Cochon 555

Last night we happily dined on wine and swine at Cochon 555, a culinary event that features 5 chefs, 5 winemakers, and 5 heritage pigs. Presented by the Taste Network, the six-city event is a friendly competition of local chefs created to benefit The Endangered Hog Foundation and raise awareness for the Neighborhood Farmers Market Alliance and the Good Farmers Fund.  The Endangered Hog Foundation is helping to preserve nine critically endangered hog breeds in the US. through breeding protocols, genetic research, placing pigs on family farms and developing a market for heritage pork.

To put it bluntly: we porked out! All 5 chefs did such a fabulous job it was difficult to decide who knocked it out the park. I'll give you highlights of some of what I thought were the evening's "wow" dishes, but first let me introduce the breeds of pigs featured:

Berkshire-Duroc from Whistling Train Farm. The Berkshire breed, originally from the English county of Berkshire, is said to be "Britain's oldest pig breed." The Berkshire-Duroc cross-breed is rich and creamy with a slight nutty flavor.

Duroc from Good Farm. The breed originated from two strains of hogs from New Jersey and New York in 1830. The Duroc is a purebred with fatty flecks in its muscles making it tender, juicy and mild.

Red Wattle from Holthaus Farm. Because its meat is colorful and tender the Red Wattle is often referred to as a cross between beef and pork. (Two pigs in the competition were Red Wattles).

Berkshire from Newman Farms. The Berkshire has brightly colored meat that is heavily marbled. Like the cross-breed above, it is rich and creamy with nutty hints.

When we arrived we were greeted with glasses of sparkling wine from Elk Cove Vineyards then, I spied a big bowl of chicharrones from 4505 Chicharrones. It's no wonder my liver is screaming at me today as I'm quite certain I ate a whole pig's worth (regardless, I'm tempted to order these in bulk). Ever so light and crisp and dusted with a bit of spice these nibbles were absolutely divine. We also noshed on potato chips with creme fraiche and caviar (shown above). Out of this world! Both were the perfect treat to start the event.

The crowd was in full force in the main tasting hall, so I didn't get details on every dish, but I'll do my best to describe what the chefs prepared. Our first taste was bologna sandwiches from The Corson Building's Matt Dillon. Beautifully crafted pistachio studded mortadella folded into soft white bread. We also tried a lovely pork soup with kale and a country-style pâté with marmalade.

We moved on to the station of John Sundstrom from Lark where we had an amazingly juicy and oh so yummy smoked pork served with a delicious demi glace and hush puppies. Had i not been saving myself for the other features I would have hung out for seconds...even thirds.

Tamara Murphy from Brasa had tasty (and darling!) pig-shaped cookies made super-duper flaky from pig lard - move over Crisco! We also sampled a lovely trio of pâté. Mmmm..

Anthony Hubbard of CHOW Foods - this is where we really, well, chowed down. Not only did Anthony have a huge "swine shrine" but he prepared about 5 beyond delectable dishes. His passion and hard work clearly paid off as he was the winner of the evening. First, we had a Chilled Pork Belly Consommé With Brain Mousse. Now, I know what you're thinking, and I was hesitant at first (having never tried brain), but it was out of this world. Not only was it the most unique and clever (I was going to say "brainy") thing served that night, but it was perfection in a tiny cup. The brain was a cloud of light and creamy mousse, something I never would have guessed was brain. I feel so much smarter now!

Another CHOW favorite of mine was a Milk Braised Pork Loin With Gorgonzola Mousse. I absolutely love anything braised in milk as it comes out utterly moist and tender. I think I heard angels singing when I ate this dish.

What surprised me the most was that I fell in love with the Bourbon and Bacon Ice Cream served in a bacon cone and sprinkled with bacon bits. Seriously, folks, bacon is the reason I have never suceeded at being a vegetarian. This little dessert was one of those foods where the devil on your shoulder clearly drowns out the angel: "Do it, eat it! Eat more!" Madness, pure delicious madness.

Last on our pig-out tour was a visit to Jason Wilson from Crush. Unfortunately for us he was so popular he ran out of what we heard was roasted pork (?). But what we did have was pork sausage rolled in a bacon tapioca powder. Holy cow, I mean, pig! Simply fantastic!

The Washington wines that we tasted throughout the evening were K Vintners (one of my favorite Walla Walla wineries), McCrea Cellars, Fidelitas, Cadence Winery, and Buty. All were pouring liquid dreams.

It was a lovely evening of porking out and I would definitely attend again. Although I have to say, I'm  going vegetarian for a solid two weeks after that culinary debauchery.

There are more Cochon 555s coming your way: next stop is Boston, but check their schedule for a city nearest you. Fun times and for a great cause!