Hog Heaven

Chef Chris Murray loves hogs. Pigs and Harleys make this Chef Council member the happiest. Mountain Lake Public Schools got to see that first-hand when he stopped by and with help from Taher Food Service Director Tammy Wolle, they cooked a 165-pound pig for the hungry students, faculty, and staff.

Here’s some of the story from Cross Counties Connect:

Donation, chef’s culinary artistry allow MLPS students, staff to pig out

Chef Chris went “whole hog” for Mountain Lake Public School (MLPS) students and staff today (Friday, May 26), after spending an overnight visit in the school’s back parking lot while tending to the roasting of a donated 165-pound hog,

Chef Chris, a frequent guest chef at MLPS, pulled into the lot on Thursday afternoon, May 25, with his pickup, fifth-wheel camper – and culinary artistry – in tow. He spent Thursday night into Friday morning roasting the hog on a rotary-spit cooker.

Prior to placing the main entree in the roasting grill, the chef used a mustard and mesquite rub. The roasting, at a temperature of 175°-200°, began at 6 p.m. Thursday, and ran 14 hours, to 8 a.m. Friday morning. The chef, and Taher Food Service Staff at MLPS, led by Taher Food Service Director Tammy Wolle, then shredded the pork and topped it with a sweetened orange glaze, giving the meat a light citron flavor.

The meal was served up in that same back parking lot to K-12 students, faculty and support staff during their respective noon lunch breaks.

Penner Farms of Butterfield donated the farm fresh hog for the roast. Penner Farms includes Joel and Bernice Penner, along with their sons, daughter-in-law and grandchildren, Jason and Laura Penner and their children, Ian, Aiden, Isabelle and Lucy and Mark Penner. The Penners were named the Watonwan County Farm Family in 2011.

Chef Chris Murray is a member of the Taher Chef Council. Taher is the food service provider at the school. Members of the Taher Chef Council travel around the world as a team in order to stay on the cutting edge of the culinary field.

Check out some of the photos!

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