Higher Welfare Boneless Leg Of Pork (2024)

FAQs

What is higher welfare pork? ›

We look for pork from pigs who are kept in clean and comfortable housing with enrichment to keep them occupied. Free-range pork is usually preferred, as these pigs can express their natural behaviours such as rooting and wallowing in the mud.

Pork leg and loin joints are excellent roasting joints with lean meat and good crackling, and a rack of pork is an impressive looking roast. If you prefer something richer, then shoulder joints and pork belly are ideal. They have a higher fat content that renders down during cooking to give lovely tender meat.

Preheat oven to 230°C, 210°C fan or Gas Mark 8. Put the joint in a roasting tin on the top shelf for 20 minutes. This sudden blast of heat is the key to crispy crackling. Reduce the temperature to 180-190°C, 160-170°C fan or Gas Mark 4-5 and follow the cooking times below to ensure the joint is cooked through.

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.

What it is: If you're really into pork chops, pork tenderloin is the cut of meat to know. Cut from the loin, this is the most tender cut of pork. It takes on added flavors from marinades, rubs, and spices with ease.

Pork Rib Roast

It's the rib area of the loin, which means it's fattier and richer-tasting than tenderloin. It makes a show-stopping centerpiece at a holiday dinner, whether simply Frenched or turned into a Crown of Pork (which is a rib roast turned tied into a circle).

So yes, a pork arm/leg roast can often be a suitable substitute for shoulder.

The top part (known as the butt) is best for slow cooking, while the lower shoulder section absorbs flavours beautifully. Use additional ingredients of your choice: 2-3 cups veg.

Shoulder Cut

The pork shoulder is the most popular cut used to make pulled pork. The entire hog's front leg and shoulder make up the pork shoulder. This is often separated into two pieces at your local grocery store: the picnic roast and the Boston butt (also known as the Boston roast).

boiling water trick

This helps to prep the skin to crackle as its now "pre-cooked" so to speak. Make sure to pat dry with paper towel to further dry afterwards.

Should you put oil on pork for crackling? ›

Place the pork, rind-side up, in a roasting pan. Drizzle the oil over the pork, then rub the salt mixture into the cuts. Rub a little oil and salt into the scored rind and place in the oven.

“Mangalitsa is a very nice meat to work with,” offers chef Szilárd Tóth at Budapest's Salt. “Its taste falls somewhere between plain domestic pork and wild boar, which makes it very exciting and distinctive to eat and cook with. It's the best pork in the world – its meat-to-fat ratio, texture and taste are perfect.”

American Kurobuta Pork

Referred to as Kurobuta (black hog) in Japan, it is considered the culinary equivalent of Wagyu beef and is highly regarded for its internal marbling.

Berkshire pork is renowned for its richness, texture, marbling, juiciness, tenderness and overall depth of flavor. It is thought by many to be the Kobe beef of pork.

Known for its luxurious flavor, high degree of marbling and exceptional tenderness, Berkshire Kurobuta pork has earned its reputation as the Wagyu of pork. Like authentic Japanese Wagyu beef, Berkshire Kurobuta pork is highly revered by discerning diners for its outstanding texture, flavor and juiciness.

The most important and practical factors determining pork quality in the US are color and pH which are used to determine the four broad categories of pork quality. The categories are red, firm and non- exudative (RFN); dark, firm and dry (DFD); red, soft and exudative (RSE); and pale, soft and exudative (PSE).