Ruined Bacon [Archive] - Giant in the Playground Forums

The_Admiral

2011-11-16, 01:14 PM

My dad came back from Kalimantan (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalimantan) buying coal for some company stuff. Anyway at the hotel the strangest thing happened.He said the bacon was horrible. Is this possible?
edit: In my excitement and horror, I seemed to have put this in the wrong board. Can a mod move this thread to Random Banter?

The Glyphstone

2011-11-16, 01:15 PM

Nope.

All bacon is good. Therefore, if you eat something that is supposedly bacon and it is bad, you did not eat bacon. It may have looked like bacon, or made from the same stuff as bacon, but it was only a pretender to the bacon throne if it did not taste good.

Dr.Epic

2011-11-16, 01:29 PM

Bacon is flawless. Look flawless up in the dictionary. There's a picture of bacon next to it. He must have had fake bacon, or "fake-on.":smallwink:

CarpeGuitarrem

2011-11-16, 02:20 PM

They must've swapped the coal and the bacon.

Rockphed

2011-11-16, 02:22 PM

warty goblin

2011-11-16, 03:36 PM

I've had burnt bacon. It wasn't very good. Or "bacon" made from things other than swine-lard. That is pretty nasty. Or bacon that is allowed to sit in bacon juice for too long and gets congealed fat all over it.

Indeed. And as somebody who spent a reasonable number of years in a professional kitchen, bacon is something that actually takes some work and attention to get right. It's quite easy to overcook, undercook, cook unevenly, or otherwise harm.

The smoking and brinning process can also make a large difference, I know I've had some bacon that was decidedly bleh because of the flavoring used. In addition, in restaurants it's not uncommon to deepfry bacon, which could negatively impact the taste if the fryer previously had a lot of fish or something else with a strong, clashing flavor cooked in it.

Starwulf

2011-11-16, 04:09 PM

Morph Bark

2011-11-16, 04:23 PM

BLASPHEMY!!!!!!!! Burnt Bacon is absolutely delicious :)

Have you eaten bacon that was completely burnt black? All of it?

Starwulf

2011-11-16, 04:29 PM

Have you eaten bacon that was completely burnt black? All of it?

Actually, yes, yes I have. It's ok, not as good as Bacon that has a few burnt patches on it. Me and my wife have a thing for Burnt Bacon actually ^^

Psyren

2011-11-16, 04:42 PM

I'd much rather have burnt bacon than undercooked bacon personally...

Also, as far as I'm concerned - ANY bacon that isn't pork, is fake-on.

Marnath

2011-11-16, 05:48 PM

I hate bacon, and pretty much everything else that comes from hogs. This is because I've had years of experience with the kind of conditions the filthy things live in. :smallyuk:

But that said, yeah I agree with the posters who said it's easy to ruin bacon.

warty goblin

2011-11-16, 06:40 PM

I hate bacon, and pretty much everything else that comes from hogs. This is because I've had years of experience with the kind of conditions the filthy things live in. :smallyuk:

I'm guessing that must rule out duck for you as well, because it's pretty hard to beat ducks for filthiness. I've raised both hogs and ducks, and it's a pretty dead heat between the two for the Dirtiest Farm Animal title.

But really, that's why you take the skin off 'em before eating a pig's tender, juicy flesh. On the inside the're no messier than anything else, and much, much less stinky than something like old hen*. Old hen coincidentally makes excellent soup stock.

*Also, while butchering hens you can pretty much redefine the idea of a 'fresh egg.'

Trazoi

2011-11-16, 06:50 PM

Aw man, so there isn't an amazing new band or show called "Ruined Bacon". Media forum you have misled me. :smallfrown:

H Birchgrove

2011-11-16, 07:45 PM

I thought it would be about Kevin Bacon. :smallwink:

TheThan

2011-11-16, 08:42 PM

I once saw turkey bacon in the store. I almost cried.

GoblinArchmage

2011-11-16, 08:42 PM

"Pigs live and breed in ****. I don't eat anything that doesn't have the sense to disregard its own feces."

-Jules Winnfield Pulp Fiction

H Birchgrove

2011-11-16, 09:15 PM

"Pigs live and breed in ****. I don't eat anything that doesn't have the sense to disregard its own feces."

-Jules Winnfield Pulp Fiction

Mud isn't ****, Jules. Pigs are clean animals. :smalltongue:

Howler Dagger

2011-11-16, 09:30 PM

I once saw turkey bacon in the store. I almost cried.

I love turkey bacon! IMO its better than normal bacon!

GoblinArchmage

2011-11-16, 09:33 PM

Mud isn't ****, Jules. Pigs are clean animals. :smalltongue:

Not by Jules's standards, apparently.

Weezer

2011-11-16, 09:46 PM

I love turkey bacon! IMO its better than normal bacon!

Burn the Bacon Heretic!

warty goblin

2011-11-16, 09:48 PM

Mud isn't ****, Jules. Pigs are clean animals. :smalltongue:

Well, they will wallow in their own extremely smelly excrement if not given the space to do otherwise. That however is entirely the fault of the conditions people raise them in.

Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll

2011-11-16, 10:26 PM

I never understood the super-hype about bacon. Especially american bacon, which is not nearly as delicious as peameal bacon, which I just had for dinner today!

Marnath

2011-11-17, 02:39 AM

Well, they will wallow in their own extremely smelly excrement if not given the space to do otherwise. That however is entirely the fault of the conditions people raise them in.

You'd think that, but given a choice they will usually choose to sleep in feces.

Pika...

2011-11-17, 02:49 AM

I always wondered what the difference is between Canadian bacon and USA bacon. :/

llamamushroom

2011-11-17, 03:42 AM

I've had bacon that was awful, and not because of the way it was cooked or smoked or anything - it was just weirdly sweet. My granny was indoctrinated to the Canadian way while training over there many years ago, but I cannot stand bacon with maple syrup, or bacon made sweet in any way. It just ruins the taste, to my mind.

Barbecued bacon served with mushrooms and garlic - a meal fit for a king who doesn't want to see the far side of 50.

The Succubus

2011-11-17, 05:27 AM

While I wouldn't go as far as "burnt", I do like my bacon very crispy. It's a challenge getting it to just the right balance between crunchy but not solid.

In a slight diversion, my gf was nice enough to teach me the art of cooking a good steak, or as I now call it, cow-fu. :smalltongue:

Tyndmyr

2011-11-17, 10:08 AM

I love turkey bacon! IMO its better than normal bacon!

TURKEY BACON IS MADE OF LIES!

Raddish

2011-11-17, 10:19 AM

I am lazy so I microwave 2 pieces of bacon and put them in a piece of bread.

Tastes nice enough to me...

H Birchgrove

2011-11-17, 10:36 AM

I always wondered what the difference is between Canadian bacon and USA bacon. :/

This. So much this.

I've heard that British bacon is thicker than Swedish bacon, while Brits eat fewer slices of it.

The Succubus

2011-11-17, 10:49 AM

I think one difference is that the US favours "rasher" style bacon (the stripey sort) whereas we British types prefer back bacon (which just has the little rim of fat on the edge of the pork). I don't know much about canadian bacon but given that maple syrup is allegedly involved, I don't *want* to know either.

Yora

2011-11-17, 10:52 AM

I don't think we actually have bacon here in Germany.

H Birchgrove

2011-11-17, 11:01 AM

@ Yora: That's pretty odd to hear. I mean, you do eat pork, right? And Denmark is neighbor to Germany, and they export pork and bacon.

@ The Succubus: Interesting! I'll google "back bacon".

banjo1985

2011-11-17, 11:07 AM

Turkey bacon is okay, but it should never have been called bacon, to allow it to be so is blasphemy! :smalltongue:

Burnt bacon is also good, not incinerated but kind of hard and crunchy...mmmm. I'm a fan of back bacon rather than the more traditional rasher, which I think is more prevalent in the States. And bacon brunch...jeez that's like the divine ambrosia or something!

Anyone tried Bacon chocolate? Or for my fellow lovers of all things baconey, Bacon Toothpaste (http://www.firebox.com/product/3257/Bacon-Toothpaste), Bacon Soap (http://www.firebox.com/product/3260/Bacon-Soap), Bacon Popcorn (http://www.firebox.com/product/2609/Bacon-Popcorn), and best of all, Bacon Perfume (http://www.firebox.com/product/3748/Bacon-Unisex-Perfume)!

Do you wish the scent of your loved one reminded you of delicious thin-cut fried slices of pig? Well wish no more!

Kneenibble

2011-11-17, 11:36 AM

I wish I didn't know this, but there's also bacon lube.

I think one difference is that the US favours "rasher" style bacon (the stripey sort) whereas we British types prefer back bacon (which just has the little rim of fat on the edge of the pork). I don't know much about canadian bacon but given that maple syrup is allegedly involved, I don't *want* to know either.

Why, you inconstant continental colonial patriarch, you besmirch our traditions do you? And I suppose you don't capitalize a proper noun as some kind of stylistic jab! Duly noted! I'll drive you howling from Milan to Palermo with a birch switch and mince your lardy flanks for tourtière.

Canadian bacon is weird, and I've almost never had it in my life. Streaky rasher bacon is the standard here. I think what actual Canadians call Canadian bacon is mainly a Quebec thing: it's not just back bacon.

Tyndmyr

2011-11-17, 11:40 AM

Oh, there's bacon everything. Soap. Lip balm. Vodka. Chocolate.

All of these are heresy, and are not the True Bacon. Mix yer vodka and yer bacon in your stomach like a real man, not somewhat wot needs their food pre-digested for them.

Yora

2011-11-17, 11:49 AM

@ Yora: That's pretty odd to hear. I mean, you do eat pork, right? And Denmark is neighbor to Germany, and they export pork and bacon.

@ The Succubus: Interesting! I'll google "back bacon".
Sure, we do use that parts of the pig as well, but I don't think we do the same things with it that americans do.
Most uses I know are diced and added to scrambled egs, backed potatoes, or in soups.

Whiffet

2011-11-17, 12:02 PM

Ah, bacon. Also known as "why trying to eat healthy food sucks." Part of my change to healthier alternatives included switching from regular bacon to turkey bacon. I guess it accomplished what I wanted; I rarely eat bacon at all now. :smalltongue:
Except for last week when I felt an intense craving for real bacon, but I'm usually really good about it, I promise!

That said, we have a local cafe with an entirely kosher menu. The turkey bacon they offer for breakfast is actually pretty good.

Yora

2011-11-17, 12:05 PM

Most foods that don't get you sued for claiming it is actual food isn't unhealthy. It's eating lots of it that is.

Karoht

2011-11-17, 12:10 PM

Ever have really thin bacon, and it's like they tried to sneak in some really thin shaved ham as a filler? Errrrg.
I recently tried back-bacon.
It's ruined normal bacon for me. I just can't look at normal bacon the same way again. But, back-bacon does have to be cut very carefully. Too thick and it's nearly indistinguishable from ham. Too thin and fat seems to break it down very easily and you have chunks rather than slices.

If they could hybridize bacon and proscuitto in just the right way, where eating it raw or cooked would both be acceptable...
I'm not sure if I would eat anything else at that point.

Jack Squat

2011-11-17, 12:30 PM

Ah, bacon. Also known as "why trying to eat healthy food sucks." Part of my change to healthier alternatives included switching from regular bacon to turkey bacon.

Regular bacon is actually healthier for you. Turkey bacon has about twice as much sodium and 2-3 times more cholesterol than low-sodium bacon. They're fairly similar in all other respects.

http://nograinnopain.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/nbc_the_more_you_know1-300x197.jpg

Whiffet

2011-11-17, 01:30 PM

Regular bacon is actually healthier for you. Turkey bacon has about twice as much sodium and 2-3 times more cholesterol than low-sodium bacon. They're fairly similar in all other respects.

http://nograinnopain.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/nbc_the_more_you_know1-300x197.jpg

WHAT?

Excuse me, I need to go yell at certain people. :smallmad:

H Birchgrove

2011-11-17, 02:20 PM

Sure, we do use that parts of the pig as well, but I don't think we do the same things with it that americans do.
Most uses I know are diced and added to scrambled egs, backed potatoes, or in soups.

We (Swedes) have diced bacon too.

I'll try it some time, good idea to have it in scrambled eggs (and logically in omelettes).

Telonius

2011-11-17, 02:36 PM

I always wondered what the difference is between Canadian bacon and USA bacon. :/

Canadian bacon always has a maple leaf on its backpack when hiking in Europe.

Elder Tsofu

2011-11-17, 02:36 PM

I've had bacon that was awful, and not because of the way it was cooked or smoked or anything - it was just weirdly sweet. My granny was indoctrinated to the Canadian way while training over there many years ago, but I cannot stand bacon with maple syrup, or bacon made sweet in any way. It just ruins the taste, to my mind.

I love bacon, in moderation, and when I was in the US I tried to find some bacon in the malls which wasn't sweet. I failed horribly, partly due to the fact that I had a hard time to find packages with less than half a kilogram of it. (In Sweden the standard is about 120-140g per package - 2 portions)

H Birchgrove

2011-11-17, 02:41 PM

I wouldn't think it's wrong to have maple syrup seperately but next to the bacon, just like we Swedes have lingonberry jam to our black pudding and bacon.

Asta Kask

2011-11-17, 02:50 PM

I've never heard of lingonberry jam and bacon. Now, meatballs is another thing...

H Birchgrove

2011-11-17, 03:27 PM

I've never heard of lingonberry jam and bacon. Now, meatballs is another thing...

Regional differences, maybe?

Elder Tsofu

2011-11-17, 04:55 PM

I haven't heard of it, but I think it might work.
*places oneself comfortably in the middle*

Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll

2011-11-17, 06:30 PM

Canadian bacon does not involve maple syrup.

What it does involve, is either ground corn or yellow peas.

So-called "Canadian Bacon" is just back-bacon. In the US, they often sell back bacon that has been smoked as "Canadian Bacon".

The pork loin is rolled in, traditionally, crushed yellow peas, but nowadays cornmeal is more common, and sometimes is smoked, cured, or brined.

It does not involve maple syrup unless you pour maple syrup over it. Maple syrup poured over bacon is delicious, however, no matter what type of bacon you have.

It's mostly a Central Canada thing. Even more local, apparently is the Back-Bacon-onna-Bun, which is... a slab of back bacon, on a bun, with some mustard, which is apparently a Toronto thing.

So yeah. What you have in Britain, is basically Canadian bacon, only we usually roll it in peameal, and call it 'peameal bacon'.

We also get rasher strips, like the US too. They're actually more common up here.

In Canada, if you say "bacon", you usually mean US-style rasher strips, streaky bacon. If you say "back bacon" or "peameal bacon", you mean, well, back bacon or peameal bacon, what Americans call "Canadian bacon".

I prefer peameal bacon to streaky bacon, but most prefer streaky bacon, just because it's cheaper, and more easily available. And also because they have no good taste, but y'know :smallamused:

Starwulf

2011-11-17, 07:36 PM

It's mostly a Central Canada thing. Even more local, apparently is the Back-Bacon-onna-Bun, which is... a slab of back bacon, on a bun, with some mustard, which is apparently a Toronto thing.

I'm personally a fan of what you all call "rasher" bacon, about 6-8 strips, between two pieces of bread, smothered in Mayo. Yummy!

Ravens_cry

2011-11-17, 07:46 PM

Bacon, than cook onions and perogies in the bacon fat. With some sauerkraut, you got a comfort food meal that's surprisingly good for you.

Weezer

2011-11-17, 09:18 PM

My favorite bacon dish is you cook up a bunch of bacon then crumble/chop it up. Then take cubed potatoes and some cabbage and boil them separately until the potatoes are mashable and the cabbage is tender (drain the cabbage). Mash the potatoes, mix in the bacon and add milk salt and butter to taste. It's incredible comfort food and so delicious. It's an irish dish called colcannon.

Pika...

2011-11-17, 10:25 PM

I don't think we actually have bacon here in Germany.

No bacon?! :smalleek:

You poor deprived people.

TheThan

2011-11-17, 10:27 PM

My favorite bacon dish is to fry up some nice crispy bacon. Then eat it.

Coidzor

2011-11-17, 10:55 PM

...I've recently come into the possession of a hunk of pork jowl bacon. I'm still not sure what to do with it. :smallconfused:

Raddish

2011-11-17, 10:55 PM

The smell of frying bacon makes my mum feel ill, which is why I microwave it. Although I do like smoked back bacon when cooked properly. Bacon has one of those flavours that can wake you up really easily and I don't know how it does it.

It's not just bacon though, a traditional english fried breakfast is a great way to start the day. Although I will admit it isn't remotely a tradition, and my family doesn't actually come from britainland way back when so the tradition would not really apply to me anyway but yeah... Full english breakfast is great.

dgnslyr

2011-11-17, 11:03 PM

Pork Jowl Bacon? From a pig's cheek? That actually sounds really good. In Chinese cuisine, fish cheeks are considered the best part because fish spend a lot of time flabbing their mouths, so the cheek is supposed to be extra yummy. I wonder if the same is true for bacon?

And what do you mean "I'm still not sure what to do with it"? You cook it, for science, of course, and then you eat it, because bacon is delicious.

Coidzor

2011-11-17, 11:40 PM

Starwulf

2011-11-18, 12:13 AM

So, I have a question for my fellow bacon Aficionados: Back Bacon! What is it exactly, can it be bought in the U.S., and what is the taste like compared to regular American "rasher" bacon? Wondering, as many people have expressed fondness for it, and now I'm very interested in perhaps trying it out.

Also, my wife would like to inform everyone, that the restaurant she used to work at Deep-Fried bacon until it was burnt to a crisp ^^. Now I wish I had gone there for breakfast when she still worked there! Different management now, with very low/crappy standards, so I wouldn't think of setting foot in there now.

The Succubus

2011-11-18, 04:43 AM

Most of the BLT sandwiches I eat use the American style rasher bacon and for me it doesn't taste as good as back bacon. The problem is that the additional fat streaks running through mask the taste of the pork.

With back bacon, you get much more meat for your money, which is of course the bacon part of bacon. Also, I don't know if it's done with rashers, but you can get many different sorts of smoked bacon. The type of wood used in the smoking process can make quite the difference to taste.

Also, I'm hungry now. :smallfrown:

Mercenary Pen

2011-11-18, 09:28 AM

I have to go with back bacon rather than streaky bacon myself, though I have no objection to maple syrup with my bacon...

In fact, I did myself a bacon sandwich for lunch, using maple cured back bacon and adding a little bit of tomato ketchup as well... Really nice.

H Birchgrove

2011-11-18, 09:31 AM

and adding a little bit of tomato ketchup as well... Really nice.

Because everything, and we mean EVERYTHING, is better with ketchup. (http://youtu.be/Bsqfm2wVwFY) Or Is It?

The Succubus

2011-11-18, 09:34 AM

I'm a nudist when it comes to bacon. No brown sauce, no ketchup, maybe just a hint of butter in a bacon sarnie.

H Birchgrove

2011-11-18, 09:38 AM

HP Sauce is the sauce of choice for me when it comes to bacon and eggs.

Mercenary Pen

2011-11-19, 06:10 PM

Because everything, and we mean EVERYTHING, is better with ketchup. (http://youtu.be/Bsqfm2wVwFY) Or Is It?

Honestly, that was just what I felt like at the time, on other days I might have gone with brown sauce, barbecue sauce of some variety, no sauce at all...

I've even done bacon and mushroom rolls on occasion, because decent fried mushrooms really go nicely with bacon.