Posted by Argus-Leader, SD on May 13, 2009 at 11:39:56:
Winning pork
Chef's dish wins state contest and sends him to nationals
Dorene Weinstein • dweinste@argusleader.com • May 13, 2009
Pork bellies are more than just bacon traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. James Abbott turned them into part of a prize-winning dish at the Taste of Elegance, an annual contest sponsored by South Dakota Pork Producers.
Ten area chefs created mouthwatering dishes from underused cuts of pork to give restaurants ideas on how to use different parts of the pig at the 21st annual contest in March in Sioux Falls.
The chefs' recipes typically are new and innovative, says Stacey Sorlein, communications and program director at the South Dakota Pork Producers Council. "They use different cuts of pork that you normally wouldn't buy at the grocery store," she says.
Abbott, who won $1,000 for first place and the chance to travel to the national contest June 28 in Baltimore, also used pork cheek and pork shoulder.
He mined the cheek meat after roasting an entire pig head in a slow oven for 18 hours. All the juices drip through the meat and make it tender and juicy, Abbott says. "Then you isolate that small round piece of meat, grill it and slice it."
To cook the pork belly, Abbott used a sous-vide method: rendering a tough piece of meat tender by steaming it slowly over a long period of time. Abbott sealed the pork in a plastic bag and placed it in a hot-water bath for 18 hours.
Abbott, 26, doesn't have any formal training. "I started at Minervas as a bus boy and worked my way up to a line cook and picked up things along the way," he says.
In the meantime, he found his calling. "I wasn't good in art class, but I can put together food. The joy comes from feeding people, seeing their reaction and watching them enjoy what you've been working on."
This is the first cooking contest he's participated in, but the competition has whet his appetite.
"It's nice to have something like this to show what we can do," Abbott says.
Judges and diners were treated to a taste of an unusual dessert at the contest.
Adam Censky created pancetta ice cream - that's ice cream with pork.
The uncommon dessert highlights his cooking philosophy. "I like to take what I know and what I've learned and do innovative types of cooking," says Censky, sous chef at Leonardo's Cafe. "I like to use background flavors to bring out the different components of the food."
Censky won the people's choice award at the contest for his creations. The unusual pairing of meat and dessert is a current trend, says Censky, 22.
He also made pork biscotti with Japanese sticky rice and Vietnamese stuffing.
The contest is a great proving ground, participants say. Chefs get to show off, and diners get to sample their creativity. "It gives the people of South Dakota a chance to see what kind of chefs we have in the city. It gives us a chance to showcase what we do," Censky says.
Reach reporter Dorene Weinstein at 331-2315.
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