Baconfest: Pictures from an Exhibition of Excess
This past weekend at the University of Illinois, 3,000 lovers of bacon — and over 100 chefs who cater to their pork belly-sized appetites — gathered to celebrate the tastiest of all gifts bestowed by the world of animals upon the world of humans. Anyone who did not leave the event in a pork coma could not have fully appreciated the immensity of this experience, which challenged even the most compendious of appetites. Check out all the action in our slideshow, straight ahead.
The infamous Wobble Stopper: housemade bloody mary mix, smal- batch vodka and porter. Garnished with house-smoked bacon and a salty black bean and cor...
The infamous Wobble Stopper: housemade bloody mary mix, smal- batch vodka and porter. Garnished with house-smoked bacon and a salty black bean and corn rim.
Bacon-mac-n-cheese bites.
Easter bread, bacon tallegio and pickled ramps.
Bacon cheesecake.
English cold pork and bacon pie with green tomato rrelish and pickled spring onions.
Chocolate bacon-chile tortilla, braised pork belly with micca glaze with tomatillo pico de gallo.
Pork Palooza Burger: Berkshire pork cheek burger, candied cherry smoked pork belly, pulled pork relish, red onion pickles and smokey dijonnaise.
Bacon cannoli with wasabi peas and Sicilian Bakery cannoli shell (the chef's father's bakery).
Smoked pork sausage with bacon, smokey blue cheese slaw and pickled mustard seed.
Bacon okonomiyaki: Japanese-style stuffed pizza with Nueske bacon, Napa cabbage, pickld gingerm scallion, shrimp, nori and bonito flakes.
BLT Pizza.
Brioche, skirt steak, bacon and micro-arugula.
Bacon-and-lard beignets.
Cured porkbelly with ramp salsa, farro, peanuts and Thai chili.