Pork chops, a popular cut of pork derived from the loin, offer a versatile and potentially nutritious addition to your diet. According to the National Pork Board, the pork chop is the most popular of all the different cuts of pork. While once marketed as "the other white meat," pork is classified as red meat. This article explores the nutritional profile of pork chops, their potential benefits for weight loss, and how to prepare them in a healthy way.
Understanding Pork Chop Nutrition
Pork chops are a good source of nutrients like protein, selenium, zinc, and iron. The fat content and overall nutrition vary depending on the specific cut. Loin, rib, sirloin, top loin, or blade chops all come from the loin meat that runs from a pig’s shoulder to its hip. A sirloin pork chop and tenderloin are leaner cuts. Other pork chop cuts, such as the New York pork chop, Porterhouse pork chop, and Ribeye pork chop, have more total fat than a sirloin pork chop, but there’s really only a small amount of additional saturated fat.
Here's a general overview of the nutrients found in pork:
- Protein: Pork is a complete protein source, meaning it contains all essential amino acids that the body cannot produce on its own.
- Selenium: Pork chops are rich in selenium, a mineral with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties that supports immune and endocrine system function.
- Zinc: Pork provides a good amount of zinc, which plays a key role in immune function and skin integrity. Consuming animal proteins is a great way to get zinc into your diet because they’re a fairly concentrated source.
- Iron: Pork contains heme iron, which is easily absorbed by the body and is essential for cell function, hormone synthesis, and muscle metabolism, and it’s needed to shuttle oxygen throughout the body.
- Other Nutrients: Pork also offers potassium, magnesium, niacin, vitamins B6 and B12, phosphorus, and thiamine. Pork is actually richer in thiamine, a B vitamin required for a range of bodily functions, than other red meats like beef and lamb. Vitamins B6 and B12, also found abundantly in pork, are essential for blood cell formation and brain function.
A 100-gram (3.5 ounces) serving of cooked ground pork contains approximately:
- Calories: 297
- Protein: 25.7 grams
- Fat: 20.8 grams
- Carbohydrates: 0 grams
- Fiber: 0 grams
- Sugar: 0 grams
Pork Chops and Weight Loss
Protein is a very filling nutrient - more so than the other macronutrients (carbohydrates and fat). It’s a nutrient that gives you the staying power you need between meals. Because protein is so filling, people who add higher amounts of protein to their diet are more successful at cutting back on calories and ultimately losing weight.
Read also: Beef jerky: A high-protein option for shedding pounds?
Newer research suggests that pork can be a valuable addition to a weight loss diet. In a recent review, researchers suggest that pork’s weight and fat loss benefits happen because pork boosts fullness. This increases the amount of energy the body burns and supports better blood sugar control.
Here's how pork chops can support weight loss:
- Increased Satiety: The high protein content promotes feelings of fullness, potentially reducing overall calorie intake.
- Muscle Maintenance: The high-quality proteins in pork are complete amino acids and therefore perfect building blocks for creating new muscle. As we age, we lose muscle mass, which can lead to conditions like sarcopenia - extreme muscle degeneration. Eating high quality protein like that found in pork - as part of a healthy lifestyle that includes exercise - can help slow or reverse sarcopenia. It can also help maintain the healthy muscle tissue you already have.
- Boosts Metabolism: Pork boosts fullness, which increases the amount of energy the body burns.
Potential Downsides of Pork Consumption
One of the more significant downsides of pork, including pork chops, is that it is a red meat - despite the once-popular marketing phrase, “the other white meat”. Dietary guidance for a healthy diet (like the USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans) encourages limiting red meat. A 2020 study including 29,682 adults showed that for every 2 additional servings of unprocessed red meat, risk of cardiovascular disease incidence rose slightly (by 6%) and risk of “all-cause” mortality went up by 3%. According to the study, the association between eating red meat and risk of cardiovascular disease (e.g., heart disease, stroke, heart failure, death from cardiovascular disease) and death in general increased with age.
Pork can also be high in sodium and saturated fats, two things that should be avoided as part of a healthy diet. If you’re on a low sodium diet due to concerns over your heart health and/or avoiding saturated fats, you should consume the leanest, least-processed varieties of pork you can find. Certain cured pork products like bacon contain sulfates or sulfites, chemical preservatives which you should consume in small quantities or avoid altogether.
Furthermore, eating undercooked or raw pork can result in parasitic infections. Taenia solium, or pork tapeworm, is an intestinal parasite. Most of the time it’s harmless, but it can occasionally cause a disease called cysticercosis, which leads to epilepsy. Eating raw or undercooked pork can also result in trichinosis, an infection of parasitic roundworms called Trichinella. While trichinosis symptoms are usually mild, they can become serious - even fatal - especially in older adults.
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Healthy Cooking Methods for Pork Chops
The cooking method significantly influences the nutritional profile of pork chops. Fried pork chops, for example, are higher in calories, fat, and sodium.
Here are some healthier ways to cook pork chops:
- Grilled: Once the grill is hot, cooking pork chops is quick - each side usually takes only 4-6 minutes for the internal temperature to reach 145°F (63°C). This high heat, quick cooking method yields the tastiest pork if your first cut the chop into small pieces or thin strips. This helps keep the pork from overcooking and drying out.
- Baked or Roasted: Preheat the oven to 350°F (176°C) and bake or roast your pork chop until the internal temperature reaches your desired doneness, at least 145°F (13, 14).
- Broiled: Cooking directly under the heat source adds a nice crispy crust to a pork chop. Depending on the size of the chop, broil time can range from 3-18 minutes (15).
- Smoked: Before smoking your pork chop, you’ll want to grill-mark each chop. Then smoke it at 225-250°F (107-121°C)for 45 minutes to an hour and the internal temperature is at least 145°F (63°C) (14).
- In an Instant Pot: For pork chops, you’ll want to first cook them on sauté in the instant pot and remove them. Then once the other ingredients in your dish are underway, add the pork chops back into the Instant pot to pressure-cook them.
To reduce your caloric intake when it comes to pork, opt for lean cuts and be sure to trim any excess fat off of the meat. You should also bake or boil the meat instead of frying or breading it. Using a non-stick pan can be helpful, as these often eliminate the need for oil altogether. It’s best to avoid methods such as frying or breading meat. These options are very fatty. Finally, opt for non-processed meats instead of lunch meats. These often contain more salt, sodium and preservatives.
Safe Cooking Temperatures
Regardless of thickness, a tender, tasty, and food-safe pork chop is one that’s cooked to an internal temperature of 145°F (63°C), which is medium-rare. Then let it rest for 3 minutes (16). If you prefer a more well-done chop, cook it until the internal temperature reaches 150-155°F (66-68°C) for medium, 155-160°F (68-71°C) for medium-well, and 160°F (71°C) for well-done.
It’s important that your pork chop is cooked to a safe temperature because eating raw or undercooked pork can give you a foodborne illness, such as hepatitis E virus (HEV) or Trichinellosis, a parasitic infection.
Read also: The Carnivore Diet: An Autoimmune Solution?