Chef Stephanie Izard Recipe

Pork Ingredients on Trend
Across the country and the menu, pork is an ingredient on the rise. Chefs are adding pork to
unexpected dishes to add flavor and surprise. Pork is popping up in appetizers, pizzas,
pastas, sandwiches and even desserts. With its range of preparation methods – like grilling,
smoking, and frying – pork offers chefs a variety of flavors and textures with which to
enhance existing menu items. From Mexican to Asian and seafood to chicken, pork is
becoming a popular addition to almost any dish.
Going beyond the center of the plate, chefs are starting to add pork as an ingredient to
vegetable, starch and grain dishes as well. Pork is the perfect way to intensify flavors in these
menu items. Chicagoʼs Perennial Virant offers a modern twist on the holiday green bean
casserole: The Roasted Summer Bean Casserole is served with Gruyere, La Quercia
prosciutto, fried onions and sweet peppers and button mushrooms. Stella 12 Beech in
Oxford, Ohio serves up a sweet potato stuffed with pulled pork and topped with spicy
marinated vegetables and crispy wonton chips. Whiskey Creek Wood Fire Grill, a 15-unit
chain in Nebraska, menus a similar dish. Their stuffed potato is topped with pulled pork,
barbecue sauce, Cheddar Jack cheese, sour cream and chives. And of course, baconwrapped items are a constant favorite. Bacon has always been the perfect addition to filets
and scallops, but chefs are experimenting with more bacon-wrapped options. For example,
Campagnola in Evanston, IL offers a Wood-fired Radicchio, which is wrapped in bacon and
served with goat cheese and a basil aioli.
At pork enthusiast Chef Michael Symonʼs Roast, in Detroit, MI he features multiple items
where pork is used as an ingredient. The Stuffed Peppers appetizer features pork sausage,
feta cheese and Yia Yia sauce; The Bacon Lardon Salad is topped with frisee, crispy pig ear
and poached egg; The Roast Chop Salad includes salami, chickpeas, peppers, provolone
and pita chips; and everything can be served with a side of Bacon Cream Corn. At The
Bedford, a new Chicago restaurant, former Hot Chocolate chef Mark Steuer adds crispy pork
belly to his Charred Baby Octopus, ham hock and broth to his Summer Stew, Canadian
bacon to the Bedford Burger; and powdered bacon to his Deviled Eggs. And at Flaniganʼs
Seafood Bar and Grill in Florida, they add Southern flavors to a traditionally Asian dish with
Joeʼs Rockinʼ Rib Rolls: deep fried homemade egg rolls filled with baby back rib meat, pulled
pork, Cheddar cheese and barbecue sauce.
As pork appears as an ingredient in more and more dishes, keep an eye on these trends:
1. Breakfast Starts It Off: Breakfast, which has accounted for a large percentage of all
foodservice growth over the last five years, is a prime example of pork used as an
ingredient. Pork is almost always menued with omelets, breakfast sandwiches, wraps,
burritos, frittatas and more. Pork as an ingredient at
breakfast is being promoted across the county.
Daylight Donut Shops is menuing Sausage Rolls,
featured at their 330 units, made with Cheddar,
Smoked Sausage and Jalapeno cheese. The Egg
and I in Colorado stuffs French toast with diced
pork sausage, eggs and cheese, while Brooklynʼs
Egg Restaurant is known for its Country Ham
Biscuit with fig jam and Grafton Cheddar.
2. Between the Bread: Sandwiches are one of the fastest growing menu items at
restaurants. Led by fast casual and quick service locations, chefs are pouring creativity
into their sandwich menus, with a variety of ingredients combining in delicious ways.
According to Technomic Inc. 2011 Center of the Plate: Beef and Pork Report,
sandwiches make up more than a quarter of all items that feature pork as a component
of an entrée. Almost 300 of the top 500 restaurant chains menu pork as a sandwich,
with an average price of $6.78. For example, BearRock Café in Fort Meyers, FL offers
a 30-spice BBQ Smoked Pulled Pork Sandwich. The Dallas-based Which Wich chain
has an entire section of ham and pork sandwiches, like the Ham, the Pork Tenderloin,
the Cuban, the ham and pineapple Hula sandwich,
and their bacon and ham Bac-Hammon sandwich.
Their Italian sandwich section offers a Grinder with
pepperoni, salami and capicola, and a Muffaletta
with salami and ham, and even the Pepperoni
Pizzawich. Chef Tom Colicchioʼs ʻWichcraft serves
up a Heritage Pork and Cheddar pressed sandwich
with date-almond chutney and mustard as well as a
Pork Loin sandwich with kale and provolone.
3. Asian Food Loves Pork: From street food to fine dining, pork is king in Asian cuisine.
Itʼs popular not only formain dishes but also for
component meals like rice bowls and baos. As
Asian cuisine emerges in the United States, pork
is increasingly showing up as an ingredient in
appetizers and maindishes. Restaurants like
Chicagoʼs Wow Bao are serving up BBQ Pork
Baos while David Changʼs Momofuku Noodle Bar
serves Pork and Shiitake Buns with hoisin,
scallion and cucumber. Blue Ginger in Boston
offers a Spicy Pork Miso Ramen with red miso,
sambal broth, spicy ground pork and sliced pork served with jicama, Chinese broccoli,
bean sprouts and scallions. Cuba Libre, with four locations across the US, offers Cesar
de Oriente, a crispy spring roll with chorizo, shrimp, shredded hearts of romaine, Cotija
cheese and a garlic-Caesar dressing.
4. Mexican Gets Hotter with Pork: Led by the popularity of carnitas, pork is an ingredient
seen in a lot of Mexican and Pan-Latin dishes. Chefs are adding carnitas to nachos,
quesadillas, stuffed peppers and more. At Sullyʼs Bar, a new concept from the
Sullivanʼs and Del Frisco group, pork pops up in their Puerco con Chile Verde
Tacoswhich feature slow cooked pork, minced onions, cilantro and tomatillo-jalapeno
salsa. Pizza Patron, the100-unit Dallas chain, is offering a Toluquena pizza as an
LTO,combining pepperoni, ham and
chorizo. The chorizo, introduced in
July after two years of development,
is now a permanent menu addition.
Café Rio, a chain predominately
located in the Western U.S., offers a
Sweet Pork Barbacoa Salad. It was
voted Best Salad by City Search in
2007 and Salt Lake City Magazine in 2009 and features sweet pork barbacoa served
in a flour tortilla with green chili rice, romaine, pico, guacamole, tortilla strips and a
cilantro-lime vinaigrette.
5. Bacon Tops It Off: Bacon is a perennial favorite, and chefs love to use it. Chains are
trying to differentiate themselves and are therefore upgrading the quality and flavor of
their bacon. Dennyʼs created a Bacon Holiday called Baconalia. The highly successful
program added bacon to a number of breakfast, lunch and dinner items, and
concluded with a Maple Bacon Sundae. Soups and salads are perfect opportunities to
leverage the great flavor of bacon. At Nopa in San Francisco, they menu Black Bean
Soup with Bacon and CayenneYogurt, and Chicagoʼs Revolution Brewing features a
Chilled Melon and BaconSoup with crispy bacon, cantaloupe and honeydew melon.
Unforked in Kansas features a Slow Spin Salad with spinach, crispy bacon,goat
cheese, golden raisins, blistered onions, glazed pecans and cranberry dressing. They
also offer bacon on other items, like their Barking Pig
Taco, which is crispy carnitas tossed in a shagbark
bacon glaze and topped with sliced scallions and
queso freso. And of course, bacon is a popular burger
topping. IHOP is even including bacon bits inside its
Bacon Burger while Burger Kingʼs new California
Whopper is promoted as a collision of the flavors of
guacamole, Swiss cheese and bacon. Letʼs not forget
the snacks, places like Revolution Brewing are taking
bacon to new heights with dishes like Bacon Fat
Popcorn, served with shaved parmesan and crispy
sage.
Pork is “in” in ingredients. Itʼs found on toppings, in sides, and everywhere else from
breakfast to dessert. There are many restaurants that feature multiple pork dishes, from
center-of-plate entrees to unique and unexpected uses as an ingredient. Pork-centric
restaurants have opened in Chicago, Portland, Seattle and New York, using almost every part
of the hog across their menus. Traditional uses of pork as an ingredient, like pepperoni pizza
and breakfast sausage, are getting new and creative spins. With pork popping up in so many
places, itʼs clear that ingredient-use is the next evolution of how chefs and chains are taking
advantage of the flavor and versatility of pork.
LongHorn Steakhouse
LongHorn Steakhouse opened in Atlanta, GA in 1981,
but business wasnʼt booming until a freak snowstorm
drove stranded motorists inside. Word quickly spread
about the restaurant, and they now operate over 350
locations in 33 states. Known for genuine Western
hospitality and an “always fresh, never frozen”
approach, LongHorn Steakhouse uses bacon as an ingredient in a number of dishes, from
bacon-topped appetizers and salads to bacon-wrapped steaks. Pork also stars in their
Cowboy Pork Chops and signature Baby Back Ribs. In a restaurant named for steak, pork is
a welcome and flavorful addition.
We caught up with LongHorn Steakhouse to talk about the benefits of offering bacon and
fresh pork on their menu.
NPB: Several of your dishes, from appetizers and burgers to steaks and salads, feature
bacon as an ingredient. Tell us about your bacon.
LongHorn: We use hickory smoked bacon that is crusted with black pepper. We like to cook
it on our flat grill. We feel that more flavor is added by caramelizing the sugars that are in the
bacon from the cure.
NPB: Is bacon profitable for you?
LongHorn: Yes. It allows us to add big flavor, value and quality to menu offerings that you
wouldnʼt get from other proteins.
NPB: Why is using bacon as an ingredient important for your bottom line?
LongHorn: A little goes a long way!
NPB: What kinds of dishes does bacon benefit? What determines whether you will add bacon
to a specific dish?
LongHorn: All dishes! Besides adding an unmatched savory component to the dish, it also
brings along a sense of adventure. Guests are looking for it in unexpected places and when
they find it they canʼt get enough of it.
NPB: Your dinner menu offers a bacon wrapped filet – how does this filet perform compared
to your steaks without bacon?
LongHorn: It does very well. I wouldnʼt say that it does better or worse but it does offer a
flavor profile that you canʼt get on other steaks. When we bacon wrap our filets, we grill them
over an open flame with our signature fire grilled seasoning. This helps to render the fat from
the bacon adding more flavor to the steak and a crispy texture to the bacon.
NPB: You are, obviously, known for your steak, but your menu also features Cowboy Pork
Chops and your signature Baby Back Ribs. How do these dishes perform for you?
LongHorn: They perform very
well. Our guests like the variety
on the menu. We are a
steakhouse first and foremost but
it is important to offer variety. Our
baby back ribs are fall-off- thebone tender, fire grilled and
glazed with our signature house
made BBQ sauce. They have a
very loyal following.
NPB: When did you first add the ribs and chops to your menu?
LongHorn: 1995
NPB: What were some of the logistics that went into getting ribs and chops on your menu?
What efforts have you put into marketing your two fresh pork dishes?
LongHorn: Adding the chops was fairly simple. Adding the Baby Back Ribs to the menu
involved adding char-grills to our restaurants so we could achieve the flavor profile we
wanted. It also involved teaching our cooks a new skill and adjusting our labor needs a touch.
It has proven to be worth the effort. As a Steakhouse our marketing efforts focus on steak, but
our ribs and chops play a significant role on our core menu.
NPB: How do your customers react to your pork options? How do they react to the price
point?
LongHorn: The chops and ribs are very satisfying to our guests. The price point allows us to
give our guests great value and affordability, which is very important to us.
NPB: Do you have plans to expand your fresh pork offerings in the future?
LongHorn: We are always looking at ways to expand our offerings on our menu to drive
variety and distinctiveness for our guests. We feel that we do have the ability to offer different
cuts and preparations for pork on our menu.
NPB: Have you thought about featuring more pork as an ingredient in your appetizers,
sandwiches or sides?
LongHorn: Absolutely! We have looked at using more cuts in different ways to add
distinctiveness to our entire menu. We have some new dishes in development that are unique
to casual dining and we feel that our guests are going to find them highly craveable!
NPB: You are based in Orlando,
Florida, but have restaurants across
the country. Does location and
availability of ingredients play into your
menu offerings at all?
LongHorn: It does to a degree. We
have over 350 restaurants now and
plan to grow substantially over the
next 5 to 10 years. Location isnʼt the
issue as much as availability.
Whatever cuts we feature we need to
know we can get adequate supply now
and in the future.
Chef Stephanie Izard
As chef of Chicago restaurant Girl & the Goat, Stephanie
Izard knows the key to a successful menu is using
innovative ingredients. No stranger to culinary challenges
– she won the fourth season of Top Chef – Izardʼs menu
is a tour de force of inventive dishes and unique
ingredients. From broccoli-nectarine kimchee to pork fat
doughnuts, Izard doesnʼt shy away from unexpected
flavor combinations, even pairing pork with seafood.
Izard was named one of Food & Wineʼs Best New Chefs
2011 and her restaurant snagged a nomination for the
2011 Best New Restaurant James Beard award, as well
as being named “Americaʼs Best New Restaurant” by
Saveur Magazine. But all the acclaim hasnʼt gone to her
head; Izard can most often be found in the kitchen at Girl
& the Goat. She is also releasing a cookbook in October
titled Girl in the Kitchen: How a Top Chef Cooks, Thinks,
Shops, Eats & Drinks, which is sure to inspire!
We caught up with Stephanie to talk about brewing beer, her cookbook, and her popular
“roasted pig face.”
NPB: Tell us about your restaurant?
Chef: Girl & the Goat opened in July 2010 in the West Loop of Chicago on Randolph and
Halsted. The restaurant has a casual feel, with a 'rustic and badass' decor, friendly service
and boldly flavored food with flavors from a variety of cultures and a focus on local
ingredients.
NPB: Whatʼs your earliest food memory? What made you decide to become a chef?
Chef: When I was around 8 years old my family and I went on a trip to Epcot in Orlando and
visited the part of the park where you can eat “around the world.” I remember having crepes
in “France” with a mushroom/cheese sauce and ham, which I of course loved. When we got
back from the trip I recreated the dish (using a cookbook to learn how to make a crepe),
which I think threw my parents for a loop. From that point on I was in the kitchen with my
mom cooking all of the time and I guess the rest is history.
NPB: You use pork as an ingredient across your menu. What about it makes it perfect in such
a variety of dishes?
Chef: Pork comes in so many great cuts and has such great flavor and fat content that it
works well in so many ways. Even when working with other meats, we often find ourselves
reaching for pork and pork fat to enhance the flavor and richness.
NPB: Your menu features a lot of creative pork applications, from “roasted pig face” to pork
fat doughnuts, and youʼre even pairing pork with seafood. Where do you draw your
inspiration?
Chef: We just try to have fun with the menu and draw inspiration from various cultures and
classic preparations that we then turn around
and make our own. The “pig face” is a classic
method of removing all of the flesh, fat and skin
from the skull before braising (opposed to head
cheese that is simmered off of the bone). We
took the classic Italian idea and after a bit of
practice made it into one of our most popular
dishes. As for pork in desserts and pork with
seafood... why not? Pork just makes everything
taste better (or so we often say).
NPB: How do your patrons react to dishes like “pig face?”
Chef: I thought we would scare people off, but it turns out our guests are very adventurous so
our dishes that contain hearts and tongues and pig faces are ordered with excitement to try
new things.
NPB: Your menu changes frequently, based on seasonality and availability of ingredients.
Why is using local ingredients important to you? How do you keep your menu fresh and
creative?
Chef: It is very important to us to know where our food comes from, especially proteins. We
try to get to every farm we support so we can see how the animals are raised and feel
confident we are serving the best product available.
NPB: Is pork a profitable protein for your business?
Chef: Dishes like the pig face take a lot of preparation time, but the food cost is great ($10
per head). I think chefs see pork as a valued item to serve on the menu because even the
most expensive cuts like tenderloins and chops are very reasonably priced.
NPB: What is your favorite dish to cook with pork?
Chef: That is a tough one... I think our hiramasa crudo with fried pork belly lardons that are
tossed in fish sauce alongside an aji aioli, caperberries and meyer lemon is on the top of my
list. But the pork ribs are pretty darn tasty too.
NPB: You brew beer and blend your own wine. What beverages would you recommend when
pairing with pork?
Chef: Pork can go with most anything. It can be prepared light enough to go with a variety of
white wines and lighter beers... or when braised or smoked it can stand up to even the bigger
reds and porter or stout style beers.
NPB: Girl & the Goat was named Americaʼs Best New Restaurant by Saveur magazine,
nominated for Best New Restaurant 2011 by the James Beard Foundation and you were
named one of Food & Wineʼs Best New Chefs 2011. What do you think sets Girl & the Goat
and you as a chef apart?
Chef: Our number one goal is for our guests to have fun and I think with the atmosphere we
have created (like a big party every night) and the great staff we have we are able to give the
guests a unique and fun experience with flavors that are unexpected and new.
NPB: You are the first and only female chef to ever win Top Chef. What did it feel like to win,
and what kind of doors did it open for you? How has your cooking changed or evolved since
the competition?
Chef: Of course winning felt great... I have always been very competitive so anything else
would not have gone over well. The best part is that it opens so many doors and presents you
with opportunities that you can either pass up or take full advantage of. I think every chefʼs
food changes and evolves for the better over time as they experience more things and travel
and read and eat other chefsʼ foods. I still have dishes that I love that I made years ago, but I
think for the most part I just keep evolving and trying new things.
NPB: Your first cookbook, Girl in the Kitchen comes out
next month! Would you tell us a little about what inspired
you to create it? What was the process like? Can you tell
us about any recipes using pork?
Chef: I am very excited that my first book is finally hitting
shelves. My friend Heather Shouse who is an extremely
talented writer that has been writing for Time Out Chicago
and Food & Wine magazine for years was looking to get
into cookbooks. And it just seemed like us working
together on both of our first projects would be a great way
for us to learn the ropes on cookbooks. There is a lot of
work that goes into it... recipe testing and writing all
combined. When the final product came in the mail I just
felt proud that we had created a book! The recipes are all
simple and for the home cook including a peanut and pork
ragout with halibut, a pork and apple sauce for pasta, and
a coconut and pork shoulder stew for a cold winter day.
NPB: Any plans for another restaurant?
Chef: We are currently working on 'the little goat', a diner in the west loop slated to open in
March of 2012.
Featured Chef Recipe
BRAISED PORK AND
COCONUT SOUP
Ingredients
2 1/2 POUNDS BONE-IN PORK SHOULDER
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
4 cloves garlic , minced
Coarse salt
3 TBL olive oil
2 medium onions, finely diced
2 1/4 cups dry red wine
1 28-oz can diced tomatoes
1/3 cup peanut butter, creamy natural
1 quart chicken broth
2 TBL balsamic vinegar
1 TBL Dijon-style mustard
2 teaspoons fish sauce
1 TBL fennel seeds
2 teaspoons aji chile paste
3/4 cup coconut milk, canned
Freshly ground black pepper
1 small lime, juiced
1/3 cup roasted peanuts, chopped
1/2 cup cilantro, loosely packed and chopped
Preparation
Cooking Directions
1. Rub the pork with the brown sugar, one third of the garlic, and 1 teaspoon salt. Place
in a glass bowl, cover, and refrigerate overnight.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
3. Heat 1 TBL oil in large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the pork and
brown on all sides. Remove pork and set aside.
4. Add 1 TBL more oil to pot and lower heat to medium. Add half of the onions and one
third garlic and cook until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Pour in 2 cups of
wine, increase to a simmer, and reduce the liquid by half.
5. Reserve 1 cup tomatoes. Add remaining tomatoes to pot. Add peanut butter, stirring
until melted into liquid. Add broth, vinegar, mustard, fish sauce, fennel seeds, and chili
paste. Bring liquid to boil, add pork, cover and transfer to oven. Braise until pork is very
tender, 3 to 3 ½ hours.
6. Remove pork from liquid and set aside to cool slightly. Strain liquid and skim off fat
with slotted spoon. (Alternatively, let liquid cool completely in refrigerator and skim off
fat cap that forms when cold.) Pull meat from fat, discarding fat. Cut pork into bite-size
pieces.
7. Heat remaining 1 TBL oil in medium pot over medium-low heat. Add the remaining
onions and garlic and cook until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the
remaining ¼ cup wine, increase the heat to medium-high, and reduce the liquid by
half. Add the reserved tomatoes and strained liquid. Simmer to reduce by one third,
about 15 minutes.
8. Stir in pork and coconut milk. Simmer for additional 15-20 minutes. Season with salt
and pepper.
Serving Suggestions
Divide soup among bowls. Squeeze lime juice over each serving and sprinkle with chopped
peanuts and cilantro before serving.
Featured Pork as an Ingredient Recipe
LA QUERCIA PROSCIUTTO
AMERICANO LASAGNE
Ingredients
White Sauce
2 oz wt butter
3 TBL flour
2 cups milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
Ricotta Filling
2 pounds spinach, or a mixture of Swiss Chard & Spinach, drained well and minced in very
fine pieces
3 cups or more ricotta cheese, high quality
1 or 2 each eggs
1 cup Reggiano Parmigiano
as needed salt & pepper, to taste
as needed commerical red tomato sauce, have warmed and ready*
as needed lasagna noodles, drained well
12 oz wt La Quercia prosciutto Americano, cut into small pieces
Preparation
Cooking Directions
White Sauce:
1. In sauce pot, melt butter on low heat.
2. Add flour and mix well to combine, cook for 1-2 minutes stirring as needed.
3. Add milk and bring to a boil. Cook too thicken approximately 5 minutes.
Ricotta Filling:
1. In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients and fold together well.
Method of Preparation:
1. Place a thin layer of white sauce and tomato sauce on the bottom of an oven proof
baking dish then place a layer of the lasagna pasta in the dish
2. Place a layer of prosciutto over the pasta, then a half to ¾ of an inch of the ricotta
filling over the prosciutto, and then tomato sauce, then prosciutto, then lasagna pasta,
then prosciutto, then ricotta filling, etc. Continue till you fill the pan
3. Top with a layer of pasta covered with a nice pattern of white sauce and red sauce and
sprinkle with grated Parmigiano Reggiano
4. Bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes. The dish should be thoroughly hot and slightly
golden on top. Enjoy!
Serving Suggestions
This is a light, elegant, delicately flavored alternative to traditional Lasagne alla Bolognese.
The lasagne layers would be: white sauce and tomato sauce, then pasta then La Quercia
Prosciutto Americano, then ricotta filling then tomato sauce and repeat. Top with white sauce,
tomato sauce and grated Parmigiano Reggiano. Makes one 9"x13" pan.
Soaking the onions in the sherry vinegar takes away any bitter taste the onions may have.
*For the red tomato sauce - Commercial (look for Italian or American "cold break" sauce) or
home made.
8 servings
Featured Pork as an Ingredient Recipe
STIR-FRY HAM AND BOK
CHOY EGGROLLS WITH A
SWEET & SOUR
PINEAPPLE-HOT
MUSTARD DIPPING SAUCE
Ingredients
Pork Preparation
2 POUNDS HAM, LEAN, JULIENNE
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic , chopped
1 TBL jalapenos, seeded, chopped
1 TBL ginger, fresh, grated
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup white grape juice
1 fl oz rice wine vinegar
1 TBL brown sugar
1 fl oz sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon Chinese five spice powder
Stir-Fry Vegetables
2 fl oz peanut oil
6 oz wt red pepper, thin julienne
4 oz wt green onion, small dice
4 oz wt bok choy, leaves only
4 oz wt bean sprouts
Preparation
Cooking Directions
For the Ham:
1. Place all ingredients into stainless steel mixing bowl.
2. Mix well by hand and refrigerate. Marinade up to one hour.
For the Stir-Fry Vegetables:
1. Place 1 fl oz peanut oil into large wok or frying pan.
2. Heat oil until just under the smoking point.
3. Pour excess marinade off of ham. Toss ham into wok and stir-fry until ham is heated
throughout.
4. Remove ham with tongs from the wok and reduce all liquid in wok until thick and
bubbly.
5. Pour over ham.
6. Clean wok. Add 1 fl oz peanut oil and heat oil until just under the smoking point.
7. Toss vegetables in wok and cook until slightly crisp.
8. Add ham back to vegetables and toss well to combine.
9. Remove all from wok.
10. Place on sheet pan to cool.
Serving Suggestions
Serve with Sweet & Sour Pineapple-Hot Mustard Dipping Sauce.
Featured Pork as an Ingredient Recipe
ITALIAN WEDDING SOUP
WITH FRESH PORK
SAUSAGE MEATBALLS,
LACINATO KALE AND
FARM EGG
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
4 each eggs
1/4 cup semolina flour
1/4 cup parmigianino reggiano, grated
1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
2 quarts chicken stock
1 piece parmesan rind
2 quarts lacinao kale, shredded
Sausage Meatballs
2 1/2 POUNDS FRESH GROUND PORK SAUSAGE, GROUND
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 pinch Instacure #1
1 pinch black pepper
1 TBL rubbed sage
1 pinch sweet anise seeds
1-2 pinch granulated sugar
1-2 cloves garlic , minced
to taste salt & pepper
1 clove nutmeg, as needed
as needed parmigianino reggiano, for grating
as needed drizzle extra virgin olive oil, fine quality
Preparation
Cooking Directions
For "Farm Egg"
1. In mixing bowl, combine the first 5 ingredients, mix well to combine and set aside.
For Soup:
2. In a soup pot, combine chicken stock & Parmesan rind. Slowly warm up. (Slow
warming allows the rind time to infuse flavor into broth)
3. Season to taste with salt & pepper.
4. Bring to simmer, add kale and sausage meatballs.
5. Simmer for 30 minutes.
6. Bring soup to a boil.
7. Whisk in the egg mixture, it will congeal pretty quickly.
8. Season to taste with salt & pepper.
9. Remove rind before serving and discard.
Pork Sausage Meatball Instructions:
1. In mixing bowl combine spice mixture. Grind pepper and anise in a spice grinder and
combine in a small mixing bowl with the salt, instacure, sugar & garlic.
2. Toss the spice mixture with the ground meat and fat.
3. Spread the sausage mixture on a sheet tray.
4. Bake the sausage in a 350°F oven until cooked through. Some clarified fat will be
collected in the pan so spoon hot sausage into a colander to drain.
5. Once cool, break up with your fingers and reserve for later use in Italian wedding soup.
Serving Suggestions
Serve hot, garnished with grated nutmeg, Parmigianino and a drizzle of good quality extra
virgin olive oil.
Pork Ingredients on Trend
Across the country and the menu, pork is an ingredient on the rise. Chefs are adding pork to
unexpected dishes to add flavor and surprise. Pork is popping up in appetizers, pizzas,
pastas, sandwiches and even desserts. With its range of preparation methods – like grilling,
smoking, and frying – pork offers chefs a variety of flavors and textures with which to
enhance existing menu items. From Mexican to Asian and seafood to chicken, pork is
becoming a popular addition to almost any dish.
Going beyond the center of the plate, chefs are starting to add pork as an ingredient to
vegetable, starch and grain dishes as well. Pork is the perfect way to intensify flavors in these
menu items. Chicagoʼs Perennial Virant offers a modern twist on the holiday green bean
casserole: The Roasted Summer Bean Casserole is served with Gruyere, La Quercia
prosciutto, fried onions and sweet peppers and button mushrooms. Stella 12 Beech in
Oxford, Ohio serves up a sweet potato stuffed with pulled pork and topped with spicy
marinated vegetables and crispy wonton chips. Whiskey Creek Wood Fire Grill, a 15-unit
chain in Nebraska, menus a similar dish. Their stuffed potato is topped with pulled pork,
barbecue sauce, Cheddar Jack cheese, sour cream and chives. And of course, baconwrapped items are a constant favorite. Bacon has always been the perfect addition to filets
and scallops, but chefs are experimenting with more bacon-wrapped options. For example,
Campagnola in Evanston, IL offers a Wood-fired Radicchio, which is wrapped in bacon and
served with goat cheese and a basil aioli.
At pork enthusiast Chef Michael Symonʼs Roast, in Detroit, MI he features multiple items
where pork is used as an ingredient. The Stuffed Peppers appetizer features pork sausage,
feta cheese and Yia Yia sauce; The Bacon Lardon Salad is topped with frisee, crispy pig ear
and poached egg; The Roast Chop Salad includes salami, chickpeas, peppers, provolone
and pita chips; and everything can be served with a side of Bacon Cream Corn. At The
Bedford, a new Chicago restaurant, former Hot Chocolate chef Mark Steuer adds crispy pork
belly to his Charred Baby Octopus, ham hock and broth to his Summer Stew, Canadian
bacon to the Bedford Burger; and powdered bacon to his Deviled Eggs. And at Flaniganʼs
Seafood Bar and Grill in Florida, they add Southern flavors to a traditionally Asian dish with
Joeʼs Rockinʼ Rib Rolls: deep fried homemade egg rolls filled with baby back rib meat, pulled
pork, Cheddar cheese and barbecue sauce.
As pork appears as an ingredient in more and more dishes, keep an eye on these trends:
1. Breakfast Starts It Off: Breakfast, which has accounted for a large percentage of all
foodservice growth over the last five years, is a prime example of pork used as an
ingredient. Pork is almost always menued with omelets, breakfast sandwiches, wraps,
burritos, frittatas and more. Pork as an ingredient at
breakfast is being promoted across the county.
Daylight Donut Shops is menuing Sausage Rolls,
featured at their 330 units, made with Cheddar,
Smoked Sausage and Jalapeno cheese. The Egg
and I in Colorado stuffs French toast with diced
pork sausage, eggs and cheese, while Brooklynʼs
Egg Restaurant is known for its Country Ham
Biscuit with fig jam and Grafton Cheddar.
2. Between the Bread: Sandwiches are one of the fastest growing menu items at
restaurants. Led by fast casual and quick service locations, chefs are pouring creativity
into their sandwich menus, with a variety of ingredients combining in delicious ways.
According to Technomic Inc. 2011 Center of the Plate: Beef and Pork Report,
sandwiches make up more than a quarter of all items that feature pork as a component
of an entrée. Almost 300 of the top 500 restaurant chains menu pork as a sandwich,
with an average price of $6.78. For example, BearRock Café in Fort Meyers, FL offers
a 30-spice BBQ Smoked Pulled Pork Sandwich. The Dallas-based Which Wich chain
has an entire section of ham and pork sandwiches, like the Ham, the Pork Tenderloin,
the Cuban, the ham and pineapple Hula sandwich,
and their bacon and ham Bac-Hammon sandwich.
Their Italian sandwich section offers a Grinder with
pepperoni, salami and capicola, and a Muffaletta
with salami and ham, and even the Pepperoni
Pizzawich. Chef Tom Colicchioʼs ʻWichcraft serves
up a Heritage Pork and Cheddar pressed sandwich
with date-almond chutney and mustard as well as a
Pork Loin sandwich with kale and provolone.
3. Asian Food Loves Pork: From street food to fine dining, pork is king in Asian cuisine.
Itʼs popular not only formain dishes but also for
component meals like rice bowls and baos. As
Asian cuisine emerges in the United States, pork
is increasingly showing up as an ingredient in
appetizers and maindishes. Restaurants like
Chicagoʼs Wow Bao are serving up BBQ Pork
Baos while David Changʼs Momofuku Noodle Bar
serves Pork and Shiitake Buns with hoisin,
scallion and cucumber. Blue Ginger in Boston
offers a Spicy Pork Miso Ramen with red miso,
sambal broth, spicy ground pork and sliced pork served with jicama, Chinese broccoli,
bean sprouts and scallions. Cuba Libre, with four locations across the US, offers Cesar
de Oriente, a crispy spring roll with chorizo, shrimp, shredded hearts of romaine, Cotija
cheese and a garlic-Caesar dressing.
4. Mexican Gets Hotter with Pork: Led by the popularity of carnitas, pork is an ingredient
seen in a lot of Mexican and Pan-Latin dishes. Chefs are adding carnitas to nachos,
quesadillas, stuffed peppers and more. At Sullyʼs Bar, a new concept from the
Sullivanʼs and Del Frisco group, pork pops up in their Puerco con Chile Verde
Tacoswhich feature slow cooked pork, minced onions, cilantro and tomatillo-jalapeno
salsa. Pizza Patron, the100-unit Dallas chain, is offering a Toluquena pizza as an
LTO,combining pepperoni, ham and
chorizo. The chorizo, introduced in
July after two years of development,
is now a permanent menu addition.
Café Rio, a chain predominately
located in the Western U.S., offers a
Sweet Pork Barbacoa Salad. It was
voted Best Salad by City Search in
2007 and Salt Lake City Magazine in 2009 and features sweet pork barbacoa served
in a flour tortilla with green chili rice, romaine, pico, guacamole, tortilla strips and a
cilantro-lime vinaigrette.
5. Bacon Tops It Off: Bacon is a perennial favorite, and chefs love to use it. Chains are
trying to differentiate themselves and are therefore upgrading the quality and flavor of
their bacon. Dennyʼs created a Bacon Holiday called Baconalia. The highly successful
program added bacon to a number of breakfast, lunch and dinner items, and
concluded with a Maple Bacon Sundae. Soups and salads are perfect opportunities to
leverage the great flavor of bacon. At Nopa in San Francisco, they menu Black Bean
Soup with Bacon and CayenneYogurt, and Chicagoʼs Revolution Brewing features a
Chilled Melon and BaconSoup with crispy bacon, cantaloupe and honeydew melon.
Unforked in Kansas features a Slow Spin Salad with spinach, crispy bacon,goat
cheese, golden raisins, blistered onions, glazed pecans and cranberry dressing. They
also offer bacon on other items, like their Barking Pig
Taco, which is crispy carnitas tossed in a shagbark
bacon glaze and topped with sliced scallions and
queso freso. And of course, bacon is a popular burger
topping. IHOP is even including bacon bits inside its
Bacon Burger while Burger Kingʼs new California
Whopper is promoted as a collision of the flavors of
guacamole, Swiss cheese and bacon. Letʼs not forget
the snacks, places like Revolution Brewing are taking
bacon to new heights with dishes like Bacon Fat
Popcorn, served with shaved parmesan and crispy
sage.
Pork is “in” in ingredients. Itʼs found on toppings, in sides, and everywhere else from
breakfast to dessert. There are many restaurants that feature multiple pork dishes, from
center-of-plate entrees to unique and unexpected uses as an ingredient. Pork-centric
restaurants have opened in Chicago, Portland, Seattle and New York, using almost every part
of the hog across their menus. Traditional uses of pork as an ingredient, like pepperoni pizza
and breakfast sausage, are getting new and creative spins. With pork popping up in so many
places, itʼs clear that ingredient-use is the next evolution of how chefs and chains are taking
advantage of the flavor and versatility of pork.
LongHorn Steakhouse
LongHorn Steakhouse opened in Atlanta, GA in 1981,
but business wasnʼt booming until a freak snowstorm
drove stranded motorists inside. Word quickly spread
about the restaurant, and they now operate over 350
locations in 33 states. Known for genuine Western
hospitality and an “always fresh, never frozen”
approach, LongHorn Steakhouse uses bacon as an ingredient in a number of dishes, from
bacon-topped appetizers and salads to bacon-wrapped steaks. Pork also stars in their
Cowboy Pork Chops and signature Baby Back Ribs. In a restaurant named for steak, pork is
a welcome and flavorful addition.
We caught up with LongHorn Steakhouse to talk about the benefits of offering bacon and
fresh pork on their menu.
NPB: Several of your dishes, from appetizers and burgers to steaks and salads, feature
bacon as an ingredient. Tell us about your bacon.
LongHorn: We use hickory smoked bacon that is crusted with black pepper. We like to cook
it on our flat grill. We feel that more flavor is added by caramelizing the sugars that are in the
bacon from the cure.
NPB: Is bacon profitable for you?
LongHorn: Yes. It allows us to add big flavor, value and quality to menu offerings that you
wouldnʼt get from other proteins.
NPB: Why is using bacon as an ingredient important for your bottom line?
LongHorn: A little goes a long way!
NPB: What kinds of dishes does bacon benefit? What determines whether you will add bacon
to a specific dish?
LongHorn: All dishes! Besides adding an unmatched savory component to the dish, it also
brings along a sense of adventure. Guests are looking for it in unexpected places and when
they find it they canʼt get enough of it.
NPB: Your dinner menu offers a bacon wrapped filet – how does this filet perform compared
to your steaks without bacon?
LongHorn: It does very well. I wouldnʼt say that it does better or worse but it does offer a
flavor profile that you canʼt get on other steaks. When we bacon wrap our filets, we grill them
over an open flame with our signature fire grilled seasoning. This helps to render the fat from
the bacon adding more flavor to the steak and a crispy texture to the bacon.
NPB: You are, obviously, known for your steak, but your menu also features Cowboy Pork
Chops and your signature Baby Back Ribs. How do these dishes perform for you?
LongHorn: They perform very
well. Our guests like the variety
on the menu. We are a
steakhouse first and foremost but
it is important to offer variety. Our
baby back ribs are fall-off- thebone tender, fire grilled and
glazed with our signature house
made BBQ sauce. They have a
very loyal following.
NPB: When did you first add the ribs and chops to your menu?
LongHorn: 1995
NPB: What were some of the logistics that went into getting ribs and chops on your menu?
What efforts have you put into marketing your two fresh pork dishes?
LongHorn: Adding the chops was fairly simple. Adding the Baby Back Ribs to the menu
involved adding char-grills to our restaurants so we could achieve the flavor profile we
wanted. It also involved teaching our cooks a new skill and adjusting our labor needs a touch.
It has proven to be worth the effort. As a Steakhouse our marketing efforts focus on steak, but
our ribs and chops play a significant role on our core menu.
NPB: How do your customers react to your pork options? How do they react to the price
point?
LongHorn: The chops and ribs are very satisfying to our guests. The price point allows us to
give our guests great value and affordability, which is very important to us.
NPB: Do you have plans to expand your fresh pork offerings in the future?
LongHorn: We are always looking at ways to expand our offerings on our menu to drive
variety and distinctiveness for our guests. We feel that we do have the ability to offer different
cuts and preparations for pork on our menu.
NPB: Have you thought about featuring more pork as an ingredient in your appetizers,
sandwiches or sides?
LongHorn: Absolutely! We have looked at using more cuts in different ways to add
distinctiveness to our entire menu. We have some new dishes in development that are unique
to casual dining and we feel that our guests are going to find them highly craveable!
NPB: You are based in Orlando,
Florida, but have restaurants across
the country. Does location and
availability of ingredients play into your
menu offerings at all?
LongHorn: It does to a degree. We
have over 350 restaurants now and
plan to grow substantially over the
next 5 to 10 years. Location isnʼt the
issue as much as availability.
Whatever cuts we feature we need to
know we can get adequate supply now
and in the future.