Crispy bacon, delicious ham off the bone or perhaps it’s a pork chop that you’re hunkering for. Whatever your palate, it’s highly certain one of your favourite dishes is a Pork dish. In this post, we look at one of Australian’s favourite meats – Pork.

Pork is the meat of the domestic pig (Sus domesticus). It is one of the most commonly consumed meats around the world, especially in eastern Asia, but is illegal in many Islamic countries.Its often eaten unprocessed, but cured or preserved pork products are also very common – such as smoked pork, ham, bacon and sausages.

Nutritional Profile

Being high in protein and rich in many vitamins and minerals, lean pork can be an excellent addition to a healthy diet. The fat in pork is tran-fat free and mostly mono-and poly-unsaturated, so trimmed pork is suitable for even cholesterol-lowering or healthy heart diets. Pork has a high mineral content of Iron, Magneisum, Phosphorus, Selenium, Sodium, Zinc, Potassium and Copper. Pork is also highly enriched with Vitamin B6, Vitamin B12, Thiamin, Niacin, Riboflavin and Pantothenic Acid. Calorific value of Pork is 458.0 per 100 gm.

Health Benefits

It contains all the essential amino acids necessary for the growth and maintenance of our bodies. Eating pork may be of particular benefit for bodybuilders, recovering athletes, post-surgical patients, or other people who need to build up or repair their muscles as it it may promote muscle growth and maintenance, and improve exercise performance. On the negative side, consumption of both under cooked and overcooked pork should be avoided. Overcooked pork may contain carcinogenic substances, and undercooked (or raw) pork may harbor parasites. That being said, moderate consumption of properly prepared pork can very well fit into a healthy diet.

Quality

Soft, discoloured and musty-smelling pork must be rejected before cooking. If you’re looking for the healthiest pork options, you want lean cuts — tenderloin, loin chops and sirloin roast. Bacon and other fatty cuts are very high in artery-clogging saturated fat and cholesterol and not for everyday eating. Baked ham and lunch meat fall somewhere in the middle when it comes to fat and calories. Just like with other meats, pork is safe when cooked to the proper internal temperature (it’s 160F for pork).