A lot depends on what cut they come from. You can get CS spares from the pork butt, Rib End loin, Center cut loin, Loin End loin, arm shoulder and even fresh ham. Each one has to be treated individually; how much marbling, how lean, how thick, what cut, etc. Center cut usually makes the worst CS because it is too lean and no internal fat like butt has. The rib ends and loin ends are better as they have more fat. The arm shoulder can be good if taken from the cushion, but from the bone muscle can be too lean and tough. The pork butt is the best in my opinion as it has good internal marbling and will be juicier and fibers will break down easier when chewing. Ham is very lean, slow cooking is best with a mop or sauce. I've also had neck as CS, and that can be fairly good, has a lot of flavor (usually put into sausage though). Jowls usually aren't thick enough but can be sliced up and used like little boneless riblets. About the only thing left is the sparerib and belly. The belly can be sliced thick for sidepork (sidepork and milk gravy on potatoes.. yum!) or cured for salt pork, then smoked for that word... that descriptive word that's used in reverence on here.. BAYKUNN!!!... (that's phonetically... also known as bacon..!)
