be sure the politically correct will not be invited to the recipe testing feast coming up this summer!
OK, I am a tinge troubled by my enthusiasm in looking forward to eating foie gras. Perhaps this calls for a post on how it produced. For now I will provide two articles on foie gras production. The first is on production in France. The smallish farm produces goose foie gras, and the article is from the perspective of someone who eats foie gras. The second is from an animal rights group. Foie gras production is not for the squeamish.
posted by Underground Baker at 11:11 AM
4 Comments:
I used to work for a French man and one of my best friends is French, so I've eaten foie gras on two occasions: a party at said boss's house and my friend's wedding.
I didn't enjoy it the first time, and the second time I enjoyed it even less. Perhaps by then I had become aware of how it's produced, ad that tainted my taste experience.
Either way, I don't foresee a time when I'll have foie gras again. Blurg.
I know red, I have tasted some terrible foie gras, and yes, the way it is produced is off-putting.
Like much of the food we eat, we wouldn't eat it if we had to witness how it is produced...especially if we had to participate in the slaughtering process.
Ugh.
I didn't eat meat for a long time after going to cooking school. A month of butchery was enough to put me off meat for some time.
I eat meat more respectively and sparingly because of it.
I've had fois gras just two or three times...the best was at Susur's, but geez it's awfully rich for me. The book looks like fun, though.
I really like pate...but not foie gras.
Did you know that it is illegal in Chicago...because of the treatment of the animals in order to produce it...
I LOVED Bourdains take on the Montreal establishment he is so great! He has been on a few episodes of Top Chef...recently he filled in for the regular co-host and judge ...and he slyly says "aren't you glad to know I will be offering my feel good happy go lucky voice in the upcoming challenge" ha!
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