Southwest Louisiana is famous for time-honored gatherings that celebrate
its French Acadian heritage. And the culinary star of these gatherings?
That's generally the pig. Whether it's a boucherie, the Cochon de Lait
in Mansura or Chef John Folse's Fete des Bouchers, where an army of
chefs steps back three hundred years to demonstrate how to make blood
boudin and smoked sausage, ever-resourceful Cajuns use virtually every
part of the pig in various savory delights. Author Dixie Poché traverses
Cajun country to dive into the recipes and stories behind regional
specialties such as boudin, cracklings, gumbo and hogs head cheese. From
the Smoked Meats Festival in Ville Platte to Thibodaux's Bourgeois Meat
Market, where miles of boudin have been produced since 1891, this is a
mouthwatering dive into Cajun devotion to the pig.