Quick-Cooking Pork Cuts You Need to Stock Up On

It's an easy hack: keeping thinly-sliced pork in the freezer makes for easy-to-make meals. It's perfect for quick meals because it cooks in no time and can be turned into a wide variety of dishes. 

Here's a list of all the pork cuts you can buy and the recipes that go best with them. You can also ask your butcher to cut up a fresh slab of pork for you in these ways.

IMAGE Yummy

1 Bacon Slice

Make: liempo 

Cut from pork belly, it's basically thinly-cut liempo which means faster cooking time. Because it has streaks of fat running through it, this pork cut is always flavorful whether made crispy or tender. It's also the same cut that is cured to make smoked bacon. The fat content is perfect for absorbing aromatics and spices.

Substitute your beef for gyudon with this slice for a tasty, flavor bomb that goes so well with rice. Another wonderful use for it is to make a quick substitute for chicharon if you find yourself with a bowl of creamy monggo.

See Also

Guisadong Monggo with Crispy Fried Liempo

Jun 12, 2016

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Beef Gyudon with Poached Egg

May 30, 2016

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Gingered Pork Stir-fry

May 4, 2015

IMAGE Dairy Darilag

2 Sukiyaki-Cut Pork

Make: Gyudon, Bulgogi, and Sukiyaki (use pork instead of beef) 

Pork sukiyaki cut is taken from pork loin, so it's a leaner cut than bacon slice. They cook so quickly, it feels like a miracle every time. Marinate overnight or longer for easier breakfast prep. You can cook them in teriyaki sauce, barbecue sauce, or better yet, use them for an easy sukiyaki recipe instead of beef. We also recommend Gyudon and Bulgogi which traditionally uses beef, but you can easily substitute with pork. If you're looking a for a fun idea, you can even organize your own mini Korean barbecue at home!

See Also

Easy Sukiyaki Beef Recipe

Sep 26, 2017

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Bulgogi and Kimchi Rice Topping Recipe

Jan 19, 2016

IMAGE Dairy Darilag

3 Pork Steak

Make: Pork Steaks 

Already have pork steak in your freezer? Simply slice them thinly with your knife to get them cooking quickly. It's a versatile boneless cut that you can mix with a lot of vegetables and add in stews for a meaty addition and much-needed flavor. Another tip for quicker cooking? Pound the meat with a mallet.

See Also

Pork Stir-Fry Recipe

Oct 24, 2017

IMAGE Miguel Nacianceno

4 Tenderloin

Make: Pork stir-fry, homemade tocino 

Pork doesn't always have to be a fatty affair. Tenderloin is a quick-cooking and tender but is a lean cut of pork. You can use it to make homemade tocino, and a flurry of other delicious meaty dishes.

See Also

Pork Tenderloin Recipe

Aug 17, 2016

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Pork and Scallion Stir-Fry Recipe

Jun 20, 2017

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Pork and Tofu Stir-Fry Recipe

Dec 22, 2016

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WATCH: How to Make Homemade Pork Tocino

Aug 28, 2017

Here's a more detailed guide to all the pork cuts you need:

See Also

INFOGRAPHIC: Know Your Pork Cuts + Recipes You Can Use

Aug 23, 2017

Here are more pork recipes: 

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Taiwanese Fried Pork Chop Recipe

May 30, 2016

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Pork Sisig

Feb 26, 2015

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Braised Five-Spice Pork Liempo Recipe

Jul 6, 2015