Fat Dinner

This plate of fat, was my snack before the fat dinner! I knew there was going to be lardo, that is what is filling my plate, but I didn't know there would be such a choice. Chef Rene from Neumarkt restaurant, had been to Salone del Gusto and returned with six different types. He created lardo heaven.

You might recognize the most famous lardo Lardo di Colonnata, it's the thick pale creamy back fat  on the right hand side of the photograph.  You can also see lardo made from cheek fat and one with a little meat attached.

Behind each plate of thinly sliced lardo was the whole piece of lardo and a photograph of the producer. It was interesting to discover just how different each piece of pork fat could taste, the result of the cure and how the pig was raised. 

The odd man out in this lardo feast was a bowl of porcini butter, a recipe from my Fat: An Appreciation of a Misunderstood Ingredient, with Recipes. All this fabulous fat was offered with a delicious, yes delicious, glass of lambrusco. What impressed me most, after all the tasty fat, was the way the guests were enjoying it, I was definitely not in North America. Everybody, young and old, male and female was piling their plates high with fat, and not one person was looking for crudités or something without fat. Never have I been amongst so many unabashed fat lovers, it almost made me want to move to Zurich.