When shopping, most people usually focus on buying pork belly, pork loin, or pork butt. However, there is a small portion of meat on the pig that weighs only about 200g. It is worth noting that this piece of meat is one of the best parts of pork, with a delicious taste and significant nutritional value, similar to ginseng that has been used for thousands of years.
When buying pork jowl, there is a very limited quantity available. Therefore, if you want to buy it, you need to go to the market early or even inform the seller in advance to ensure that you can get it. When choosing to buy, there are some important points to note:
The surface of the pork jowl should be dry and not wet. If you feel any signs of moisture on the meat, it may have been injected with water or frozen.
The color of the meat should be bright, with a pinkish-red color and no signs of darkening.
The meat should not have any strange smell, should not be watery, and should retain its elasticity.
Delicious dishes from pork jowl
Pork jowl is unique with soft tendons and layers of fat interspersed within each layer of meat, providing a smooth and enticing texture. If you have a piece of pork jowl, there are many ways to turn it into delicious dishes.
One of the common methods is to boil or steam the meat, which helps to preserve its natural sweetness. A simple and tasty dish is braised pork jowl, which is easy to make and suitable for enjoying with family.
Braised pork jowl with quail eggs
To make this dish, you will follow the steps similar to when braising regular meat. Clean the pork jowl and boil the quail eggs, then peel the eggs. Before braising, marinate the meat with fish sauce, salt, sugar, MSG, purple onion, and chopped chili.
After marinating thoroughly, add the colored water and stir-fry the marinated meat with coconut water to give the meat a natural flavor. Finally, add the quail eggs to the braised pork jowl. This dish is not only delicious but also tender, thanks to the perfect combination of tendons and pork jowl.
Stir-fried pork jowl with vegetables
A unique combination of pork jowl and vegetables creates an excellent dish. You can stir-fry the pork jowl with various vegetables such as bell peppers, green beans, young corn, and many other types of vegetables. The delicious taste and the combination of fresh vegetables with tender pork jowl will captivate everyone.
Grilled pork jowl
Unlike regular meat, pork jowl is not easily dried out or tough when grilled. This meat absorbs spices deeply and grills to a fragrant and tender texture. To save time, you can use seasoning packets to marinate the grilled meat. Then, you can grill the pork jowl along with various vegetables to create an exciting BBQ feast.