Know your pork cuts
Pork is healthy, versatile and good value for money. It is rich in vitamins and minerals, and easy to prepare.
All lean, trimmed pork cuts with no more than 3 mm visible fat, are approved by the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
Pork is low in fat and low in kilojoules. It contains a low percentage of intramuscular fat, making it an ideal choice for slimmers and healthy eaters. Once visible fat has been trimmed, pork contains only 1,5% intramuscular fat.
Tasty Pork is not only low in kilojoules, it also contains important nutrients such as protein, phosphorus, B- group vitamins and other vitamins.
Pork loin
The loin contains the vertebral column, a T-shaped bone, a large eye muscle and the smaller fillet. The loin contains no ribs. This cut is referred to as a saddle. Oven-roast whole, or debone, tie and oven-roast, or saw into saddle chops. Debone, tie and oven-roast the loin, or cut into chops and grill or fry.
Leg or shoulder of pork
The leg consists of bone and several muscle layers. The leg can be divided into three separate cuts – the silverside, topside and thick flank. Use whole, or deboned, and tied for oven-roasting. Cut 2-3 mm slices (schnitzels) from the rectangular muscle in the topside for shallow fat frying. Cut the thick flank into strips for stir-fry dishes or cubes for kebabs. Leave the silverside whole for an oven roast.
Pork belly
This part is boneless with a thin muscle layer and a lot of white connective tissue. Cut into a rectangular shape and make a roll for pot roasting or bake in the oven in a cooking bag or aluminium foil. Mince and mix with beef mince for mince dishes. The belly is also cured and smoked for making streaky bacon.
Shank and trotter
The shank contains a large proportion of bone. The meat contains a lot of white connective tissue which makes it very tasty. Clean the trotters and use for brawn. The shank can be used whole for smoking and curing (Eisbein). It can also be sliced for braised dishes. It is delicious in soup.
Pork breast
This cut contains the breastbone, rib ends and a portion of the marrow bone. The marrow bone can be marinated and grilled as spare ribs. Cut into portions for a stew or potjiekos. Debone the cut, cut into rectangular shape and make a roll for pot roasting. Cure and smoke it to make bacon. Cut into cubes for a stew and use trimmings for mince.
Thick rib
The neck of the pig is too short to remove separately and is removed with the thick rib. The thick rib consists of the shoulder blade, vertebrae with dorsal vertebrae and 5 to 7 ribs. Debone the thick rib. The cavity where the shoulder blade has been removed can be filled with a stuffing to make a cushion for oven-roasting. The thick rib can be sawn into thick rib chops for grilling. Strips can be cut for a stir-fry. A feature of the rib is the large eye muscle, 7 to 9 ribs, vertebrae and an even fat layer with rind. It can also be used to a make a crown roast.
Chump
The chump contains the pelvic bone and several muscle layers. It can be kept whole and oven-roasted. If the chump is deboned and tied, carving will be easier. Chump chops can be cut for grilling. The chump can be left on the leg to make ham.
