This item
Pork Collar Butt
- Boneless shoulder-neck cut
- Fine scattered fat marbling
- Usually more irregular in shape than pork shin
Meat
Pork Collar Butt
A shoulder-neck pork cut with fine fat marbling through the lean, suitable for slicing, braising and char siu.
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3 identity clues
- Boneless shoulder-neck cut
- Fine scattered fat marbling
- Usually more irregular in shape than pork shin
Names in other languages
- 繁體中文
- 梅頭
- English
- Pork Collar Butt
- Bahasa Indonesia
- Pork Collar Butt (梅頭)
- Tagalog
- Pork Collar Butt (梅頭)
Name in Cantonese (Jyutping): mui4 tau4 No Cantonese voice on this device
What is it?
FEHD lists 梅頭 as Pork collar butt, the precise Hong Kong market term used here rather than the broader label Pork collar.
How to identify it
Look for a boneless irregular shoulder-neck piece with scattered fine white fat through pink-to-red lean. Trimming can change the outline.
Common confusion
Compare
Pork Shin
- Relatively lean lower-leg muscle
- Firm bundles with white connective tissue
- Often sold as a cylinder or thick cross-cut piece
Compare
Lean Pork
- Mostly solid lean cross-section
- No repeated internal fat layers
- Usually boneless, whole or sliced
How to identify it
Pork collar butt is from the shoulder-neck area and has more marbling; pork shin is a leaner lower-leg cut with stronger connective-tissue seams.
Common Hong Kong household uses
Commonly sliced for stir-fries, braised, roasted or made into char siu.
Choosing & preparing
Keep raw pork separate from cooked food, use separate boards and knives, then wash hands and contact surfaces. Cook the centre to at least 75°C for 30 seconds.
Storage
Keep covered on the lowest refrigerator shelf at 4°C or below; freeze at -18°C or below and thaw at 0–4°C or in a microwave.
Helper tip
Ask for the full term 梅頭 and state the intended dish; specify thickness if it will be sliced or made into char siu.
What Ma’am or Sir may say
買一斤梅頭整叉燒，要原件。The employer wants about one catty of pork collar butt in one piece for char siu.
Useful market phrase
唔該要一斤梅頭，成件整叉燒。Meaning: One catty (斤) of Pork Collar Butt, in one piece for char siu, please.
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Sources (5)
- Hong Kong Food and Environmental Hygiene Department — Public Market Items Multilingual Booklet
- Hong Kong Food and Environmental Hygiene Department — Public Market Items - Pork
- Hong Kong Food and Environmental Hygiene Department — Pork Cantonese pinyin
- Hong Kong Centre for Food Safety — Safety Tips on Handling Pork
- Hong Kong Centre for Food Safety — Prevention of Cross-contamination