A different cut of pork is a step beyond the average chop

Recently, in a brief chat with my butcher, he mentioned I might like to try pork collar steaks.

Pork collar steaks?

Never heard of them, but I was about to become very familiar with them.

My butcher explained that collar steaks (sometimes called pork shoulder steaks) are cut from, you guessed it, the pork shoulder. Pork shoulder is also called Boston butt, which, to make this a little more confusing, comes from the front and not the rear of a hog. Hams come from the hind end, shoulders from the front.

A pork shoulder is usually slow-cooked or smoked to produce pulled pork. And it can also be roasted or braised. Oddly enough, this brings us back to pork collar steaks.

After showing me a 1-inch-thick collar steak, I asked my butcher how to cook it. He said that due to its fat and connective tissue, slow cooking works the best.

If not braising it, he suggested dry brining it first (sprinkling both sides well with kosher salt and letting the steaks rest, refrigerated, for at least an hour and up to 24 hours).

Then, still refrigerator-cold, I quickly seared them in an oven-safe skillet while heating my oven to 350 degrees. Once nicely browned (about 2 minutes), he suggested sliding a digital thermometer probe sideways into the center of one of the steaks and placing the skillet in the oven.

When the digital thermometer reached 145 degrees, he told me to remove the skillet from the oven and let the steaks rest for 10 minutes. Done.

I bought two steaks and did a little research when I got home. The most tantalizing quote came from a 2018 Bon Appetit article by Amiel Stanek, who wrote that a pork shoulder steak is: “... twice as delicious and half as expensive as any pork chop you have had or ever will have.” I was definitely on the right track.

As my butcher suggested, I salted the steaks, placed them on a dinner plate, and refrigerated them for an hour (not having the patience for the longer brine). Then, I dusted both sides with a bit of rubbed sage (the spice that makes breakfast sausage taste like breakfast sausage). I added a tablespoon of organic bacon fat to my trusty iron skillet, heated it, and seared the steaks on both sides.

I slid my digital thermometer probe into one of the steaks, and into the oven they went. When my thermometer beeped, indicating the pork was at temperature, I pulled the skillet from the oven and let the steaks rest for 10 minutes.

Anxiously, I cut off a piece to see how they turned out. It wasn’t as tender as pork tenderloin but was far more tender than a pork chop and way juicer. Yummmmmm.

My next experiment is to prepare four collar steaks like a braised pot roast and see how that works.

Are you feeling adventurous? Since you probably won’t find these at a regular supermarket, you may need to find a butcher and ask for steaks cut from a boneless pork shoulder (aka Boston butt). Give this a try.

• Don Mauer welcomes questions, comments and recipe makeover requests. Write to him at 1leanwizard@gmail.com.

Oven-Finished Pork Collar Steaks

2 1-inch-thick (about 12 ounces each) pork collar (or shoulder) steaks

Kosher salt

1 tablespoon bacon fat (or olive oil or butter)

Rubbed dried sage

Fresh ground black pepper

Place the steaks on a dinner plate and sprinkle with Kosher salt on both sides. Place in the refrigerator for one hour (they can also be covered and refrigerated for up to 24 hours).

Place the oven rack in the center position and begin heating the oven to 350 degrees.

While the oven heats, dust both sides of the pork steaks with the rubbed sage. Place an oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat and add the bacon fat. When the skillet is hot, add the steaks and sear for about 2-3 minutes per side or until light golden brown.

Set a digital meat thermometer to 145 degrees and slide the digital meat thermometer’s probe sideways into the center of one of the steaks. Place the skillet in the oven. When the digital thermometer indicates the steak has reached 145 degrees, remove the skillet from the oven, carefully remove the probe (it will be hot), and season the steaks with black pepper to taste and let them rest for 10 minutes. Serve immediately.

Serves 2

Nutrition values per steak: 536 calories (59.7% from fat), 35.6 g fat (12.5 g saturated fat), 0 g carbohydrates (0 net carbs), 0 g sugars, 0 g fiber, 50.2 g protein, 179 mg cholesterol, 736 mg sodium.

― Don Mauer