Pig vs Cow

[SigmundChurchill]

Pig is the best appetizer....

But cow is the best main course!

 

[Trevor2118]

Recently spent time in Germany....it's Pig  ?, followed by more Pig ?.

[La_Tigre]

Not choosing. Don’t have to. Want both. Ugha. Meat. 

[Pharmacovigilant]

PIG! 

[GrouchoMarx]

Yes.

[lovethehaze]

Rough one b/c I love ribs, brisket, bacon and Pork chops.... but given the choice of any of these vs a prime ny strip dry aged ... it’s a no brainer. 

Cow all day !

[Buck14]

All meats for me!

BUT, if you gave me only ONE dish / part of each animal here’s the hierarchy:

1. Beef Rib Cap (4-6 Day Dry-Aged Cheat Method then grilled to BARELY rare or as I like to say RAW PLUS)

2. Hong Kong / Chinese / Peking / Beijing Whole Roasted Duck

3a. Rack of Lamb (served RARE: grilled OR smoked then reverse-seared OR stove top seared in cast iron and finish the cast iron in the oven)

TIE

3b. Smoked Boneless Leg of Lamb (“cavity” stuffed with stick of butter, EVOO, 3 BULBS of Garlic, Rosemary, S&P)

4. Pork Belly (too many wonderful preparations to list)

[Fuzz]

"Four legs good, two legs... possibly tastier."

 

[joey rockets]

I grew up on a family farm in Iowa where we fattened beef, hogs and sheep while Mom took care of the chickens.  My Dad's farmer philosophy was that in any given year, at least one of the herds were profitable as we fed the animals corn we raised and sold soy beans to the Asians.  Prices paid at your butcher reflect live, on the hoof prices.  Lamb and beef are expensive because the American palate demands fatty meat and there is a lot of waste in this fat.  Hogs have been bred into a more uniform animal hitting the slaughter house weighing between 200-210 lbs and everything but the squeal gets used.  Chickens are also cheap to raise and harvested young.

[BoliDan]

For me it comes down to what would you choose that is closest in cut.

New York strip or pork chop

Ribeye or country bonless 

Brisket or pork shoulder

Beef rib or pork rib

Pork belly or flank

Round or ham

Tenderloin vs shortloin or sirloin 

In every category except pork belly's I choose cow. Even ribs.

 

[tsolomon]

I have to go with pig because of bacon and pulled pork.  Porkchops are too lean these days and often tough unless I cook them on the smoker.  On the other hand, smoked brisket is really good and sometimes I make pastrami which is really good, so it's a close to a tie as to which is better.  My wife makes a steak Diane which is fantastic and I'm very conflicted as to which is really better, pork or beef.  Now veal is also beef and there's veal marsala and scallopini and when the veal is tender both are excellent, so it might just come down to the last one I ate as to which is best.

[BrightonCorgi]

What about when the same question is asked, "Which is better lamb or horse?"  Tough choice as well.

[GasGuy82]

On 9/21/2019 at 3:24 PM, SigmundChurchill said:

Pig is the best appetizer....

But cow is the best main course!

 

That bacon looks like Luger's

[SigmundChurchill]

5 minutes ago, GasGuy82 said:

That bacon looks like Luger's

There is a very good reason for that.

 

?

[canadianbeaver]

Beefy beef please.

[Skypilot]

I smoke a lot of meat and for that reason I say cow. Pig is great but generally you are looking at a lot of prep and a lot of hours to get the final product. Cow can be grilled quick or cooked low and slow if necessary. Based on that it’s cow for me as I think you start with a more desirable product,  but pig is magical when done right. 

[cigcars]

        *Both are delicious: I think pork is so popular flavor-wise because they eat a lot of - I was going to say garbage...but to be respectful and less gross - they'll eat ANYTHING. It's just like catfish. They'll eat any and everything off the ocean floor. Thus they too taste G-R-R-R-E-E-A-A-T!!!    The various health experts and prior years' Holy Scriptures commanded against eating the "garbage men" of nature:i.e, pig, catfish, shellfish, shrimp, etc. In those ancient days without proper refrigeration, especially in desert regions, you could get the trichnosis worm from pork, resulting in a painful, painful death. With modern day facilities now, that's a thing of the past. You also, as we know, have to COOK pork all the way through. But with beef, a cleaner dieted animal, cooking it very rare (like I love my meats) is do-able. 

[BrightonCorgi]

The vast majority of pork eaten in the US is pure garbage.  When pork sells for $1.50 pound at the super market, what do you think the wholesale cost on that hog was?  How much do you think the farmer makes?  That all translates into how they are fed and kept to be able to make a profit.    Pork should cost $7-8+ pound and top shelf hogs taste a universe different than anything under from Smithfield. 

Ever see those processing plants and where they live?

[komodo]

Beef for me. Also left over beef roast can be shredded and made into cold beef sandwiches. Delicious! 
I am not a big fan of pork except bacon and sausage.