Berkshire Butt vs Reg. Butt

Susan Egglaine

The Berkshire butt weighted over 13 pounds the regular over 8. Put the berkshire on the bottom about 5 hours before putting the smaller butt on top. They both took 17 hours.

The berkshire seemed to have less waste & less "jiggly" fat if you know what I mean. The berkshire coats almost 4 times of the regular butt, I do not think it tasted any better. It was a fun experiment but I am sticking with cheap butts :laugh:

MemphisQue

I have always bought the more inexpensive butts and have never been disappointed.

gdenby

I wonder if there would have been more difference if they had just been roasted, or if another cut was used, say chops pan fried.

I have purchased wild boar roasts, and just oven roasted, they were better than standard pork. So I've been tempted by Berkshire. Maybe BBQ is a great leveler. No need for the prime stuff when using a method designed to make the least fancy as good as the best.

Desert Oasis Woman

Ms. Egglaine,
Did the Berkshire experience the near 50% weight loss like the typical cheaper butts?
Was the flavor any different? If so, how?
What did they feed the Berkshire pig?
Just curious
Thanks

Susan Egglaine

The loss was probably 10 percent less. Not much difference in the flavor. The Berkshire is an heirloom breed known for it's color & marbling. That was a difference. I think gdenby is right, probably would have noticed more in a differant cut.

Egg Juju

Ive cooked Berkshire loins before and found them to be much juicier and more flavorful than their mega-mart counterparts. I would agree that the low and slow probably leveled the field a great deal. I don't recall the price being that drastically different. 4 times is significant to be sure. Was that per pound or total?

Susan Egglaine

$ 3.89 per pound, this was a wholesale price & I usually get cheap butts for a little over a dollar. The berkshire butt cost over $50. I do not think they feed them anything differant.

NibbleMeThis

Thanks for biting the budgetary bullet and trying this out for the rest of us:)

I was curious about heritage pork butts but you satisfied that curiosity for me without me having to shell out the $$$ :laugh:

Susan Egglaine

A chef challenged me to an egg vs. box throw down & she uses a local pork so I just wanted to check out the Berkshire. I think they call it a china box. I am not scarred. I just have timing issues. :blink:

gdenby

The "local pork" might give a bit of advantage. When I get a chance to travel to neighboring counties, I have access to some freshly butchered Amish raised pork, or frozen organic. Both are superior in texture to what I get from the market, which is often produced in state, but mass produced. The local stuff has a clearly superior texture. Its more firm and succulent at the same time. Both tend to be a little less fatty than mass produced, but the fat feels firmer.

Susan Egglaine

Ya, firmer, I used the term less giggly :laugh: :laugh: The chef had a wedding party a couple of months ago,used the box for the first time & cooked half small pig. The new husband was in charge & pulled the meat off at 160 I think. He said let's eat no resting, no nothing, you had to cut it. I suspect she will be in charge of the throw down :laugh:

eenie meenie

Susan, nice experiment.