Ingredient

Pork

Pork is the most versatile of the common meats and the one most often overcooked, because a generation was taught to cook it until it was grey. Modern guidance is different, and pork cooked correctly is juicy and faintly pink.

The cuts

Shoulder (butt)

Well marbled, full of connective tissue. The best slow-roasting and pulled-pork cut, and the cheapest. Needs hours.

Belly

Layered fat and meat. Slow-roast or braise, then crisp the skin hard. Extremely forgiving.

Loin and chops

Lean and quick-cooking, and the easiest to dry out. Best brined first and cooked to a lower temperature.

Tenderloin (fillet)

Very lean, very tender, cooks in minutes. Sear and finish in the oven; it goes dry in seconds.

Leg

Lean and large. Roast it, but it wants moisture and it is less forgiving than shoulder.

Ribs

Low and slow, then glazed. Connective tissue that needs time.

Cheek

Small, tough, and superb braised. Underused and cheap.

Why it is cooked less than it was

The old instruction to cook pork until well done came from a genuine parasite risk in the mid-twentieth century. Farming and inspection practice have changed substantially since, and official guidance in the UK has followed: whole cuts of pork no longer need to be cooked until grey.

The practical difference is large. Pork loin taken off at the right point is juicy and faintly rosy; the same chop cooked to the old standard is dry and fibrous, which is why so many people think they dislike pork chops.

Minced pork, sausages and rolled joints are a different case, because the outside surfaces have been mixed through, and those still need cooking thoroughly. For the actual temperatures and the distinctions between cuts, read the Food Standards Agency — FoodHQ does not publish safe internal temperatures, and this is exactly the kind of number where the authority should be the source.

Getting crackling

1. Start with dry skin. Pat it thoroughly, and if you have time leave the joint uncovered in the fridge overnight.
2. Score the skin through the fat but not into the meat, at roughly 1cm intervals.
3. Rub salt into the scores generously and brush off any excess.
4. Start hot — 220°C for the first twenty to thirty minutes — to blister the skin, then drop to 160°C for the long cook.
5. Do not baste the skin, and do not cover the joint. Both put moisture back onto the surface.
6. If the crackling is not crisp when the meat is done, cut it off and put it back under a hot grill on its own for a few minutes, watching it constantly.

Buying and storing

• Look for firm, pale pink meat with white rather than yellow fat, and a decent layer of it. Very lean pork cooks badly.
• Ask for skin on if you want crackling — much supermarket pork has it removed.
• Cheaper cuts are the better cuts here. Shoulder and belly are more forgiving and more flavourful than loin.
• Store on the bottom shelf of the fridge, wrapped, and follow the pack dates.
• Pork freezes well. Fatty cuts go rancid faster than lean ones, so use them within a few months.

Common questions