Vermilionville

Perhaps the biggest influences on what we eat today come from our past. Just as our ancestors brought their cooking traditions with them, they also had to adapt to this new land in which they arrived. Local ingredients were blended with European and African cooking techniques to create a truly unique menu of dishes that we still enjoy today. These traditions can be traced back for centuries, and one such tradition that has its roots in the seasonal tides of South Louisiana is the boucherie, a communal butchering event, typically of a hog.

Many domesticated pigs often supplemented their diet with acorns that would become scarce into the autumn. Due to this decline in fodder and a peak of the pigs' fat content, boucheries or cochon de laits (a social gathering where a suckling pig is roasted, rather than a large hog) became a tradition for the late fall. In addition to a seasonal necessity, another function of a boucherie has its roots in a time before modern refrigeration techniques. Boudin, bacon, smoked andouille and tasso are all dishes that came about because of the need to preserve meat for months at a time. The boucherie also had an important function for social cooperation. Pigs were butchered and divided up among residents, with labor and other food items exchanged for valuable pork. In addition to many parts going to various sausages, stews and other food items, the fat was even used in the soap making process that became a wintertime tradition.

The wide influences seen in the culinary traditions of South Louisiana are mainly thanks to a major historical event known as the Columbian Exchange. This term refers to the massive cross-Atlantic exchange of crops, animals and plants (and, unfortunately, disease) that took place over the centuries following the arrival of Spain and other European powers in the Americas.

Before the 16th century, many of the staple ingredients of Cajun and Creole cuisine had never touched American soil. Rice, wheat, horses, cattle, onions, okra, coffee, sugar cane, and, most importantly for our purposes here today, pigs were all brought over from Europe and Africa. The exchange wasn't exactly one-sided however, as Europe, Africa, and Asia were all introduced to potatoes, corn, tomatoes, tobacco, peanuts, pineapples, peppers, chocolate, and beans. The culinary landscape of the entire world would look quite different today without this mass movement in plants and animals across the Atlantic Ocean, and we would be “one pig short” of a proper boucherie.

Want to learn more about boucherie and cochon de lait traditions? Join Vermilionville staff on Sunday, Nov. 20, for a free cochon de lait, open to the community from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. There will be demonstrations of traditional and modern techniques for making boucherie favorites such as boudin and cracklins, led by John Norbert of Norbert’s Restaurant in Broussard. We’ll also have demonstrations on related crafts that would have taken place at the same time of year using hog lard, like soap making. Other activities for the day include live music by Leroy Thomas and the Zydeco RoadRunners and an activities area for kids. Samples of the cochon de lait will be provided, and Schilling Distributing Company will be on hand to provide samples of brews that pair well with the sweetness of pork. There will also be jambalaya, boudin and white beans available for purchase, as well as soft drinks, water and adult beverages.

For more information, visit Vermilionville.org.