Start Date
27-5-2026 11:45 AM
End Date
27-5-2026 12:00 PM
Description
“La boucherie de quartier” is a Cajun phrase referring to a neighbourhood pig slaughter. One such annual event, the Lâche Pas Boucherie in southern Louisiana, brings multiple generations and many traditions together with the goal of sharing and celebrating music, food and culture. Boudin, crackling, andouille sausage, and hogshead cheese are but a few of the unique offerings from this melting pot of shared flavours. I was born and raised in southern Louisiana but rarely appreciated the novelty of Cajun cuisine until I moved to Australia. The flavours and spices of my former home add a certain piquancy that is difficult to replicate elsewhere. Nostalgia for home tastes like the crunch of crackling hot out of the oven and feels like the slick sheep entrails that are stretched to encase pork boudin as it is pushed through the meat grinder. More than a flavour though, the longing is embodied. I miss community coming together to sacrifice animals, to celebrate abundance, and to minimise waste whilst grappling with the reality of violence that consumption necessitates in this more-than-human world. Within the current crisis of globalised food production people are hardly aware of what they are eating, much less where it comes from. This paper, using an autoethnographic approach, connects a Cajun Boucherie in southern Louisiana to a profound moment of grief to shed light on a different way to consume, which minimises harm, induces hope, and encourages connection.
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Included in
Bonding through boucherie: Strengthening Social Ties through Butchery
“La boucherie de quartier” is a Cajun phrase referring to a neighbourhood pig slaughter. One such annual event, the Lâche Pas Boucherie in southern Louisiana, brings multiple generations and many traditions together with the goal of sharing and celebrating music, food and culture. Boudin, crackling, andouille sausage, and hogshead cheese are but a few of the unique offerings from this melting pot of shared flavours. I was born and raised in southern Louisiana but rarely appreciated the novelty of Cajun cuisine until I moved to Australia. The flavours and spices of my former home add a certain piquancy that is difficult to replicate elsewhere. Nostalgia for home tastes like the crunch of crackling hot out of the oven and feels like the slick sheep entrails that are stretched to encase pork boudin as it is pushed through the meat grinder. More than a flavour though, the longing is embodied. I miss community coming together to sacrifice animals, to celebrate abundance, and to minimise waste whilst grappling with the reality of violence that consumption necessitates in this more-than-human world. Within the current crisis of globalised food production people are hardly aware of what they are eating, much less where it comes from. This paper, using an autoethnographic approach, connects a Cajun Boucherie in southern Louisiana to a profound moment of grief to shed light on a different way to consume, which minimises harm, induces hope, and encourages connection.