Pop-Up Event Gives Local SA Chefs a Way to Help Texas Ranchers

There are plenty of ways that people in San Antonio can support local food producers, but many of those ways haven't been explored until recently.

The local food scene is growing in San Antonio, including through locally-hosted pop-up dinners provided by chefs and sponsored by companies that let guests see what Texas producers have to offer.

From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on May 7, the Chef Cooperatives hosted "Save the Swine," a Pop-Up event held at Alamo Beer Brewery on 415 Burnet St. on the city's Eastside, right next to the historic Hays Street Bridge.

Hundreds of people turned out to see the new brewery headquarters, peruse the grounds with an Alamo beer in hand and sample dozens of unique culinary creations of the local chefs who are part of the Cooperative, all to raise money to benefit South Texas Heritage Pork.

The chefs set up at tents located throughout the grounds and prepared individual portions of their own pork recipes. For a $40 individual ticket that could be bought online, guests could amble from one food kiosk to the next, sipping their drink and trying all the different flavors.

An appetizing array of serrano peppers and flowers on the chopping board at Madge's Food Co.'s Fermented Michelada and Mockalada Stand.

Chef Stephen Paprocki, owner of Texas Black Gold Garlic and director of the Chef Cooperatives, handed out portions of Crispy Texas Drum Throats, Mushroom Escabeche and Black Garlic, his signature creation, with the help of Iverson Brownell of CanSurvive Cuisine Holdings.

Over at Tatu's Food Debauchery, patrons could enjoy Grilled Hen of the Woods on Mascarpone Toast with Sauce Veracruz and Bonito Flakes, courtesy of Chef Tatu Herrera.

Chef Jeff White of the Boiler House offered a steamy selection of Hog Trotter Tankotsu Ramen, Sous-Vide Quail Egg and Spicy Black Garlic Chili Oil.

Those are just a few of about 14 menu items, and on such a hot day, food artisan Mike Miller of Madge's Food Co. made the right move in setting up a Fermented Michelada and Mockalada Bar using Fermented Vegetables and Chicarrons. People could bring their fresh beer over to the table to have it mixed and prepared into a michelada.

A spicy michelada featuring a medium-brew Alamo Beer.

Right next door was Jenn White of Brindles Ice Cream, selling a Salted Caramel and Candied Bacon Praline dessert to help beat the heat.

Mark and Kelley Escobedo, the owners of South Texas Heritage Pork in Floresville, were there all day, laughing and talking to guests, doing interviews with local media and sharing their unique story of bringing heritage breeds of swine back onto the pasture.

Mark and Kelley Escobedo take a break from the day's events to talk to local media. 

Despite their successful business that they now have to move, the Escobedos aren't what you would consider your typical farmers. They moved to Wilson County in 2002 to start a locksmith business. When Mark changed the locks on a farmhouse located on 122 acres outside Floresville, the pair found they loved the land and house and decided to lease the entire package.

While they had no farming background or experience, they shared a loved of nature and decided to invest in a few animals, buying some chickens and hogs from a friend raising show hogs.

Everything they've learned about farming they read about online, Mark said.

They researched not only current farming practices, but the heritage breeds that were once prominent in agriculture. The heritage breeds, including the English Large Black and the Tamworth, were grown more slowly on pastures and open spaces rather than in confined feeding operations. Instead of being separated from the natural environment and placed on concrete, they were raised to coexist with the soil and nature.

Ever since they began raising their hogs, they've abided by the Spanish philosophy of farming: Slow growth leads to real flavor in swine. While the average pig in the U.S. goes from birth to slaughter in six months and most heritage breeds in this country live for nine to 10 months, the Escobedos raise their hogs for 24 to 30 months before harvest.

This practice means more time, lost hog weight and increasing costs for the same net weight of pig, but it's worth it, because flavor develops over time, Mark explains.

With this in mind, the Escobedos are basing their entire operation on the lost art of charcuterie. From the breed selection, pasture management, custom feed blend of peanuts and hay and increased comfort and happiness of the herd, everything leads to the final product – Jamón Tejano, a special cured ham that will hopefully be on the market in the next 16 months, Mark said.

All in all, the Pop-Up Event was a success, with live music from SATX Music, featuring Judivan Roots and True Indigo, DJ Ras of Shashamani Sound and DJ Gabe Garza at Southtown Vinyl and Deep South Collective. Sponsors included FreshPoint South Texas, Groomer's Seafood and Graphic Solutions Co.

This is hopefully just the beginning of what Texas farmer and ranchers mean to the local food movement in San Antonio.

Featured caption: Chefs from the Chef Cooperatives set up outside Alamo Beer Brewery on San Antonio's East side for "Save the Swine," a Pop-Up Dinner to raise money to help South Texas Heritage Pork obtain a new home.