Selecting the Perfect Breed of Pig For Sous Vide Ribs

There are a number of types of pigs to choose from – Ask your local butcher for help

Breeds of USDA Pigs To Choose From When Picking Out Your Sous Vide Ribs

When it comes to purchasing Pork here what the USDA has to say about it:

Pork is not graded with USDA quality grades as it is generally produced from young animals that have been bred and fed to produce more uniformly tender meat. Appearance is an important guide in buying fresh pork. Look for cuts with a relatively small amount of fat over the outside and with meat that is firm and grayish pink in color. For best flavor and tenderness, meat should have a small amount of marbling.

Here are some common breeds of Pigs :

1. The American Yorkshire, a breed of domestic pig, is the American version of the English Yorkshire. The American Yorkshire has smaller and more-floppy ears when compared to the English Yorkshire’s large, erect ears. American Yorkshires are the most recorded swine breed farmed for its meat in the United States.The breed was developed in Yorkshire, England, circa 1761. In 1830, the first Yorkshires were imported to the United States, specifically to Ohio, but because of their slow growth rate, they did not become popular until the late 1940s. At that time, many large pigs were imported from Canada and England for their ruggedness and favored carcasses. The breed then improved rapidly through selection.Today, the American Yorkshire pig is found in nearly every American state, with highest populations in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska, and Ohio. The modern Yorkshire is muscular with a high proportion of lean meat. The American Yorkshire data has been maintained with great diligence, including growth, sow productivity, and backfat formation, representing the largest source of documented livestock performance records in the world. The American Yorkshire can grow as big as 6.5 feet in length, but rarely longer.
2. Berkshire pigs are a breed of pig originating from the English county of Berkshire that are bred and raised in several parts of the world, including England, Japan, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. The Berkshire pig is not all black, but has white, including white socks from the “knee” down and typically a white blaze on its snout.Berkshire pigs are an average to large breed, with an average weight at maturity of 600 lb (270 kg). They are a short-legged breed. They have prick ears and a relatively short snout with an upturned nose.
3. The Chester White is a breed of domestic pig which originated in Chester County, Pennsylvania. It was formerly known as the Chester County White.The Chester White was first developed around 1815–1818, using strains of large, white pigs common to the Northeast U.S. and a white boar imported from John Russell Duke of Bedford, Bedfordshire county, England, referred to as the Woburn breed, brought by Captain Jefferies of Liverpool, England.In 1848, two breeders at a county fair, one from Delaware County and the other from Chester County, showed their two breeds. The judge decided to use the name Chester County White. “County” was dropped and the breed became known as Chester White.By 1884, a breed association was officially formed, but competing organizations, sometimes for individual strains, continued to appear into the early 20th century.
4. The Tamworth, also known as Sandy Back and Tam, is a breed of domestic pig originating in its namesake Tamworth, Staffordshire United Kingdom, with input from Irish pigs. It is among the oldest of pig breeds, but as with many older breeds of livestock, it is not well suited to modern production methods and is listed as “Threatened” in the United States and “Vulnerable” in the UK by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust, as fewer than 300 registered breeding females remain.^[3] This animal is of ginger to red colouration and is thought to have descended from wild boars, via native pig stock of Europe. Principal populations today are in the United Kingdom, Australia, the United States, New Zealand, and Canada.