The Chicagoist will be launching later but in the meantime please enjoy our archives.

Five Chefs, Five Pigs, Pure Goodness

By Chuck Sudo in Food on May 5, 2009 4:30PM

2009_05_cochon555.jpg Taste TV, the food and fashion Web network that brought their Chocolate Salon to Symphony Center last autumn, has been organizing a series of judged snout-to-tail competitions across the country in recent months. "Cochon 555" pits five chefs against each other, each of them given their own heritage pig to break down and cook, paired with wines from five boutique wineries. Think "The Whole Hog Project," complete with the same mission of raising awareness about endangered breeds of swine, without the focus on one breed.

Proceeds from the each of the Cochon 555 events benefit local charities. While the venue for Cochon 555 is still under wraps, the participating chefs have been announced for the May 24 event. Patrick Sheerin, Stephen Dunne, Chris Pandel, Sam Burman and Graham Elliot Bowles will be vying for the the title of "Prince of Porc" (Taste TV's spelling) and represent Chicago in the "Grand Cochon" event in a city to be determined.

Tickets for "Cochon 555" Chicago are available here.