Hal Explains It All

Pork chops and ham both come from a pig why are chops white when you cook them and is ham pink? Vitko and I have been debating this one for a while...Miss you!

Amanda
A man-duh to you

Hi Amandah!

Because ham is a butt and all butts are pink on the inside. That, and according to my pops, the famed Wildlife Biologist and hog-curer, the ham retains its pink color because it is it is cured and/or preserved and the smoke and salt make it "preserve" its color. The chops, on the other hand, are not cured, and when heat is applied, the hemoglobin in the chop chemically changes and produces the white color. The same principle applies to chicken, which starts out pink and then turns white when cooked.

Tell Vitko to call me; he owes me a bunch of beer.