We Heart Heritage Pork
We have a passion for Duroc pork, one of the new heritage breeds that are becoming part of the fine dining (food snob) rhetoric.
You may not yet be familiar with the concept of "heritage" animals (a.k.a.: Why does my pork have a name?). Let us enlighten you: It's the same as "heirloom" but for meat. And as much as our plates and palates benefited in recent years from the arrival of beautifully marbled heirloom varieties of beefsteak tomatoes in a rainbow of colors, so we are now lucky to enjoy beautifully marbled heritage pork.
We first learned about this pedigree issue from our favorite local purveyors of all meats grass fed, organic, and otherwise clean and humanely raised, Prather Ranch Meat Co.
Not to be confused with Prather Ranch, which only raises cattle, the Meat Co., which does sell Prather Ranch beef, also sells meats and poultry from other small ranches, as well as animals they raise themselves. (See, we said this was confusing.)
By Julie, contributing
Doug Stonebreaker, one of the proprietors of the Meat Co., who often works their booth at the Saturday Lake Merritt Farmer's Market, recently explained to us the importance of a pig's heritage: "Restaurants are charging about $30-a-plate for a Duroc chop," he said, holding up a thick, rosy, pound-plus, vacuum-packed 2-inch thick specimen for our perusal. His price: $12.99/lb
We bought two.
Why should you care about heritage pork? Food Network's Alton Brown can give you the full low-down if you want to Tivo his pork episodes. Over time, the fetish for low fat foods has led breeders to select for increasingly lean pigs, providing consumers with dry, dry, dry cuts of meat. Alton's solution to the problem involved a solution: Brining.
Even though we already had the prized heritage meat in hand, we figured brining couldn't hurt, so we tried this recipe (not that we want to look like shills for the Food Network or anything but bear with us just this one more time): Thick Pork Chops with Spiced Apples and Raisins. Results were salty-sweet, juicy, fabulous. But we recommend skipping the sugar in the applesauce; it doesn't need it.
And if you care about how your animal product lived before it landed on your grill, Prather Ranch Meat Co. happens to be proactive in the movement to certify ranchers who follow guidelines for humane raising and handling of animals and sustainability of the land. Even Prince Charles is impressed.
We have to tell you though, you most likely can't get a Duroc chop from Prather Ranch Meat Co. today; because they've switched to Berkshire pigs.
Says Meat Co. co-proprietor Steve McCarthy, "We switched to Berkshires because they have even better flavor." He adds, "The chef at Perbacco loves them!"
While the breed in stock has changed, the price remains the same, with three thicknesses to choose from: the famed 2-inch, the supermarket-standard size 1-1/4-inch, and the 3/4-inch cut good for a quick five-minute grilling.
("Lesser" cuts of meat -- oh, don't get us started on the virtues of the boston butt cut -- will cost you even less.)
Thus, we welcome the Duroc, the Berkshire, and any other porcine animal that boasts strains of either breed or another claimant to an equally marvelous, marbled heritage.