PORK BUTT/ BOSTON BUTT/SHOULDER
Since pork butt has more fat marbling throughout the meat and a more uniform shape, it’s the best cut for stewing and braising as well as for making fall-apart-tender pulled pork for a barbecue or for tacos. If a recipe calls for a choice between pork shoulder and pork butt, we highly recommend choosing pork butt.
The pork butt consists of parts of the neck, shoulder blade, and upper arm of the pig. It's a moderately tough cut of pork with a good deal of connective tissue. The area of the pig we might think of as the actual "butt," the big muscle at the top of the leg is where the ham—cooked fresh or cured or smoked—comes from. Ham is the thigh and most of the gluteus maximus (that's why it's so meaty). The fat content in pork butt gives it more flavor and naturally bastes the meat. Long, slow cooking on low heat brings out the juices and makes for a tender, more succulent cut of meat.
