May-June 2016_nobleed

whole hog T o better learn our way around the meat counter, we asked Chef Richard to show us what he likes to do with the more popular primals in the Rouses pork section. Here are a few of his “go to” dishes when it comes to the pig. Chops & Loins In many ways, chops are the most approachable of the pork primals and our gateway to home-cooked piggy goodness. And what’s not to love? These lean, steak-like slices of the pork loin are easy to cook — they can be pan fried, seared, stuffed, broiled or smothered — making them a flexible centerpiece for weeknight suppers. The Rouses meat cases are filled with different varieties of the venerable chop, all of which come from the pork loin — the broad back muscle that connects the pig’s shoulder to its hip. (A whole loin technically fits in the “roast” category, as does its smaller, leaner neighboring muscle, the tenderloin.) Center Cut (or rib chops) come from atop the rib cage below the shoulder and often have recognizable “baby back” bones attached. (A boneless version of this is called a loin filet.) Shoulder or blade chops come from closer to the head and — thanks to a complex muscle structure — tend to favor slow cooking methods. Same goes for the sirloin chop and shoulder steaks (slices of the shoulder), which reward a cook’s braising patience with deep, porky flavor. Chef’s Call: While many chefs opt for the fashionably thick cuts of the loin (double-cut pork chops can be 1.5-2 inches thick), Richard prefers to cut his chops on the thinner side. “You take a nice thin chops and pané (shallow pan-fry) them nice and crisp.Then you use that to make a pork chop sandwich.”This popular Jazzfest specialty can be improved with a simple ingredient substitution: instead of vegetable oil, use melted leaf lard (rendered pork fat) for frying and a flavorful all-pork punch. Ribs Though many folks prefer smaller baby backs (smaller ribs close to the loin), Richard has a penchant for the larger, meatier spare ribs and St. Louis-style ribs that run closer to the belly. Whether you’re smoking these meaty wonders outdoors or stovetop-braising them until they’re fall-apart tender, long slow cooking renders out a lot of the extra fat, leaving you with a chunkier, more flavorful finger food. Country-style ribs — cut from the shoulder — don’t actually contain rib bones but have plenty of meaty goodness for stew-style preparations. Chef’s Call: “I like to take St. Louis ribs and cook them with onion and bell pepper — maybe a little Creole mustard — and braise them for a long time. I’ll serve them with pork and beans on the side. When I cook baby back ribs, I’ll baste them with a nice coffee barbecue sauce and serve them with a side of coleslaw.” Roasts & Shoulders Two popular choices for “large format” pork dishes come from the pig’s front leg area: the shoulder (or picnic shoulder) adjacent to the belly and the Boston Butt near the backbone. Both require longer, slower cooking than a fast-cooking chop, but in this case, patience yields delicious (and affordable) dividends. Roast cuts have a lot of connective tissue (it holds the meaty muscles together), which melts down to velvety collagen when braised (cooked slow with

ROUSES.COM 11