The history of bacon

¶ … History of Bacon

The United States Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service defines bacon as "the cured belly of a swine carcass." If the meat of a pig is cured in a fashion similar to bacon but the meat is taken from a different part of the animal other than the belly, the product name must be qualified to indicate to the customer what part of the animal was used. For example, cured pork shoulder can technically be called bacon, but it must be called "pork shoulder bacon" (USDA). Similarly, meat from other animals may be prepared in a manner that is similar to the way bacon is prepared, but the product must again be qualified to indicate the meat that is used. As a result, bacon made with pork is simply called bacon, but a turkey-based product must be called "turkey bacon," and a beef-based product must be called "beef bacon." In addition, meat from the pig's belly that is prepared differently is called ham. A specific set of circumstances must be met in order for pig meat to be considered bacon.

Fresh bacon is created when it undergoes a curing process. Curing is a food preservation process that consists of adding a combination of salt, sugar, nitrates, or nitrite to the meat. Sometimes the curing process also involves smoking the meat. Fresh bacon is cured in a brine or in a dry packing; both the brine and the dry packing that may be used for curing bacon contain large amounts of salt. Once fresh bacon has been made, it may be further dried, boiled or smoked. Bacon brine can also be flavored with brown sugar or maple, which creates different tastes and textures for the meat. Using various types of wood during the smoking process can also vary the flavor of bacon.

It is unclear when bacon was actually invented since the term was used to refer to all pork in general until well into the sixteenth century (Filippone). Today, bacon is growing in popularity despite the nation's growing concern with healthy eating. Admittedly, bacon is a fatty meat, but chef Joanna Preuss reveals that "the fat is the very thing that gives bacon its taste" (Preuss). Bacon has firmly woven its way into American life, but it is meat with a popularity that predates the country. In fact, perhaps the most popular bacon-related colloquialism is rooted in England. In the twelfth century, a church in Dunmow England promised a gift to any married man who could swear before God and the church that he had not argued with his wife for a year and a day. The promised gift was a side of bacon, and a husband who could "bring home the bacon" earned a great deal of respect from his community (Filippone).

Undaunted by its Old World history, however, citizens of the United States seem to have flung themselves fully into what has been called "bacon mania." It is a movement with roots dating to the 1980s when higher protein diets came in vogue. Bacon enthusiasm in the states overwhelms even that of Canada and the United Kingdom, and the U.S. has been called a "Bacon Nation" because of it. Substantiating the moniker is the numerous bacon-based cookbooks that have hit the bookshelves in the last few years. One such book has been written by James Villas, author of more than a dozen cookbooks in all. His bacon book, entitled the Bacon Cookbook includes 150 bacon recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and even dessert. Villas opens his book with a poignant statement with which bacon enthusiasts across the country would undoubtedly agree: "Who, under any circumstances, is not rendered almost helpless by the tantalizing sound of bacon sizzling slowly in a skillet, by the taunting backwoods aroma that permeates the air... " (Villas).

The argument can be made that Villa's statement is too strong, given the wide varieties of bacon that are currently available. While the USDA clearly defines bacon as pork, turkey bacon has become a very popular substitute for those who prefer an option that is lower in fat, and for those who do not eat pork for dietary or religious reasons. One brand of turkey bacon, Oscar Mayer's Louis Rich, was recently given a spot in the Taster's Choice Hall of fame. Such a spot is awarded only to products that are awarded a score of 80 or higher out of 100 in the Taster's Choice taste test (Gold). Despite the opinions of cookbook authors such as James Villas, turkey bacon is clearly a viable substitute for its pork-based counterpart.

Less popular but growing in viability is beef bacon. Bacon purists consider very idea of beef bacon to be ridiculous. Nevertheless, beef bacon is slowly but surely making its way into more and more grocery stores. It is a product that is still easier to find in a butcher shop than a grocery store, but that fact is in the process of changing. For non-pork eaters, beef bacon can be an alternative that is preferable to turkey bacon because it is meatier. For those who do eat pork, beef bacon may still be preferable because it is less fatty than pork. Beef bacon seems to be something of a happy medium between the full-flavored fatty original and the much leaner turkey bacon that can sometimes be lacking in taste (the Skinny on [Uncured] Beef Bacon).

In spite of the growing number of variations to the original, bacon maniacs still prefer the unmistakable taste of pork bacon. Full-fledged bacon maniacs continue to find ways to demonstrate their devotion to "the most versatile meat on the planet" (Bacon Today). Traditionally considered a breakfast meat, maniacs like Joanna Pruess have expanded their view of bacon to include it in more meals. Preuss claims that every meal can be made better simply by adding bacon, and she seeks to prove it in her book Seduced by Bacon: Recipes and Lore About America's Favorite Indulgence. She says that 71% of bacon is still eaten at breakfast or brunch, but that does not stop her from using most of the space in her book for bacon recipes for other meals besides breakfast (Pruess). Common are combinations such as bacon and eggs, and bacon, lettuce, and tomato (BLT) sandwiches, but Pruess dares to take her culinary exploits even further. In a 2006 appearance on the Saturday Early Show as Chef on a Shoestring, Pruess made a bacon-based three-course meal for four on a budget of $40 (Crean).