It is difficult to imagine a traditional English or American breakfast without a couple of slices of crispy pink bacon, which is so deliciously fried in oil in a pan. And although at present this product is far from uncommon in the culinary world, many still do not know what bacon is. It is easy to find out if you refer to the material below.
What is bacon?
Since there is a significant amount of fat in bacon, some people think that this is only one type of lard. This statement is not entirely correct.
What is bacon? This is a meat product, for the manufacture of which special, so-called "bacon" pigs are used. Pigs intended for fattening are distinguished by long backs and rapid growth.
How to make bacon
In order for the meat delicacy to turn out exactly the way in which it is used by most people, bacon pigs are kept in special conditions. First of all, they are abundantly fed with barley, dairy products, and beans. Their diet lacks food waste, oats, fish products and meat, so that the bacon is tender. When the pig reaches the age of seven months, it is sent for slaughter. Approximately 9 kg of product is obtained from a 100 kg pig.
Bacon in the world
Surprisingly, in many countries of the world they do not know what bacon is. This is not surprising, since this delicacy is mainly consumed in Europe and America. But even in these countries the meaning of the word "bacon" varies greatly, as the manufacturing technology differs. So, in America, the muscle part of the animal’s abdomen is used as a snack, in Canada - the lumbar, and in Russia they take the brisket. Separately, we can say about the Italian guanchal, made from pig cheeks using special technology.
Varieties of Bacon
Typically, a meat appetizer is divided into salted and smoked bacon. Smoked bacon is cold and hot smoked. Salted is used as a semi-finished product. In the future, it is subjected to food processing: from it get the brisket, loin or ham. Smoked show us from TV screens: the brisket or other meat part with alternating layers of meat and lard. This bacon is completely ready for use.
How to eat bacon
Most often it is used as cold and hot appetizers and for cooking main dishes. The most famous variation of its use is for breakfast in combination with scrambled eggs or scrambled eggs. Since this appetizer is quite fatty, it is used for baking lean meat, which is stuffed or wrapped in thin slices of bacon.
So, in order to consolidate the studied information, we repeat what bacon is. This is a variety of meat snacks made from the brisket or side of bacon pigs with alternating layers of fat and meat.