What Is Secreto Ibérico? Where It Sits on the Pig and How to Cook It

Secreto pork in English: why there is no word for it

You will not find secreto on a British or American butcher’s chart: there the muscle is usually left inside larger cuts and sold as part of the shoulder or the belly. Spanish butchers lift it out and sell it on its own, because on an Ibérico pig it carries enough marbling to be cooked like a steak. If a menu in English offers “Iberian secret”, this is the cut.

Where on the pig it sits

Picture a side of pork: the shoulder (paleta) at the front, the loin (lomo) along the back and the belly underneath, with its layer of fat, tocino in Spanish. The secreto lies between the shoulder and that fat, out of sight until the shoulder is lifted away, which is where the name comes from; another story has it that butchers once kept the cut for themselves. There is one on each side, so two per pig.

Raw, it is a thin, irregular sheet of meat streaked with fat. Do not trim it: the fat renders as it cooks and turns crisp at the edges.

Secreto and its neighbours

Secreto shares the counter with three other fresh Ibérico cuts, all sold under their Spanish names; the rest are on our Ibérico pork page.

What to ask for at a Spanish counter

• “Secreto ibérico, por favor.” If a label says only secreto de cerdo (pork secreto), ask whether it is Ibérico.
• “De bellota” means the pig was finished on acorns in the dehesa, the open oak pastureland. Without those words, the label makes no claim about acorns.
• “Secreto de barriguera” (barriga means belly) is a different cut, sold on its own. A recipe that just says secreto means the classic one.
• How much: there is no bone, so allow 250–350 g per person as a main course, as for any boneless steak.

How to cook secreto ibérico

Secreto wants high heat and little time; its own fat does the job of oil or a marinade. The method is close to the one in our guide to grilling skirt steak.

1. Take it out of the fridge 30 minutes ahead and pat it dry with kitchen paper (US: paper towels).
2. Get a charcoal barbecue, a plancha or a heavy frying pan (US: skillet) properly hot. No oil. For the fire, see how to light a charcoal barbecue.
3. Season with coarse salt, sal gruesa, just before it goes on or as it comes off. Salted in advance, it dries out; when to salt steak explains why.
4. Cook it for two to four minutes a side, depending on thickness, until the outside is brown and crisp.
5. Dripping fat causes flare-ups, so keep one side of the barbecue free of coals and move the meat there if the flames rise.
6. Rest it for two or three minutes, then slice it across the grain into finger-wide strips.

How pink

Ibérico pork may be served pink, and in Spain secreto usually comes to the table with a trace of pink. It is too thin for a probe thermometer; on a thicker piece, 60–63 °C (140–145 °F) at the core gives a rosy centre. If you prefer pork cooked through, secreto takes it better than presa or the fillet (US: tenderloin): its fat keeps it juicy.