Pork Cuts and Their Uses
Okay … Is it Fall?!
Because Fall to me = my favorite warm and cozy meals!
Yep, they are making their way back on the menu! SO many soup options
(Soup, salad, and bread? My favorite!),
and what about those oh-so-comforting meat and potato dishes?
Fall is the classic time to start stocking up on ingredients for winter (it always brings out my inner-squirrel-being), and meat is definitely no exception.
One of the questions we get asked a lot is about the different parts of an animal and their suggested uses. It can be confusing and overwhelming to look at a lot of frozen, packaged meat and not know the best way to cook it.
Well, I'm here to help!
I love cooking up the no-to-so popular cuts.
Bones and hocks? It makes me feel thrifty, resourceful, super healthy, and “medievally” all at the same time.
After trying my carnitas recipe, that Boston Butt Roast that got shoved in the back of your freezer suddenly became as valuable as gold!
So, trust me on this: “too much” pork is not going to go to “waste” in your freezer.
I've broken it down a bit for you with descriptions of where and “how to use” in a nice little list for reference.
(This is no where near an exhaustive list, each “hunk” can be cut and portioned differently depending on your preferences, butcher, and even cultural cuisine.)
Scroll down and take a look, that way you don't feel underprepared or overwhelmed the next time you're standing in front of the freezer.
Picture out of my old Betty Crocker’s Cookbook
Pork Cuts and Their Uses
Boston Butt Roasts: This cut comes off of of the hard working shoulder, so, unless it is braised or roasted nice and slow, it will be like shoe leather in your mouth. BUT, it shines when it's prepared accordingly, and the result is melt-in-your-mouth carnitas and pulled pork. We like to smoke and slice a few for “cottage bacon”, resulting in a thicker, less fatty, and more-marbled bacon (kind of like “picnic ham”, but better).
Blade Steaks: These are just the shoulder cut into steaks. If you don't want a Boston Butt ROAST, then you can instead opt for the sliced version instead. They still need cooked low and slow, but, will not need shredded at the end. Season them up, pop them in a casserole dish, and top them with gravy.... serve over mashed potatoes (or cauliflower) or rice.
Hams: “Gluteous-Maximus”, these are the, beautiful, round buttocks (sorry, not sorry?) that can be left fresh (unsmoked) or smoked into the gorgeous holiday hams like you used see on the dinner table for holidays. We keep ours uncured and naturally smoked so you can actually taste the flavor of the forested meat. Leftover ideas are limitless, plus you get a ham bone for soup! Sliced ham steaks are a more manageable size, and you can't beat these for a quick, guilt-free delicious meal!
Ham Hocks: These are the “trotters”, and they can be left unsmoked, but, when you add smoked hocks to your soups it imparts such a great flavor.
Pork Chops (Bone-in or Boneless)/Tenderloin: Chops! What more can we say? Bone-in and truly flavorful and juicy, fry or grill these up and you will remember what real pork chops are supposed to taste like. Or, go boneless for a faster cooking option and get a tenderloin instead. All of it comes from the loin, or muscle that runs along the back and spine, and if it is smoked...bam, you've got Canadian Bacon.
Cutlets: These come from the loin, like chops, but are boneless and pounded thin for your bonafide country fried steak and gravy. Serve up with mashed potatoes, steamed rice, or over eggs!
Jowl Bacon: On the cut sheet this is labeled as “soul food”, and is the pig's face, or “jowls” sliced and smoked. Richer, a bit fattier, and cut thicker than regular belly baon, this is a special treat.
Pork Belly: Just what it sounds like, this is the underneath, or belly of the pig. When cured/uncured or smoked, it becomes what we know to be traditional belly bacon, or, just “bacon”. When left “fresh” or uncured and unsmoked, you still have “fresh side”. This, is my absolute favorite: sliced thick, I dredge it in sage and spices and flour, throw it in a hot oven for a few minutes, and I am rewarded with a seasoned up, melt-in-your-mouth treat: it's like bacon, but breaded and seasoned to perfection.
Lard: Liquid gold, or, it is when it is being rendered down, anyway! This is the back fat, and the “leaf lard” from around the kidneys that is renowned for making super flaky pastries and the number one frying fat. From a pastured hog, this fat is not “bad”, and is actually quite the contrary, due to the high levels of Vitamin D that were soaked up from the sun during their extensive outside life. Once rendered down (in oven, on the stovetop, even a slow cooker!), it has a long shelf life.
Ribs: Barbecued ribs are always special! Most people choose to get their ribs back, that way they can smoke or girll them low and slow, and slather them with barbecue sauce. But, a few are not fans and opt to just have the meat taken from around the bones and ground.
Ground Pork: Just what it sounds like, it is ground up, unflavored pork. Many opt for this option when they make up meatballs, meatloaf, or to just season up their own sausage. Ground pork is simple and versatile, and many times I just treat it as ground beef. You get the ground from anything “leftover” from cuts that didn't get “chosen”. For example, we grind our picnic hams, so we get quite a bit of ground pork back, which I feel, is more useful.
Bratwursts/Ground Sausage: Seasoned ground pork, sausage has a rich history (think bratwursts and Oktoberfest). Ground breakfast sausage makes the most incredible sausage gravy to top your biscuits with, and the Italian-flavored can be the beginning of any special pasta dinner Once put into casings, the possibilities are endless! Mushroom and Swiss, Polish, Beer, Jalapeño and Cheddar, you name it.
And there you have it, a short, concise list of some of the possibilities of a pig. There are other options, but these are the basic ones and are a good starting point.
If you are in need some (or a half or whole hog 😉), don’t hesitate to contact us via telephone or email, or stop out at the farm!