Favorite cut of meat

[guajolote]

beef: hangar steak

pork: belly

lamb & veal: shank

[Matt Seeber]

elyse, you have a couple of good points i'd like to address:

Any reason cutting it first works better?

suzanne pretty much nailed it, but to elaborate - cutting the meat first is recommended in order to obtain more surface area. the browning on all sides of those pieces of meat is going to help give your stew a much greater depth of flavor. i say "help" because it's just one of several important steps.

I just get tired of turning and toasting.

true. see above. you gotta give love if you want to get it

I find it blackens the pot more quickly

to avoid this just adjust the flame down a bit. start on a high heat and add the meat. once the pan comes back up to temperature and the meat is searing well, reduce the heat a bit and it won't burn - just take it nice and slow. be sure to deglaze and put all that "caramely goodness" to use.

Edited February 26, 2003 by Matt Seeber (log)

[Ron Johnson]

so does the ass ever come "virgin," so to speak?  or is it cured. 

confused. 

edit:

ah, i see you say "fresh hog legs."  i'm assuming this could be the ass as well.  and if so, does the ass taste much different from the front legs, aside from fat content?  same applications?

Yeah, we call the "virgin ass" fresh ham. Fresh being opposite of cured and all that.

I dont like it as much as shoulder/butt.

For me its hangar steak, but I ain't sure if thats a cut or what, so I am going to start a new thread on it. I didn't learn anything new on eGullet yesterday, so today must be the day.

[Wilfrid]

This fresh ham of which you speak; isn't that just the same thing as a leg of pork where I come from? Which you then roast?

My answer is probably the tail, unless offal's not allowed. If it's not an ox, or Salma Hayek, I guess I have to choose something different. Let's see if that comment survives longer than Awbrig's picture.