I’ve been on a reading kick lately at a pace that is somewhat unusual for me, with a particularly unusual focus on books about pork. Despite odd looks from people sitting next to me on planes and from family members who are perplexed about my increasing obsession with all things porcine, I’ve actually learned quite a bit from the books I’ve read recently and feel like my knowledge of pork has reached new heights.
But of all the books I’ve read about pork, “Pig Perfect: Encounters with Remarkable Swine and Some Great Ways to Cook Them” by food critic and “hamthropologist” Peter Kaminsky is definitely my favorite.
Pig Perfect is the true story of a pork-obsessed man’s journey to discover the best cut of pork, to learn more about the history of civilization’s connection to pigs, to understand why pork is taboo in some cultures and religions, and to save the last of the Spanish pigs that roam wild in the United States. And while I already consider myself to be a proud carnivore who doesn’t feel guilty at all about my position at the top of the food chain, I was moved by his examination of the mutual relationship between humans and pigs in which pigs are just as dependent on humans for existence as humans are dependent on pigs as a food source.
The author’s vivid and often humorous writing makes you feel like you’re right alongside him experiencing the ritual of a pig slaughter in Spain, searching for Spanish pigs on Ossabaw Island, and sampling cochinita in the Yucatan.
The author gets a bit preachy and political towards the end of the book when he makes his opinion about factory hog farming very clear. But while I may not totally agree with his assessment of the situation or what he would consider to be a reasonable solution, you do have to give the guy credit for being passionate about the subject and doing his own part to change things for what he believes to be the better.
But politics aside, Pig Perfect is a great read regardless of how obsessed you may be with pork or, in my case, bacon. I recommend picking up a copy and experiencing it yourself.