4 Healthy Ways To Cook Pork

Coarse salt is an ingredient that helps improve pork when cooked in the oven or in some other healthy way.

Pork is an excellent source of protein. Depending on the animal’s feeding style, the fat it contains will be saturated or polyunsaturated. 

Therefore, the Iberian pig is of better quality than that fed on fodder. Thus, depending on his diet, we can consider his meat as red meat (fed with fodder) or white meat (fed with fruit).

The most usual forms of preparation of this meat usually do not coincide with the healthiest. Very often, it is eaten breaded or fried. In this way, in addition to increasing the acrylamide content of the product, its caloric density is reinforced.

Here we will introduce you to four healthy ways to prepare this meat. Thanks to these methods, you will benefit from all its properties and will not alter the caloric density of the product.

The Two Most Popular Healthy Ways To Prepare Pork

A la plancha

This is a fairly usual method. The key, in this case, is finding the perfect cooking point. Take pieces of adequate thickness (about 2 cm) and mark them, leaving the inside slightly red. It is important not to burn or too brown the meat to avoid the formation of acrylamide which would affect its quality.

In these situations, the meat can be marinated with garlic and spices. By doing this, we increase the polyphenol content of the product and, therefore, its antioxidant capacity. 

In addition, it is given an interesting flavor. To improve its presentation and its nutrient content, you can sauté vegetables to accompany it or steam them.

In the oven

Another cooking method that requires very little oil to complete. In this case, it is necessary that the cooking is slow and that the temperature does not exceed 180 degrees. Marinating meat can, again, be interesting, and it can also be served with a garnish of vegetables or potatoes.

In this way, the flavor of the meat is enhanced and a final product that is palatable and rich in nutrients is obtained. Its protein content, vitamin B12 and folic acid, along with certain minerals such as zinc, is also interesting.

It is essential that the meat does not brown too much or burn. To do this, it is a good idea to prick it from time to time or to cut it to check that the inside is really juicy. Ideally, the outside is marked and the inside is tender. Coarse salt improves this type of preparation.

Other healthy ways to prepare pork

With rice or couscous

Pork is a great source of protein, but if in addition to protein intake you need a good source of carbohydrates, feel free to add pork to your rice or couscous. The ideal is to lightly mark your meat on the plancha before adding it to the preparations. The best cooking is slow heat and these types of dishes admit different kinds of spices.

The key to these dishes is to resist the temptation to accompany them with an aioli-type sauce so as not to increase their caloric content. These are preparations that also accept vegetables to improve the amount of vitamins and antioxidants.

They have good cold storage in a fridge. Cover them with cling film so that they do not dry out and they will hold up well for two or three days.

In stew

In this case, we have a traditional preparation method that combines the carbohydrates from the potato with protein and vegetables. This is a form of slow cooking that does not damage the product. The lower the temperature, the longer the cooking time will be.

Potatoes can be added with or without their skin; the meat and potato content should be more or less similar. This dish also accepts vegetables such as carrots and different types of spices. It is an ideal preparation for winter periods because it is consumed very hot and with the broth from cooking.

Another point that tilts the scales in favor of these types of preparations is that they can be frozen. 

This makes it possible to keep them for quite a long time and to consume them on an ad hoc basis because they keep all their properties and their flavor. It can therefore be cooked in large quantities and stored in individual dishes for later consumption.