When it comes to pork, the terms and parts can be confusing. Where does that pork butt
actually come from? What is bacon, really? And what's the difference between every cut
labeled "chop"? It comes down to this, every pork cut comes from one of four main areas:
shoulder, belly or side, leg, and loin. Additionally, every cut can go by a few different names.
But to simplify, shoulder cuts, like pork butt or pork shoulder, are good for slow cooking,
like barbecue or roasting.
Leg cuts are where we get ham: ham shank, spiral-cut ham, and country ham. Bacon, that
fatty, crispy, gift from the pig gods, is from the belly or side. So are "spare ribs"
and pork belly, which is more or less a term for fattier, uncured bacon that had spiked
in popularity with foodie-types but apparently lost traction during the pandemic.
Loin cuts are the leanest and maybe the most varied. Many prefer them for their tenderness,
and a lot of the "chop" varieties we see in the store come from the loin: blade chop,
rip chop, and center-cut chop.
"Hi Alice, what's for dinner?" "Pork chops."
"Pork chops, huh? What else?"
Many "roast" and "rib" varieties are also from the loin — like the pork loin roast
or baby back ribs. But not just any chop will do. Several considerations must go into choosing
the centerpiece of your pork dinner, such as flavor, texture, price, and how easy it
is to prepare. Rib chops, for example, have a high fat content which keeps them juicy,
as well as a good flavor. In fact, most boneless pork chops you come across at the store are
likely to come from this part right near the ribs.
"Ribs. I had ribs for lunch. That's why I'm doing this."
Other delicious and versatile cuts that won't break the bank are pork shoulder or pork butt,
which are good for roasting, barbecuing, or grilling. Most home cooks might steer away
from piggy parts like feet, jowls, ears, and skin – the parts that may not even grace
the refrigerator of your local grocery store. Even if they did, these less-than-appetizing
bits would be cheap.
But what part of the pig is not only widely available, sometimes expensive, and terrible?
Look no further, casual pork eater. This is the worst cut of pork for your money. It's
bony, tough, and easy to mess up. If you remember anything, remember this: Sirloin chops come
from the hip — and they are bad. Cooks Illustrated, known for their rigorous testing, rated every
cut of pork-based on flavor and cost. Here's what they said about sirloin chops:
"These chops, cut from the sirloin, or hip, end of the pig, are tough, dry, and tasteless
[...] We do not recommend this cut."
Cooks Illustrated even went so far as to give sirloin chop, which has no cooking method
listed, "no stars." Strong words from a magazine that only just added color photography to
their pages in 2018. Meanwhile, The Spruce Eats says,
"Sirloin end is closest to the rump and tends to be bony."
Sirloin chops are a tougher cut, says Allrecipes, which generously suggests braising them. If
you do end up with a lot of sirloin chops somehow, braising is a good bet. To be fair,
any cut of pork can turn out bad without kitchen chops. A mistake most rookies make is overcooking
and ending up with a tough, dry slab of meat. This is likely due to carry-over cooking,
which is the bit of heat that continues cooking a pork chop after it's off the stove.
Many cuts of pork are quite lean, so it doesn't take much to sear them into hockey-puck oblivion.
You can avoid this with a probe thermometer, which should measure 145 degrees Fahrenheit
in the center. A little bit of pink is fine — even for pork. So there you have it. Pork
butt doesn't come from the butt, but it is delicious. Sirloin chops actually do come
from the butt, but perhaps they'd be better off left there.
Check out one of our newest videos right here! Plus, even more Mashed videos about your favorite
stuff are coming soon. Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell so you don't miss
a single one.