Several weeks ago, after learning about Barcelona Restaurant and Wine Bar‘s Sunday pig roasts, I immediately thought of lechón and how much I enjoy eating it. I was curious to know how it the pig was prepped, and most importantly, I wanted to make a dinner reservation. I scheduled a behind-the-scenes look at how the pig is prepped on the day of my birthday, and reservations for the pig roast dinner the day after.
In the Philippines, lechón is served, usually whole, at family gatherings and fiestas. During my most recent visit, about 10 years ago, I saw a plump pig roaming around in the massive yard on my grandmother’s lot. “You see that pig. We’re going to kill it tomorrow morning and roast it for the fiesta,” is what my uncle told me while I was eating fresh rambutans and longans with my cousins. I wasn’t mortified after hearing that, but actually more excited because I knew the meat would be fresh. Whatever happened between that moment to when I was looking for the crispy skin at the table, I’ll keep to myself.
Fast forward…
Why did I want to go behind the scenes and see how the pig was prepped for the special Sunday dinner? Why did I care to see a pig get prepped on my birthday instead of partying or shopping? Maybe it’s my fascination with how my food gets prepped. Maybe it’s the many kitchen tours I had. My brother was a chef at Morimoto in NYC. I visited the kitchen a couple times after dinner service. I also got a tour of the kitchen at one of NYC’s hottest restaurants, Buddakan, from Dale Talde when he worked as their sous chef. I’ve gone to a Belgian bakery and watch the bakers make airy Belgian cheesecake and quiche.
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| A 25 pound suckling pig |
On Saturday afternoon we met with Executive Chef Scott Quis at the Stamford location and he showed us how the suckling pig is prepped for the Sunday dinner. It starts off with a 3-4 month old pig that weighs about 25 pounds. The chef then cuts the suckling pig into parts, first separating the legs from the body beginning with the hind legs. Precise and with little effort, Chef Quis got this done in a matter of seconds. Thank goodness we had a fast lens on the camera to keep up with his pace.
He then removed the head, split the backbone and quartered the ribs. The pieces were then laid on a rack, where Chef Quis seasoned the meat well with salt. “That’s it!?” I questioned. “Yup, that’s it,” he replied. So then the pig is refrigerated overnight and roasted the following day.
The pig’s bones are used for stocks used for cooking other delicious items on the Barcelona menu. Let’s say nothing goes to waste. Why would you waste precious meat anyway?
After all this, did I lose my appetite? Nope. I stayed for drinks and tapas right after. My tapas experience will be posted tomorrow. Stay tuned.
Barcelona Restaurant and Wine Bar
222 Summer Street
Stamford, CT 06901
Tel: (203) 348-4800
barcelonawinebar.com
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