Greater Midwest Foodways: Sausage Traditions, Sept. 15th

Greater Midwest Foodways Alliance

“Stuffed: A Journey of Midwest Sausage Traditions"

In celebration of the best of the wurst from Cozy dogs to Chicago Style dogs, from the Mother-In-Law Tamale dog to the smoked varieties, it's all going to be uncovered.

Saturday, September 15, 2007
9 AM – 4 PM
Kendall College
900 North Branch Street, Chicago
(West of Halsted Street, North of Chicago Avenue)
FREE PARKING

The new Greater Midwest Foodways Alliance (GMFA), www.greatermidwestfoodways.com, will celebrate the curious and delicious story of sausage at their inaugural public event. “Stuffed: A Journey of Midwestern Sausage Traditions,” will take place Saturday, September 15th at Kendall College in Chicago. The event is sponsored in part by Oxford University Press, and their essential new volume The Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink, which explores great Midwestern food traditions, will be introduced at the symposium.

The GMFA is excited to bring together producers, scholars and aficionados of this famous foodstuff that has been so important in building cultural identities, commerce, and cuisines across the American Midwest. Food enthusiasts from across the Midwest and anyone interested in learning more about the region’s rich food traditions are invited to attend.

In a celebration of the best of the wurst, there will be presentations on smoked hot dogs, corn dogs, Coney dogs and, of course, bratwurst. A hot dog lunch will be provided for all attendees featuring regional styles of hot dogs. In addition, guests will learn the innards and outs of sausage traditions from across the Midwest. The Windy City’s own unique hot dog heritage will be represented by Chicago-style dogs, Maxwell Street Polish and the “Mother-In-Law,” a tamale in a hot dog bun with chili or Chicago hot dog style toppings.

Noted hot dog historian and Roosevelt University Professor Emeritus, Bruce Kraig; Andrew Smith, General Editor of the Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America; and Iowa State University Professor Emeritus specializing in sausage and processed meat, Bob Rust, will focus on historical traditions. Manufacturers – some local, some large – will discuss the secrets of making of sausage.

The GMFA symposium is presented in partnership with Kendall College, Oxford University Press and the Culinary Historians of Chicago. It is the first event from the Greater Midwest Foodways Alliance, a collaborative effort that is dedicated to celebrating a diverse region’s rich food traditions.

“Too often the culinary cultures of the Midwest have been overlooked or taken to be ‘white bread’ American,” says Kraig, who launched the organization. “In fact, our wide land is filled with fascinating regional and local cultures and cuisines. The Greater Midwest Foodways Alliance celebrates all that makes the Midwest familiar and, at the same time, distinctive.”

The Greater Midwest “Stuffed: A Journey of Midwestern Sausage Traditions,” will be held at Kendall College, 900 North Branch, Chicago, Illinois, September 15, 2007 from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. For registration by phone, please contact Barbara Olson at 708-788-0338 or email greatermidwestfoodways@gmail.com. Advanced Registration is $30 (Students $20) before September 1st. After September 1st and at the door, admission is $35. Lunch is included.

Speaker's Schedule

Registration Form

Greater Midwest Foodways Alliance

“Stuffed: A Journey of Midwest Sausage Traditions"

In celebration of the best of the wurst from Cozy dogs to Chicago Style dogs, from the Mother-In-Law Tamale dog to the smoked varieties, it's all going to be uncovered.

Saturday, September 15, 2007
Kendall College
900 North Branch Street, Chicago
(West of Halsted Street, North of Chicago Avenue)
FREE PARKING

9:00-10:00 Arrival and registration: coffee, tea and pastries served

10:00-10:45 Keynote Address
Andy Smith, Editor-in-Chief of the Oxford Encyclopedia on Food and Drink in America, on sausage in the US

10:45-11:00 Break

11:00-12:15 Chicago Sausage Traditions
· Barbara Olson, retired hot dog stand manager, on the Chicago hot dog
· Leonard Slotkowski Jr., grandson of Joseph Slotkowski who founded Slotkowski Sausage, on Polish Sausage.
· Peter Engler, Research scientist and amateur food historian on the Mother in Law, a Southside Sausage Surrogate.

12:15-12:30 Introduction to the Greater Midwest Foodways Alliance

12:30-1:15 Lunch: Vienna Beef hot dogs, corn dogs, Coney dogs, bratwurst and other regional sausage specialties

1:15-2:45 Making Sausage
· Robert E. Rust, Professor Emeritus of Animal Sciences at Iowa State University, on the art and science of sausage
· Randy Ream, owner of Ream's Elburn Meat Market in Elburn, Illinois, on small-scale sausage production,
· Vienna Beef Sausage Speaker, Chicago, Illinois, on large-scale sausage production

2:45-3:00 Break

3:00-4:00 Sausage Across the Midwest
· Buz Waldmire, of Cozy Dog in Springfield, Illinois, on corn dogs
· Trudy Paradis, author of Milwaukee Germans: Their History, Their Food, Wisconsin bratwurst and sauerkraut
· Yvonne Lockwood, Ph.D., Curator of Folklife, Senior Academic Specialist, Michigan State University Extension, on Coney Dogs

www.greatermidwestfoodways.com info@greatermidwestfoodways.com

"Peter Engler, Research scientist and amateur food historian on the Mother in Law, a Southside Sausage Surrogate"

Now that's an LTHForum tag line I'd like to see up on the top of this page.

Thanks for planning this, Cathy2. My check is in the mail -- I'll see you there.

Looks like it will be a lot of fun - I'll be there!

Peter, Cathy,

Very much looking forward to this event. See you there.

trixie

Hi,

I briefly met Peter two hours deep into his tour of the Tom Tom Tamales factory. I needed to collect Tamales for Saturday, though I did offer him a ride. He was not even finished with his run through and quite thrilled to have learned a lot already.

I have a sense he will have some story to tell us!

See you Saturday, too!

Regards,

I'm really looking forward to this, too. See you on Saturday!

BTW, both the Sun-Times and the Daily Herald made mention of this event today in their respective food sections.

=R=

Cathy,

I would like to attend this. Is there still room?

Jyoti

Hi,

Consider yourself in.

FYI - Come hell or high water, we intend to start at 10 AM sharp. So come early enough to get paid and in. Of course we will accept those who come later. Just don't count on the program starting late.

Regards,

Hi,

NPR All Things Considered will have a segment on the sausage symposium this afternoon around 4:50.

I will attach a link later once it is uploaded on their website.

Regards,

Cathy,

It was on this morning as well and it was very interesting.

Jyoti

Cathy2 wrote:I will attach a link later once it is uploaded on their website.

Careful, that could get messy. But since the internet is a series of tubes, I guess it is perfectly constructed to add and upload links (depending, of course, on the gauge of both the tubes and the sausages).

HI,

I amend my statement, the person in Washington kept saying 4:50, which I now think was EDT.

The morning program is something else, though I don't know precisely what. The All Things Considered interview was conducted around noon today.

Regards,

Cathy2 wrote:The morning program is something else, though I don't know precisely what.

I remember hearing something, I think it was a teaser for the afternoon show. It said something about the Sausage event being for Midwest foodways, a group starting that is modeling itself after the Southern foodways group....

NPR : A Celebration of Sausage, the Poor Man's Steak
Audio for this story will be available at approx. 7:00 p.m. ET


All Things Considered, September 14, 2007 · The Greater Midwest Foodways Alliance is holding a symposium in Chicago on cased meats: hot dogs, kielbasa and all varieties of wurst. It's called "Stuffed: A Journey of Midwestern Sausage Traditions," and chefs, academics and food enthusiasts will gather to discuss and eat the poor man's steak. Michele Norris talks with Catherine Lambrecht, one of the symposium's organizers, about the history and importance of sausage to the cuisine and culture of the Midwest.

germuska wrote:

NPR : A Celebration of Sausage, the Poor Man's Steak
Audio for this story will be available at approx. 7:00 p.m. ET


All Things Considered, September 14, 2007 · The Greater Midwest Foodways Alliance is holding a symposium in Chicago on cased meats: hot dogs, kielbasa and all varieties of wurst. It's called "Stuffed: A Journey of Midwestern Sausage Traditions," and chefs, academics and food enthusiasts will gather to discuss and eat the poor man's steak. Michele Norris talks with Catherine Lambrecht, one of the symposium's organizers, about the history and importance of sausage to the cuisine and culture of the Midwest.

C2, just caught the show. Well done!

I heard Bruce Kraig interviewed this morning, and for some reason thought that was part of the same show. Apparently not.

Incidentally, I'm in; look forward to hearing Dr. Engler and others present -- and, of course, eating those wieners at lunchtime.

David Hammond wrote:Incidentally, I'm in; look forward to hearing Dr. Engler and others present -- and, of course, eating those wieners at lunchtime.

I'll be there for the morning sessions, looking forward to hearing Dr. Engler speak as well. Alas no wieners for me, I have a luncheon engagement well distant from the "Stuffed" venue.

Enjoy,
Gary

Heard the segment just before Marketplace, around 6:20 or so (I believe All Things Considered repeats in the afternoon). Great work.

What a great event! I had a blast and learned a ton. Thanks to everyone who helped organize it and who participated in it.

I'll post a bit more later but right now I do have time to upload one shot from today, which, I hope, captures the essense of the Symposium . . .



My lunch plate (Round 1)

More later

=R=

I had planned to leave after lunch, but I liked the morning presentations so much I decided to stick around for the afternoon and was very glad I did.

There was a lot of excellent info exchanged during both morning and afternoon sessions, with an outstanding performance by Peter Engler. It was especially enjoyable to hear about foods that we were then served for lunch.

Of equal value to the presentations were the breaktime conversations with other members of food fanatic community. This was a day well spent.

Cathy, I think you, Bruce and the others did a fantastic job of wrangling speakers and arranging this event. I'm looking forward to future gatherings of this group. Thanks.

Hammond

David Hammond wrote:Cathy, I think you, Bruce and the others did a fantastic job of wrangling speakers and arranging this event. I'm looking forward to future gatherings of this group. Thanks.

I'd like to add my thanks for your efforts, I was only able to attend the morning sessions, had a previous commitment to meet an out of town BBQ man at Xni Pec, though I wouldn't have missed ReneG/Peter Engler's presentation on the Mother in-law for the world.

Mildly tortuous as I left just as they were setting up lunch, and it appeared as interesting as delicious. I hope there will be a tape made available of the symposium, I'd love to hear the afternoon sessions.

I'd also agree 100% with Hammond, pre session chatting with fellow "food fanatics" was an added bonus.

Enjoy,
Gary

David Hammond wrote:We may actually need to start a separate thread just to hash over the info we acquired yesterday.

excellent idea and thanks for the nice start on this information Josephine!!

--

Hi,

Things I learned at the Sausage Symposium is now on the Other Food Chat board.

***

I really appreciate the feedback. As I stated yesterday in the concluding remarks, this program tested the waters on the concept for the Greater Midwest Foodways Alliance. A lot of effort was made to select interesting topics and speakers with food served to reinforce the theme. Sometimes all you ever have is a first chance and clearly everyone was pleased.

David was not the only person who informed me they were there for the morning-only. I had fears there was going to be a skeleton audience for the afternoon's presenters. One of the morning-only people and really Peter-Engler only was Mr. Tom Tom Tamales. Nothing surprised me more than to see him chatting away after the events close. I can only imagine he never expected the level of interest and curiosity about his product.

Mr. Slotkowski's family sold the sausage company his Grandfather started almost 20 years ago. He was very pleased in the continued interest in his family's business. Of course, Vienna was a champ with all their product and efforts to fund the program.

Lot's more to say but the music just went up in volume and a handsome model is guiding me away ...

Thank you all for attending!

Regards,

just wanted to add that I had a great time and look forward to the next one.

This was a wonderful event. It was fascinating to hear about the history of sausage-making in Chicago. Peter's presentation on the mother-in-law was very informative and the accompanying slides were excellent.
Great idea to include a variety of sausages for the luncheon - where else could I taste so many varieties in one day!

One interesting tidbit I picked up from a member of the audience - Quebec has it's own version of a corndog which is called a Pogo. These, I learned, always include either cinnamon or chilli powder in the corn batter.

Jyoti