Bacon

Happy International Bacon Day! Ok, International Bacon Day isn’t until Saturday Sept 3, 2011, but any day is a good day to celebrate bacon! In the words of the hilarious bacon-loving comedian Jim Gaffigan, “bacon is like the fairy dust of the food world!” 

So, where does this magical meat come from? In the United States it is almost always the cut of meat from the belly of the Pig, which is then cured using large quantities of salt. Other cuts include meat from the cheeks, loin, shoulders, ankle...and just about everywhere there’s meat! A slice of bacon is also known as a rasher, and an unsliced side is a flitch or slab. Americans consume about 32 billion rashers of bacon a year! 

Relax, don’t feel too guilty! Bacon actually contains Vitamins B1 and B12 and antioxidants Zinc and Selenium! There’s about 42 calories, and 3 grams each of fat and protein in a slice of cooked bacon. That’s only 2% of RDA recommendations for caloric intake...and 31% of protein intake, followed by 68% of fat intake. Yikes! So that’s why bacon should be eaten in moderation. But, it tastes so good! 

For me, no one encompasses the miracle that is bacon more effectively than Jim Gaffigan. If you haven’t seen his bacon skit, your life may not be complete! Go to this link:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2uPdxUPnXU or search it on the internet. It’s a beautiful, poignant, reverent tribute to this wonderful sliced meat while being hysterically funny at the same time. 

There’s only one more thing I can say about Bacon: It goes with everything, and everything goes with it! It’s the little black dress of a delicious meal. Doubtful there’s a food on earth you couldn’t add bacon to and enhance it’s taste...from meat, to vegetables, to dessert! Not to mention, the grease leftover from frying bacon is a powerful flavor addition and convenient fat to sauté onions, garlic, and other vegetables in. In conclusion: Bacon equals Flavor Highway, route Pig 101 on Interstate Pork. Any questions? :)

Useless and Useful Bacon facts:

• Bacon Bits sold at the grocery store are actually vegetarian
• Yorkshire and Tamworth pigs are bred specifically for Bacon
• The average American eats 17.9 lbs of Bacon per year
• 11% of a standard pig’s weight is Bacon
• Bacon has been around since 1500 B.C,
• The BLT, (Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato sandwich) became popular when fresh lettuce and tomatoes became available year round after the expansion of supermarkets following World War II
• A 200 lb pig will produce about 20 lbs of Bacon

Eat Bacon and You Will Live! Not healthily, and not for long, but Happily! Bacon, FTW!