Pork - white 'red' meat

• Lean in spite of its reputation.
• A fresh product without tenderizing.
• Recognize the best cuts.
• Exaggerated fear – cook with care.
• Freeze fast and thaw slowly.
  

Pork is one of the most commonly eaten meats worldwide, and its use in the kitchen dates back over 7,000 years. Meat from pork is considered to be red meat, even if it does not look like it. The meat in itself is lean and healthy, but is unfairly associated with fatty dishes. Most of the carcass of a pig is used to produce fresh meat.

Light in color

Pork meat should be pink and the fat should be creamy white, not yellow. Organic and free-range pork can have a meat color that is a bit more reddish pink. For pork, the same is valid as for all other meat: Fat equals taste.

Because pork is lean – finer parts contain a minimum of fat with very little connective tissue – it is more sensitive than meat from beef, for example.

Buy correctly

Always choose meat that looks slightly damp and is a bit shiny (however, if it looks wet and white, it could be a sign of injected saltwater). Red patches on the meat could signal that the pig was stressed at the moment of slaughtering. Pork is never tenderized.

If you have the chance, try buying a piglet and grill it whole. (To be exact, what you are buying is probably a growth pig, which contrary to a real piglet has stopped suckling). It could weigh between 10 and 25 kilos and the kilo price is high – but it is worth it.

Cook correctly

Pork is often overcooked. It is a remnant from the time when people worried about parasites and Trichinella, but modern breeding of pork has made these torments rare. There is still a slight risk that they appear amongst ecological pigs that are allowed to graze and root in the soil, but the security systems are generally so reliable these days that you should not have to worry.

Pork's inner temperature

According to the recommendations, pork should reach 70°C, but at these temperatures lean details of the animal such as the fillet is already dry and dull. You achieve a juicier result if you stop the preparation somewhat earlier, and let the meat finish cooking in the after heat.

Handle correctly

Pork is a fresh commodity and is therefore sensitive. Store in the coldest part of the fridge and do not interrupt the chilling chain. Expect large pieces to last in the fridge for about four days. Smaller pieces and mince should be consumed as soon as possible, within two to three days at the latest.

If you freeze pork, it should be done quickly. Thawing should be slow. Remember that defrozen meat is more sensitive than fresh.

Cuts

There are hundreds of different breeds of pork around the world, and so-called heritage breeds are growing in popularity, including Duroc, Gloucestershire Old Spots, Ossabaw and Red Wattle.

Spain has its own and unique breed called Iberico, which becomes incredibly delicious when reared on acorn. It is black, which is the reason for the name of the air-dried ham “pata negra”, or black foot.

The little cutting guide

Sows are widely regarded as providing the tastiest meat. The pork you buy in the shop probably comes from animals that have been slaughtered before sexual maturity, which makes the sex less important. Sexually mature boars can have an unpleasant taste resembling urine or sweat due to its growth hormones.

A pig that is ready for slaughter weighs at least 25 kilos.