Hi Reader,

I have a particular weakness for pork because it is never expected to be fancy. Beef comes with expectations. Lamb needs watching. Pork just needs time and salt.
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One of my favorite sounds in the kitchen is the first crackle of a pork shoulder hitting a hot Dutch oven. It's the opening act to a meal that won't be rushed. By the time it comes out, the meat collapses under a fork, and everyone who came in "just to say hello" is still standing suspiciously close to the pot.
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Nobody is checking on my progress.
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They're taking the dark bits off the top.
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Truth be told, so am I.
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Weeknight chop or all-day braise, pork brings people into the kitchen long before dinner is ready. Anyone patient enough to stand around gets first pick.

The Pork Playbook

• Match the method to the cut. Tenderloin is a ten-minute cut at high heat. Shoulder and ribs are long, low, all-afternoon cuts. Getting that backward is the only way to ruin either one.
• Pull the lean cuts early. Pork tenderloin and chops stay juicier when taken off the heat around 145°F, followed by a few minutes of resting.
• Fat equals flavor. Bacon, sausage, and well-marbled shoulder aren't indulgences: They're ingredients that bring richness and depth to a dish.
• Cut the richness. A squeeze of lime over carnitas, a splash of vinegar, fresh herbs, or a crisp slaw is what keeps a pork dinner from feeling like too much.
• Salt it the night before. A dry brine on a shoulder or a rack of ribs does more for the finished meat than anything you do in the last hour. Salt it Friday and hand Saturday over to the pot.

WHAT'S INSIDE...

• ​Carnitas ~ Mexican Braised Pork​
• ​Air Fryer Prosciutto-Wrapped Pork Tenderloin​
• ​Slow Cooker Tacos Al Pastor​
• ​Sausage Pizza With Mozzarella & Chili Oil​
• ​Bacon Wrapped Pork Tenderloin​
• ​Salt & Pepper Pork Chops​
• ​Tuscan Roast Pork​
• ​Barbecued Baby Back Ribs​

​Carnitas ~ Mexican Braised Pork​

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.88 from 71 votes

This old-school carnitas--pork shoulder simmered with onion, garlic, bay leaf, and orange until falling-apart tender and crispy--is excellent in burritos, tacos, or on its own. And it can be made in an Instant Pot or slow cooker.

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​Air Fryer Prosciutto-Wrapped Pork Tenderloin​

This pork dish, made with only six ingredients, is incredibly easy to prepare. The salty-sweet combo of the fig preserves and the prosciutto is really lovely. No searing or strings to tie the tenderloin are needed; simply wrap it and cook!

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​Slow Cooker Tacos Al Pastor​

Slow cooker tacos al pastor combine the traditional flavors of cumin, coriander, pineapple, citrus, and adobo. The modern part? Your slow cooker.

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​Sausage Pizza With Mozzarella & Chili Oil​

My friend Cameron, whose family is from Calabria, loved talking about his trips there during which he would drizzle olio santo (literally “holy oil,” Calabrian chili oil) over everything. I love to picture him in his ancestral homeland reveling in the region’s penchant for heat, then returning to spread the spice gospel in New Jersey. The raw sausage, a nod to Calabria’s love of pork, cooks beautifully during the bake and its caramelized exterior gives way to a tender pink middle.

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​Bacon Wrapped Pork Tenderloin​

Bacon wrapped pork tenderloin is what's been missing from your life. It's a simple roast made slightly sweet from brown sugar and then swaddled in smoky, salty bacon. Easy. Economical. On the table in 45 minutes. And it tastes, well, it's pork wrapped with more pork. How could that go wrong?!

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​Salt & Pepper Pork Chops​

These Cantonese-inspired salt and pepper pork chops are coated in spiced cornstarch and pan-seared until golden. They're topped with a spicy scallion, cilantro, and chile mixture. An easy, gluten-free, weeknight meal.

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​Tuscan Roast Pork​

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5 from 13 votes

This Tuscan roast pork is made from a seared pork loin rubbed with a garlic, rosemary, and sage paste and then slowly roasted in the oven. Easy, elegant, and certain to impress. (Keto)

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​Barbecued Baby Back Ribs​

These barbecued baby back ribs are first brined to keep them juicy, then liberally coated with a superlative spice rub made with paprika, chile, cumin, and pepper, and finally grilled low and slow until they're almost falling-off-the-bone tender. So spectacular they require no sauce whatsoever.

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