Unless you’re one of the billions of people around the world who don’t eat pork, you likely enjoy a juicy pork chop, tender pulled pork sandwich, or crispy piece of bacon every once in a while. However, even if you cook it often, selecting the best cuts of pork can be tricky if you don’t know what to look for. Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be a guessing game, and you can tell a lot about a cut of pork by looking at its color.
When shopping for any type of pork, you’ll want to look for cuts that are rosy pink and pass up any that have started taking on a gray tint, indicating the meat is passing its prime due to oxidation, which breaks down the color pigments. The grayer the cuts are, the longer they’ve likely been sitting around. Moreover, how dark a cut of pork can tell you about its moisture content. The more moisture in the meat, the deeper the color will be, meaning an extra juicy bite after it’s cooked.
Another thing to look for when picking out pork is the fat content. Fat equals flavor, and appears as white lines spread throughout the meat. Some cuts are fattier, like pork butt, and will have thicker lines of fat marbling, while leaner cuts, like pork chops and loins, will have finer lines. When picking out a cut, look for ones with prominent marbling, which will render as the meat cooks, leaving it tender and juicy.
Store your pork correctly to keep it fresh
Whether you’re stocking up on pork for a reason or have taken advantage of a great sale, if you’re not planning on cooking it immediately, you’ll need to store it correctly to keep it fresh. While whole cuts of pork can last up to five days in the fridge, ground pork will only last around two days before it needs to be used. If you need to keep pork longer, you’ll have to freeze it.
Now, when freezing any cut of pork, you never want to toss it into the freezer without first taking it out of the packaging it came in. The plastic packaging pork comes in at most stores is not enough to prevent freezer burn. The only exception would be if you get cuts from a butcher, as butcher paper can slow freezer burn, while extra protection, like a layer of plastic wrap, can extend its shelf life even more.
When pork is frozen, it should be used within six months for freshness, according to the USDA, while ground pork should be used within two to three months. Although the pork will still be good after that, it can start to dry out.
