Myles on "Whole Hog"

From Stella's email newsletter:

Please note that straight cut/paste didn't work well, so a bit of reformatting

From the American Heritage Dictionary:

whole hog Slang
n. The whole way; the fullest extent: went the whole hog and ordered dessert.

…and Myles is going there, quite literally indeed. We have always respected food to such an extent that since we opened our doors 6½ years ago; we have sourced the best quality ingredients, locally whenever possible, and allowed them to express themselves in simple yet imaginative dishes. Our menu continues to change twice daily and over the years we have built amazing relationships with our farmers, their produce, and the land. These deepening relationships have had us thinking about the animals that we serve.

Last winter, Myles started exploring whole animal preparation and you saw some daring dishes grace our menu including trotters and testa! This fall, Myles along with several other chefs from all around participated in the three-day “Pigstock” event that featured the lovely Mangalitsa (MON-go-leet-sa) pig. Among its many attributes, the “Mangalitsa fat is more unsaturated than normal pig fat, so it tastes much “lighter”, “cleaner”, and melts at a lower temperature. The fat is also healthier.”

We took delivery of our first whole Mangalitsa last week. She was 250 pounds total, out of which we had just over five pounds of total waste. Combine that with the fact that the tenderloins topped out at a combined total of just over three pounds. So, once the most desirable and the least desirable parts were gone, we had roughly 240 pounds of top-quality pork remaining; and, it’s really good. We are very happy to be able to reduce waste and honor the animal, while delivering some of the highest quality pork on the market.