Cook pork to well-done? *blah*

We had Stu's mom over for dinner last Saturday, and I made pork chops. Upon putting her knife into it, she asked me if it was cooked enough. The pork chops that she know of doesn't bounce back when she cuts into it - it should be solid. I showed her that there's no hint of pink juice coming out as she cuts into it, therefore, it is done.

Heck, even if you cook pork to medium, it's still ok.

You know how people are always paranoid about cooking pork until it's perfectly white even near the bone, dry as a hunk of rock, and over 160F? You don't have to do that anymore. Most people don't realize this, namely, my boyfriend, his mother, and pretty much all of our relatives. First of all, the first thing I do with pork is throw it in the freezer when it gets home. Freezing effectively kills all the parasites that MIGHT be in the middle of the meat, which, by the way, are most likely not there in the first place.

There are approximately 12 cases of trichinellosis per year in the U.S. Most of that from eating undercooked game meats. Since we eradicated the practice of feeding raw meats to pigs, the whole practice of cooking pork until it dries out is completely outdated. So, what do you do? Treat pork as you would beef. Bacteria lives on the outside of the meat, so as long as the outside is seared, you're fine. If you're paranoid about parasites, freeze it. If you don't want to freeze it, invest in a meat thermometer and cook it to 140F.

Comments

[Paulo]

Personally, I've never been a big fan of lean pork meat. I prefer them baking for some time, nearly falling off the bone, with just enough fat to make me reach 50 years or older. I still haven't tried your ribs recipe from a few months back though (no equipment).

So, did you report your rolo incident already?

[Jeff Kiru]

I so interested to join in as a new friendstar. but before that i would like to reguest to do a best cooking for me tonight.

[Sally]

Paulo/ how about Chinese style roast pork? That's my favorite.

The ribs recipe is yum. Actually, I like it more because it's convenient than anything else, but my guests always rave over how juicy and yummy it is. Meanwhile, the hostess is happy because she just plopped it from the fridge to the oven with hardly any work.

Stu threw out the Rolo before I had a chance. :(

[BiG DaDDy]

ok taste good; whats in the cup?

[jb]

i prefer patatin that really cool one like excalibur

[jb]

well, pork i like to cook litson paksiw that really nice one you love it.

[Animal]

ashler stue .. eeishten shluber stailen haw .. offten shilben smirlen blew ?

[phil]

hahaha! i totally agree. I can't stand people who are so scared of chicken that they cook it into chicken meteorites..

[Abe]

I'm curious if this applies to chicken as well. Whever you get soy chicken at a Chinese place, it's still blood red in the center, yet I've never heard of anyone getting salmonella from eating it.

[Paulo]

Sally, I can't cook much here. The most I can do is plop stuff in a microwave. But I sometimes I go to my boss's apartment to cook (and impress and try to convince him into giving a raise or promotion), but it's not too often. I still have about 70 days before I go back home, just in time for Christmas. I do plan to do your ribs for Christmas dinner. ;)

[Paulo]

P.S.

You could have made a lot of money with those maggot infested Rolos. too bad.

[saikumar]

let see how 2 help me to improve

[J-mes]

hey any good webs for recipes? Hmm..as for as i know chicken must be cook thoroughly..and pork to? hmm..dun really like pork when its medium..it still has than funny smell and taste

[leonel]

i can't say anythingcoz i myself doesn't eat pork..s der any other recipes aside from pork?

[Gerry]

姐小吃好先熟太不滑飯雞南海

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1710433/posts

[kimuzabe]

as long as it's nicely cook smells freshly sweet and tasty...that's fine!!!

[Robert]

You're better than Yan can cook! Wow!... ummm... how much you charge for cooking lessons?

[Sally]

Gerry/ Ah, but grilled chicken CAN cause cancer, versus the big Mac, when eaten consistently, WILL cause heart disease.

Heck, even if you just grill the stuff at home, it'd cause cancer. Isn't it general knowledge that charred food contains HCAs?

Chinese chicken is always blood red near the center, and yes, nobody gets sick eating it. Why? Salmonella lives in the intestinal tracts - so unless you're into eating the intestines undercooked, you'd be fine. The only affected areas would be the OUTSIDE of meats - just like in beef and pork. It's ok to have a little bit of pink in the center.

But rare chicken just doesn't have the same taste as rare beef, eh? :P

[Gerry]

No question, Sal.

My Mrs is very cross with me, despite her constant pleading I steadfastly refused to ever cross the threshold of any MacDonalds, right up until our three daughters got old enough to request it. I have all the strength of will and ethical integrity of a two dolla' crack ho'

http://www.pcrm.org/magazine/GM00SpringSummer/GM00SpSum2.html

[Rainier]

Medium cooked pork taste and smells like pigpen. snooooork.

Anyway, i like your blog page. Challenging!

[Glen]

Freezing does not actually kill all bacteria. That's a common misconception. I used to work for a cross-infection control company and you would not believe how resistant some of the bacteria and viruses are. If you freeze it then thaw it, cook it. Don't put it back in the freezer.