is it possible whole foods pork cooks faster than the pre-packaged stuff?

[Anonymous]

i switched to whole foods meats from the meats you buy in the meat refrigerator at harris teeter or giant. i've tried to cook their pork in THREE crock pot recipes that were pretty tried and true before. all three times i've completely overcooked it on settings and with times that used to work. obviously i just need to check the temperature more often next time and not just assume the time is correct, but it's got me wondering whether their pork cooks faster for some reason. apologies is this is a silly question.

thanks!

[Anonymous]

Perhaps there is a bit less fat and it is drying out more quickly? We did a WF turkey for Thanksgiving and it was definitely leaner than what we have had previously. Can't say I've noticed a difference with their other meats though.

[Anonymous]

Maybe the Whole Foods pork has not been injected with saline like the grocery store pork? Sometimes the grocery store pork is fortified with salt and water because it appears to stay "juicy" even if you overcook it. I'm sure Whole Foods doesn't do that. It would probably say all-natural or no salt added or no water added.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe the Whole Foods pork has not been injected with saline like the grocery store pork? Sometimes the grocery store pork is fortified with salt and water because it appears to stay "juicy" even if you overcook it. I'm sure Whole Foods doesn't do that. It would probably say all-natural or no salt added or no water added.

this is a great point. i actually brine port tenderloin from WF because otherwise it dries out. that may be your problem. it may also be that the packaged stuff has preservatives in it that do the same (keep it juicy when overcooked). Pork is considered safe at I think 145-150 (although the USDA says otherwise), so dont cook the heck out of it!