Bacon Facts: Boost Your Bacon Knowledge!
Whaddya know about bacon? You know you love it. You know it's smoky, salty, sweet, and so full of flavor that most other foods can't hold a candle to it, but we're here to share some fun bacon facts that you might not have heard of before!
Bacon is one of the oldest - and most popular - meats in the world. It dates back to 1500 B.C., when the Chinese began curing pork bellies with salt, creating the earliest form of bacon. Today, bacon is enjoyed around the world, especially in Denmark, which ranks #1 in bacon consumption per capita. But that doesn't mean we don't love bacon here in the U.S. In fact, we produce more than 2 billion pounds of bacon annually and annual per capita consumption is around 18 pounds per person in the US.
Did you know there are two main methods of curing bacon? “Dry” curing is the oldest method but “wet” curing is the most popular method and most bacon you’ve eaten in your lifetime, here in the U.S., is likely a wet cured product. Nolechek’s wet cures our bacon and we add something really special to our unique wet cure recipe: pure Wisconsin honey! Yep, that’s part of why it tastes soooo good!
The most popular smoke used for bacon in the Unites States is hickory, and that’s what we use to smoke our meats, here at Nolechek’s. We love hickory for its rich, flavorful smoke and we think it’s the perfect match for our quality meats. Other smoke varietals that are popular in the US include mesquite and applewood, and some people even experiment with exotic woods like plum, pecan, cinnamon, and planks from whiskey or bourbon barrels.
If you equate eating bacon to a religious experience, you might be interested to learn that the colloquial expression "bringing home the bacon" actually comes from a church. In Great Dunmow, Essex, England, locals celebrate a tradition dating back to 1104, when a prior rewarded a married couple for their devotion with a side of bacon. In 1395, Geoffrey Chaucer even wrote about it in Canterbury Tales:
“But never for us
the flitch of bacon though,
That some may win
in Essex at Dunmow.”
The Wife of Bath aside, we think that bacon is the perfect reward for marital harmony! Perhaps consider it for your next anniversary gift. ; )
Bacon sometimes gets a bad rap due to its sodium content. But, for those watching carbs, bacon is a satisfying option that is also free of gluten and MSG. Calorie counters can rejoice because an average slice of bacon clocks in at less than 50 calories. But Nolechek's bacon is anything but average! Our traditional hickory smoked, honey cured bacon has been awarded countless state, national, and international awards over the
years.
For tastebud-bursting bites, try our Peppered Bacon or Raspberry Chipotle Bacon. If you like to mix it up, try our pork shoulder Butt Bacon, pork loin Rasher Bacon, or Beef Bacon from the brisket. You can find all of the specialty bacons we craft right here. No matter which is your favorite, just be sure to bring home the bacon!
Yours In Bacon,
- Nolechek’s Meats
