Pork Memoirs
PERSONAL STORIES ABOUT A COMPLICATED MEAT
Selected Press:
Pork Memoirs is an ongoing story project about pork and identity, and how our choices surrounding the pig often reveal our cultural backgrounds and worldviews.
While Pork may seem like just a common part of a hearty breakfast or a perennial darling of Haute cuisine, at its core the pig represents a paradox: after all, pork is a staple protein for a majority of the world yet taboo for the rest; it is a meat explicitly forbidden for Jews, Muslims and others while it is celebrated by fetishists and gastronomes.
These personal memoirs explore the struggles and celebrations of our often complicated relationship to the “other white meat.” Whether the pig nourishes us, taunts us, delights us or grosses us out, these stories offer a snapshot of how we, as pork eaters and non-pork eaters alike, choose to assert our identity in this modern world.
After my surgery, while recovering, the nurse came in with the dinner meal. In those days nurses wore uniforms resembling nuns’ outfits. Naturally, my parents and Hebrew School taught me never to eat food that was cooked in lard or came from pig. I asked about the food on my tray and was told it was ham. I refused to eat it. The nurse would have none of it. She tried very hard to stuff that... →
I was a 17 year old Texan looking at a plate of pulled pork for the first time. The meat sat lazily, shredded and bright crimson on a soggy bun which... →
[PORK AND IDENTITY - A Pork Memoirs + Meatpaper Collaboration] When I finally sampled the dried Portuguese sausage that my father would always buy, I was speechless. My young palate couldn't... →
[PORK AND IDENTITY - A Pork Memoirs + Meatpaper Collaboration] When asked, I was happy to help, but my vague acknowledgment of cooking experience left some uncertainty among the others. I... →
[Passover Reprint] Non-observant Jewish boy who eats pork meets semi-observant Jewish girl who observes some dietary laws, especially those relating to (non-Chinese) pork. Boy has no background in Jewish holiday celebrations.... →
[Passover Special] Last spring my aunt came to visit me in New York and my family took her to a local Thai restaurant for lunch. Normally this wouldn’t be a problem,... →
[PORK AND IDENTITY - A Pork Memoirs + Meatpaper Collaboration] When my brother turned 13 for instance, rather than having a bar Mitzvah, my mom asked a family friend to come... →
