When Wednesday rolls around and the mid-week cooking slump hits, the takeaway menu starts looking as attractive as a massage at a five-star resort. But if it’s a quick, simple and delicious meal with minimum fuss you’re after, the hero isn’t fast food – it’s pork!

Australian pork is the family mid-week mate – easy to prepare, adaptable to so many recipes, delicious and a fabulous source of protein. If the hump day blues have your family needing a mid-week dinner switch up, it’s time to plate up pork.

Why choose pork?

From the kid-friendly appeal to the quality and ease of preparation, plating pork up for a weeknight family feast is an easy choice. Here’s why we love choosing pork.

The Quality Is Amazing

Australian pork is something we should all be proud of. The quality is phenomenal and when you buy Aussie pork you can rest assured you’re buying pork raised under some of the highest welfare, safety and environmental standards in the world. And by making sure you pick Australian pork, you know you’re supporting our Aussie farmers.

There Are So Many Possibilities!

Let’s be honest, it can be boring cooking the same meals week after week, and when you have little tastebuds in the house, it’s really important to explore lots of different flavours and textures.

Pork lends itself to simple, satisfying and super delicious meals that can be easily adapted for even the smallest members of the family.

From succulent and tender pulled pork for quesadillas, nachos or tacos (and even toasted sandwiches – now there’s an easy dinner!), to minced pork shepherd’s pie, pork belly bites and crumbed chops – there’s a pork plate to satisfy everyone in the family.

It’s Easy Peasy To Master

There’s no chef mastery required when whipping up a weeknight family pork dish. And the best part is that pork is perfect for make ahead meals and freezing, so it’s a winner for future dinners as well!

There’s really no fuss when it comes to cooking pork. It doesn’t need to be overcooked for it to be safe to eat. It’s actually perfectly fine to eat with a hint of pink in the middle, unless it’s mince or sausages.

Just treat pork like other meat once it’s off the heat – it still keeps cooking. So let it rest, uncovered for a couple of minutes somewhere warm (unless it’s mince or sausages – you can get those into your belly straight away!).

Pork can be roasted, stir fried, pan fried, barbecued and popped in the slow cooker, so whether you want a quick meal or a labour of love, there’s a pork cut to cater.

It’s A Healthier Choice

Avoid the mid-week meal trap of takeaway and switch to an easy pork meal, and the whole family will benefit. Pork fillets are a great, healthier choice than many other proteins, with less than half the fat of beef fillets and they’re leaner than skinless chicken breast fillets.

Lean, trimmed pork is also a brilliant source of protein, thiamine, niacin, B6, B12, selenium, riboflavin, zinc, and omega-3. Just don’t tell the kids!

Mouths of Mums is proudly working together with Australian Pork to bring you this article. Australian Pork is a producer-owned industry body that works tirelessly to represent Aussie pig producers. 

What’s your family’s favourite pork dish? Let us know in the comments below, or post the recipe in Mouths of Mums Recipes. 

We may get commissions for purchases made using links in this post. Learn more.