[BrooklynChef]

I am the exec. chef/owner of a catering company in NYC (brooklyn). We do many cocktail parties for which we offer passed hors d'oeuvres and stationary bountiful platters as we like to call them. Now, for those of you who live in other parts of the country who might not be aware, fat is so in right now. With Atkins and all the other low and no carb diets gaining mass popularity, people have returned to eating more fatty proteins. You, for example, would be hard pressed to find a fine dining establishment in NYC not serving braised belly, cheeks, sweetbreads, foie gras, etc. Even Mario Batali, who used to call his pizza with thin slices of cured lardo, prosciutto bianco, is now totally getting away with calling it Pizza Lardo.

I have been testing many recipes for fried pork rinds - with things like truffle salt, salt and vinegar, spanish smoked paprika, and many others. I would love to include some of these as an offering for my bountiful platters. The problem, and I am in no way looking to offend those of you from south of the mason dixon, the name 'fried pork rinds' has a sort of southern redneck connotation. I welcome any suggestions at to a new (more yankee friendly name) such as Truffled Berkshire Pork Puffs or anything else you can think of.

Thanks

[stir it up]

well... (proud redneck here)

I'd call them cracklins or pork cracklins...

I find at the high end, unpretentiousness works well, in moderation, amidst other elegant items. You'd be surprised. Everything doesn't need a hoity toity name in my opinion. It adds a little fun or flair if you ask me.

There's a decent restaurant in Toronto called Canoe, last time I was there it was about $400 for dinner for two. Their chef does a dish that is called Canoe Pork 'n Beans.

The only connotation of pork rinds I don't like is that I've seen them in plastic bags beside the potato chips, that's where the put-off is for me, conjuring thoughts of really bad commercial ones. I'm all for any southern redneck connotations other than that.

I bet pizza lardo is catching more attention than prosciutto bianco.

[iconoclast]

pork crisps, pig crisps, cracklins...

[Psycho Chef]

In France they are called Grattons. Easy enough to say, no redneck connotations, and French food is mostly thought of as elegant. In Lyon they are called Fritons. You could give them a twist and do "Gratons de Canard", that is if you're like me and up to your ears in duck fat.

[BrooklynChef]

My wife is French, and we go every year for Christmas. While her mom lives in Paris, the rest of her family lives in and around Lyon. Her uncle is a real foodie. He took be to a Bouchon last year for lunch, and I fell in love when we sat down for lunch, and a large bowl of fritons where the bread would be in any other restaurant. Lyon is my mecca. Tete de Veau and Tablier du Sapeur (excuse my poor spelling). Absolute heaven. I am going there in 2 weeks, my mouth is watering just thinking about it.

I usually show up in France with a list of things to eat while I am there, and my wife's family thinks I have a problem with food because my entire trip revolves around what my next gastronomic delight will be. My list often is quite similar from year to year including items of haute cuisine, and many of street food. I even get excited about the sandwich grecque - for some reason it is so much better than the gyros we get in many pizza joints and greek diners here.
Anyway, horse meat has been on my list every year, and the opportunity has not arisen for me to consume this, what is becoming increasingly taboo meat. I will be mostly in Lyon and around Auvergne (my wife's family's country home is there). Does anyone know of any boucherie de chevalines in those areas?

[Chad Aaland]

Chicharones is another name for cracklins.

[the_seraphim]

its pork crackling for christ sake... because you know, it aint done till the fat will crack not bend!

(and yes i do talk with the same accent that "ive got a brand new combine harvester" should be sung with) its not pretentious, its honest

[oldschool1982]

Cracklins' all the way. Although they were called pork rinds in Chicago so it's not too redneck a thing. Heck I still remember the bag of them we had in the cabinet. Never to my liking until I moved south though so it must be that thang stir it up mentioned about the bag next to the chips.

Most people associate those thangs with places like the County or State Fair but I remember just going to the Home Depot in the SE and they had the kettle corn and the cracklins' vendors out in the parking lot on Saturday mornings.

Never ceases to amaze me the fads that the "flock" feels necessary to follow. Sounds like good ol' comfort food to me. Hey I'm all for lean but there's nuttin wrong with an every now and then good old fashioned helping of fried grease, smothered with pan drippings and a side of butter with some bread under it.

[BrooklynChef]

I was always under the impression that rinds and cracklings were 2 different (bust similar) things. Fried rinds are pork skins without the fat that have been boiled, then cut into small strips, then roasted for about 3 hrs. to really dry them out making them "pellets". These pellets then get fried until they puff up like popcorn.

Cracklings on the other hand are the bits of fat and what little meat there is left after rendering lard, that ultimately fries in its own fat. They still have fat attached to them whereas rinds do not.

Any thoughts?

[shroomgirl]

that's the difference as I understand it.....last Friday was clean out the freezer day and a significant amount of pig skin hit the trash can....just not in the mood to mess with them. Killer pork loin roast last night with a solid 2" of fat covering the top....ummmmm.
More of a craklin' fan than pork rinds.

[DMT]

Deep Fat Fried Glob-O-Pig Fat ought to get the customer's attention...

[cajun cook]

Being a cajun cook from South Louisiana and having many boucheries under my belt I would not understand anything but grattons! But any time fat meets more fat at high temp - c'est bon - no matter the name or the setting!