Wooly Pig! Have you had it or know of it?

Grillin & Chillin

Are you familiar with the Gourmet Willy Pig? Great recipe below

The wooly pig is American, from the prized Mangalitsa breed. This breed was raised by Hungarian royalty, and considered the most savory of all pork in Europe, particularly enjoyed for the marbling of the meat. It has more than double the marbling of average pork. The hogs are fed a high acorn content diet. The Mangalitsa fat is more unsaturated than regular pig fat. The meat has more flavor. This dish is one of the most popular recipes at New York City's Veritas restaurant.

Ingredients
8 ounces brined pork, sliced (see below)
6-7 charred grape tomatoes (see below)
1/2 head Bibb lettuce, wilted (see below)
1 ounce saba
1 teaspoon whipped maple syrup (see below)
1 ounce pork jus from braise
For maple-syrup brine:
8 ounces water
8 ounces maple syrup
2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon sugar
3 cloves of garlic
6 sprigs of thyme
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon black peppercorn
For pork:
Wooly pig tenderloin
For charred grape tomatoes:
1 cup grape tomatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
For wilted Bibb lettuce:
1/2 head of Bibb lettuce, outer leaves
1 tablespoon rendered pork fat
1 tablespoon minced shallot
Salt and pepper to taste
For whipped maple syrup:
1 cup maple syrup

Preparation

To serve, place wilted lettuce in center of plate and then place sliced pork. Scatter charred tomatoes around the plate, garnish with saba and pork jus. Top pork with whipped maple syrup. Sprinkle with sea salt and fresh ground pepper.

For maple-syrup brine: Mix all of the ingredients and pour over pork medallions. Marinate pork for an hour and remove from brine.

For pork: Trim fat cap and brine for 24 hours. Cut tenderloin into 6- to 7-ounce portions. Save all fat to render. Season with salt and pepper. Heat saute pan to medium-high heat and add 1 to 2 tablespoons rendered pork. Brown pork on all sides. Finish in 350-degree F oven until internal temperature reaches 140 degrees. Allow to rest. Slice on bias ¼-inch to ½-inch thick.

For charred grape tomatoes: Toss tomatoes with olive oil, season with salt and pepper. In a hot, dry saute pan, char tomatoes until wilted.

Wilted Bibb lettuce: Melt pork fat in a pan, add shallots and cook gently. Add lettuce, cook until wilted. Season and drain on paper towels.

For whipped maple syrup: Heat syrup to 240 degrees. Turn off the heat and stir with wooden spoon until temperature cools to 180 degrees. Allow to cool.

Ingredients
1 cup soft, tender baby spinach
3 1/2 deviled eggs (see below)
3 each pancetta rusks
3 teaspoons Point Reyes creamy dressing (see below)
2 ounces mustard vinaigrette (see below)
For the vinaigrette:
1 quart base house dressing
1 cup Dijon mustard
1/2 cup Pommery mustard
For the deviled eggs:
12 eggs
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 1/2 tablespoons mustard
2 tablespoons caper juice
2 tablespoons minced chives
Salt and pepper, to taste
For Point Reyes blue cheese dressing:
4 ounces Point Reyes blue cheese
8 ounces Hellman’s mayonnaise or fresh mayonnaise
8 ounces sour cream
2 ounces buttermilk
1 ounce lemon juice
1 teaspoon garlic puree
1 teaspoon onion puree
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

Toss spinach with vinaigrette and season with salt and pepper. Place salad in center of plate. Place eggs on plate at 12, 5, 7 o’clock positions. Nappe blue cheese dressing on eggs and sprinkle with smoked paprika. Garnish with warm pancetta rusk.

For pancetta: Place thin pancetta slices on Silpat on cooking sheet, place another Silpat on top. Bake at 325 degrees F until crispy.

For the vinaigrette: Blend well and set aside until use.

For the deviled eggs: Hard-boil eggs, then cool, remove shells and cut eggs in half lengthwise. Remove yolks and place them in a bowl. Combine yolks with the rest of the ingredients and season mixture with salt and pepper to taste. Fill eggs with yolk mixture using a spoon or pastry bag.

For Point Reyes blue cheese dressing: Mix all of the ingredients together, adjust seasoning as needed.

BarManBean

Not sure about "wooly pig", but i have heard of jamón ibérico de bellota before. it means something along the lines of Iberian ham of Acorns (Iberian pig fed raised on a diet of only acorns). There are other "grades" too that have been fed acorns & grain or just grain, but the acorn one is supposed to be the best (due to marbling and fat content, like you said)

That recipe seems CRAZY complicated too me, way too many ingredients. If you can find some of the meat try just grilling it up like a chop, I hear it's supposed to be pretty damn tasty, although have never tried it myself.

ShedFarm

Wow! There's a place in New York that sells dry-cured hams of Mangalitsa pork, but you better break out the BIG piggy bank for it, as the cheaper of the two is just short of $435!
http://debragga.com/products.asp?cat=40

Johnston County Hams has them at a bargain price of $275.
http://www.countrycuredhams.com/mangalitsa-ham.php

Grillin & Chillin

Why do they call it a "Wooly Pig" ??



A little more info on why they are so pricey and also so tasty!

Having a passion for your final presentation is only the beginning. A chef who is deeply passionate about why the flavor of their dish reaches new heights will take the meal all the way back to the farm where they realize quality-of-life combined with genetic attributes and diet develop into a formula which can yield an unforgettable dining experience.
The founder of Wooly Pigs, Heath Putnam, has mastered the Austrian formula of caring for the Mangalitsa pig ensuring his pigs provide chefs with some of the world’s most flavorful meat and exceptionally creamy fat.

Why Mangalitsa?
The Mangalitsa breed is an extreme lard-type breed which produces a high-quality, light and sweet monounsaturated fat which thoroughly packs and marbles the rich, juicy, dark meat making it commonly known as the Wagyu of the pork world.

Other breeds are intended to produce a much leaner meat with less marbling. This not only turns out to be less flavorful but also carries a much lower quality polyunsaturated fat content.

The fat of the Mangalitsa breed itself is considered a delicacy. Whether you plate up a thin slice of Lardo for a creamy, flavor packed dish or render the leaf lard to be cut into a delicate pastry, the unique qualities of Mangalitsa fat allows chefs to explore a whole new variety of creative avenues. In fact you’ll find that the entire pig will provide a unique experience you may not expected to find when working with pork.

Why Wooly Pigs?
Simply put, the meticulous detail that goes into the care of these pigs from the moment they’re born to the moment they reach your kitchen is solely intended to provide you and your guests with the highest quality pork experience.

The quality of the pigs life shows through in the meats flavor therefore extreme care is taken to ensure every pig lives in a natural, healthy and sustainable environment. Feeding methods comprise only a fraction of the lifecycle formula. Proper space and exercise help ensure full muscle development. Slow build up of fat ensure proper marbling. Even their trip to the slaughterhouse is quick and stress free reducing the chance of degrading the meat’s quality.

Proper ripening is extremely important and Wooly Pigs even works with slaughterhouses which will let the meat sit for the proper amount of time to allow the chemical balance to settle before processing, which is extremely important when it comes to ensuring top quality pork.

rickp13

Nice report on Mangalitsa Breed.  I just ordered and received from chefshop.com some of heath putnam's mangalitsa pork- a neck roll, amd a pork shoulder.  Ive never tasted this type of pig and will be smoking the shoulder in my XLBGE for the super bowl. 

gdenby

The first report I saw about Mangalitsa was maybe 2 years ago. It said the breed had almost become extinct. The former communist gov't of Hungary aimed at producing commodity pork, and saw no reason to continue a breed that was prized for its fat.

While I've seen a few places in America selling it, the price is higher than even the prime Spanish pork. I suppose at some point I may be able to afford a little lard.