Overheard a cook say 'the silver skin adds flavor' and had to walk away

I was dropping off a delivery at a new restaurant downtown and heard one of their line cooks telling a new guy to leave the silver skin on a pork loin because it "adds flavor." I just stood there for a second holding my box of cuts, biting my tongue. Back in my truck I thought about it for a while and realized a lot of people honestly don't know the difference between fat and silver skin. They think chewy, tough stuff is gonna render down like marbling or something. It made me wonder how many home cooks are out there ruining good meat just because nobody ever showed them how to trim right. Has anyone else run into cooks or customers who insist on weird things about meat prep?

3 comments

3 Comments

shane6551mo ago

Flavor" where? That's like saying gristle adds flavor too.

the_adam1mo ago

Used to think fat cap was just waste, but @shane655 changed my mind on that. Watched a video where someone seared a brisket fat side down and that crispy rendered layer was something else. Tried it on a chuck roast and got that same salty, crispy bite. Not gristle at all when you do it right.

joseph_torres28d ago

Bet @shane655 hasnt tried it with a good dry brine first.