Pork-A-Nosis

I get irritated when journalists print stupid information, especially when it's about pork. I was reading reviews of restaurants on asiaone.com and came across a review of a restaurant called Perle Noir. The reviewer who happens to be a blogger at http://ieatishootipost.blogspot.com/, and also apparently happens to be a Doctor stated that “Since pork has to be taken well done (because pork harbors parasites like tapeworm which can also cause infestations in humans so it is important to cook it properly)” also failed to note that the chances of this actually happening are about a million to one.


The fear of trichinosis came about in age when people were poorly raising pigs in environments that were less that sanitary and in particular related to a diet of human waste and sewage. Nowadays pork is so fiercely controlled, not only in its breeding, but at all points of production. Furthermore, all that proscitutto you have eaten is in fact, raw pork. Of course it has been “cured” but essentially is no more of a risk than cooking a chop medium-rare. There are parts of the pig that do benefit from long cooking and slow braising like the shoulder and the glorious ribs. Even more beautiful is the belly, from which after gentle slow cooking nearly collapses on itself and the meat pulls away gently and with magnificent succulence.

This also brings me to another point. As chefs, we should all want to know where our pork comes from and how it is processed. As consumers you should ask your local butcher from whom he buys his pork. Some questions to ask include, Are the pigs allowed to roam or are they cooped like chickens? Is the pork processed with a brine, to increase the weight and substitute moisture for lean meat? Are the animals treated with hormones? On visual inspection, pork should be gloriously marbled and riddled with pearly white fat, and contrary to marketing claims, pork should be a shade of rose tinged toward red, not white or pearl. The pale, flaccid specimens we see at many supermarkets are the result of man’s intervention in the growth of what should be a natural process.

Pigs are one of the greatest animals on earth. In fact, pigs are one of the only animals that are completely edible from head to toe and have nourished people for centuries. Think prosciutto, bacon, ham, sausages, casings etc. If you want proof that Pork doesn’t have to be cooked well done, come down and try our chop. I guarantee you will wake up in the morning.