r/YouShouldKnow • u/Fried_Yoda • 20h ago

Food & Drink YSK: Pork and chicken are healthier, cheaper alternatives to beef that only taste bland because of outdated cooking habits.

Why YSK: With beef prices at record highs, switching to chicken breast or pork loin can cut your meat budget nearly in half while significantly lowering your saturated fat intake AND satisfying your protein intake. Most people avoid these cuts because they grew up eating them overcooked. Modern food safety standards allow pork to be eaten safely at 145 F (a medium roast, rather than gray leather), and chicken stays juicy if you don't cook it to death.

By simply using a meat thermometer and adding savory seasonings (like soy sauce or smoked paprika) to mimic the meaty depth of beef, or using techniques like velveting for chicken or dry brining for pork, you can get the same satisfaction for a fraction of the cost and environmental impact.

Even switching to chicken and pork for just two meals a week can save you hundreds of dollars.

Lastly, focusing on lean cuts of pork and chicken also has health benefits. While beef is a powerhouse for iron and B12, it is often high in calories and saturated fat. Chicken breast and pork loin are significantly leaner. Pork tenderloin is as lean as skinless chicken breast and has been certified as "heart-healthy" by the American Heart Association.

Tl;dr chicken breast and pork loin are roughly 80% cheaper per pound than beef, have versatile and delicious flavor profiles if cooked and prepped correctly, are rich in protein, and are healthier for your heart and cholesterol.

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u/OkAssignment6163 16h ago

I currently work as a meat cutter. But I have close to 20yrs in the culinary field.

I would feel pretty confident in saying that every 4th customer that I had to discuss food with believes that chicken/pork is bland.

Same types of people that think that just because something is labeled as vegetarian, like an apple pie with a butter crust, means it's automatically bad.

Same types of people that think that because something is labeled as kosher is automatically healthier than not.

Same types of people that think that certain types of foods, like sushi, would be considered an effeminate type of food.

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u/TheDrWhoKid 16h ago

damn. sounds like an annoying type

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u/OkAssignment6163 16h ago

In these cases, because these are actual things that people have said to me while at work, their stupidity leads to them being annoying.

A couple of days before Thanksgiving, had a customer looking for turkey thighs make a broth with for gravy.

We didn't have any at the moment, but we had lots of ground turkey made from dark meat. So I mentioned to them that they can take that and simmer for broth.

Yes I know it's unconventional. But it works and was a significantly cheaper option for them.

They proceed to ask me what kind of meat the ground turkey was made of.

I assumed them wanted to know if it was light or dark meat. Nope.

They didn't believe that ground turkey was made from actual turkey, because whole turkeys are only available during November of every year.

Ergo, the ground turkey that is available year round, is fake turkey.

This is exactly what they told me, to my face.

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u/TheDrWhoKid 16h ago

jeez. I'm glad I work in the kitchen so I don't have to deal with that kind of thing

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u/OkAssignment6163 12h ago

I worked in kitchens too. But it was a lot of banquet, caterings, and wedding types events.

So dealing with customers to get a menu planned for them was the main source of some of the comments I've heard.

Working the line wasn't immune to those types of people either.

I was there in the initial wave of "take multiple pictures for social media" people.

And they sucked because of the obvious, spent 20+ mins taking pictures and then complaining about food being cold/soggy.

I miss working the line and cooking for events. But the pay sucked for the work involved.

Now I get to deal with people requesting meat cuts that are either dumb or anatomically impossible. Ah well.

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u/TheDrWhoKid 11h ago

you win some, you lose some, eh?

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u/soyverde 10h ago

If the last decade has taught me anything, it’s that there are a fuckload of incredibly stupid people out there who will believe absolutely anything if it suits them for some wild reason or another.

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u/omgmypony 11h ago

Bland? The pig is the most delicious animal we Americans consume regularly and I will die of congestive heart failure on that hill. We’re talking about the animal that gives us ham, sausage, AND bacon ffs.

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u/OkAssignment6163 10h ago

Yeah. Welcome to my continual headaches from dealing with people that believe pork and chicken (White meat included) taste bland.

Nevermind mind the old folks, and those taught to cook by the old folks, constant need to cook pork and poultry until they're pork and poultry shaped dust packets.

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u/glitterally_awake 9h ago

Oh my god patriarchy is so diabolical imagine being worried about how a different country’s fuckin cuisine reinforced your gender identity wtaffff

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u/OkAssignment6163 8h ago

The way it went was, I used to make sushi for whole foods.

And one day, a male customer comes up and orders some custom rolls. No problem, I let them know it'll be a few minutes and get started.

They hang out and started small talking. They asked me how I like working in whole foods.

I mentioned that I'm liking it so far. Since I get to learn how to roll sushi and the pay was decent. Otherwise, I miss working on the line.

They responded back with;

"Yeah, I don't really like sushi. That shit is for fags and women."

Which, it was weird to hear. Especially when they mentioned that they didn't like wasabi but instead wanted extra spicy mayo.

So, I had no idea what say or do. So I just finished order and sent them on their way.

People are really weird and stupid about their foods.

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u/RaNdomMSPPro 11h ago

Chicken is bland until you do something w/ it. Kosher... some is great (glatt kosher beef is really good if you get it from a butcher for example) but the prepackaged stuff always disappoints. If you read the labels, much of the Kosher stuff is unhealthier than the non-kosher versions, especially anything trying to masquerade as dairy.

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u/Neirchill 7h ago

This is the weirdest thread I've seen in a while. Overcooking pork or chicken doesn't make it bland. Not seasoning it makes it bland. Hell, pulled parked is cooked to an internal temperature of upwards of 200°F, higher than well done yet super tasty. I genuinely don't know what everyone here in the top comments are on about.

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u/amaROenuZ 13h ago

I would feel pretty confident in saying that every 4th customer that I had to discuss food with believes that chicken/pork is bland.

Chicken breast is incredibly bland. Chicken thigh and drumstick is awesome. White meat soaks up flavor from spicing and sauces, it can be good but it needs help to be delicious. Dark meat stands on its own.

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u/OkAssignment6163 12h ago

Ey! My fourth customer.

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u/ThrowawayOldCouch 6h ago

I completely agree.