Learn Where Your Pork Comes From: a Pork Chart (2024)

FAQs

Where on the pig does pork come from? ›

The most tender cuts of pork are from the rib and loin. It's where the expression "high on the hog" comes from. The most desirable cuts of meat come from higher up on the animal. By contrast, the shank and shoulder muscles produce the toughest cuts.

There are between four and six primal cuts, which are the large parts in which the pig is first cut: the shoulder (blade and picnic), loin, belly (spare ribs and side) and leg. These are often sold wholesale, as are other parts of the pig with less meat, such as the head, feet and tail.

On average about 57% of a hog make it from the pen to the pan. A 250 lb. hog will yield approximately 144 lbs of retail cuts. Around 28% of a hog's live weight is inedible product re- moved during the slaughter and dressing procedure bringing our 250 lb.

"The barrels the pork went into were called butts," the author explains. "This particular shoulder cut became known around the country as a New England specialty, and hence it became the 'Boston butt. '"

Loin: The area between the shoulder and back legs is the leanest, most tender part of the animal. Rib and loin chops are cut from this area, as are pork loin roasts and tenderloin roasts. These cuts will be dry if overcooked.

If you're looking for the healthiest pork options, you want lean cuts -- tenderloin, loin chops and sirloin roast. Bacon and other fatty cuts are very high in artery-clogging saturated fat and cholesterol and not for everyday eating.

Pork shoulder—generally divided between the picnic roast and the Boston butt—are among the least expensive cuts of pig. Of course, the secret of turning these tough pork roasts into a wonderful meal is to smoke them low and slow and use them in barbecue pulled pork.

What is the most expensive cut of pork? It's usually the pork tenderloin (also called pork tender or fillet). A lot of the other loin cuts tend to err on the more expensive side since it has some high-quality meat to offer.

Shoulder (spare rib)

It has a really excellent flavour, as meat from nearer the head of the pig is always more succulent, with a little more fat to keep it moist. The skin is dry with a reasonable layer of fat underneath, making this one of the best joints to get good crackling from.

Why do Muslims not eat pork? ›

The pig is considered an unclean animal as food in Judaism and Islam, and parts of Christianity. Although Christianity is also an Abrahamic religion, most of its adherents do not follow these aspects of Mosaic law and do consume its meat.

The secreto is the equivalent to a cut from the shoulder blade and the head of the loin. This cut of iberian pig is best served medium to medium rare but should be warm in the middle to allow the fat from the high marbling to release its flavour.

Microbials and the effect of extended hanging time on pork carcasses and blade steaks. The meat industry uses refrigeration as the air-chilling system to slow microbial growth and maintain carcass quality. In the pork industry, the time between harvest and fabrication is typically 24 to 48 hours.

Economically, you will save money buying the whole or half pig over retail cuts.

So if you measure a pig with a length of 40 and a girth of 50 ... 40 x 50 x 50 / 400 = 250 pound pig.

So the Anglo-Saxon pig became the French porc, which was Anglicized to pork; the Anglo-Saxon cow became the French boeuf, which became beef; and sheep became mouton, (later mutton).

Bacon is a cut from the belly of the pig along the ventral line. However, butchers may also make bacon from cuts of pork other than pork belly—for instance, back bacon is from the loin, jowl bacon is from the cheeks, cottage bacon is from pork shoulder, and slab bacon typically comes from side cuts.