May-June 2016

ROUSES.COM

whole hog

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