A problem with bacon

Status
Not open for further replies.
Soldato
Joined
21 Sep 2008
Posts
4,408
Location
somewhere out there!
Morning Gents, And Secretspy. (sorry)
I wonder if someone could assist me, basically someones tastes are changing, and they are now finding it harder to tolerate bacon (among other things)due to it tasting over salty (we have tried a few different shops including M&S and tesco) Can anyone suggest a brand that is specifically less salt? I will add this is unsmoked bacon and to you or I it may not taste salty however to this person it does.
Thank you very much.
 
Last edited:
Soldato
Joined
22 Aug 2010
Posts
3,879
Location
On the Wagon-East Angular
Had you thought about making your own? When I cure my bacon I add sugar to the curing mix to make it less salty.

It's an easy process to do. Take either belly for streaky or loin for back bacon. Weigh it and add 5% weight of curing salts (then I add 10% of the weight of the cure as sugar). Rub over the meat and seal in a ziploc back. Curing times are generally 1 day per 1/2 inch thickness of meat plus 2 days, so a 2" thick piece will be ready in 6 days. Wash it off, dry and allow to rest 1 day before smoking, or in your case, easting (as green bacon).

I use Weschenfelder for curing supplies: https://www.weschenfelder.co.uk/bacon-curing/curing-salts/supracure-dry-cured-bacon.html for their "Supacure" which containes nitrates and nitrites for safer curing and retention of colour (if you don't add nitrate the meat will go grey. That's not a taste issue, just aesthetics).
 
Soldato
Joined
23 Feb 2009
Posts
4,978
Location
South Wirral
Bit late here but how are you cooking it ? If its fried or grilled on something flat then there's nowhere for the cooking juices to go so the salt will stay as they evaporate off. If you can grill it in on a rack, the juices will drip down and take some of the salt with them.

Sainsbury's "Be Good to Yourself" range was what my wife tended to choose as she doesn't like salt and its usually very lean too, but that range hasn't re-appeared here since COVID.
 
Caporegime
Joined
1 Dec 2010
Posts
52,087
Location
Welling, London
most supermarket bacon seems to be pumped full of water
Always try to get a bacon that is made with slightly more pork than weight of product. A good ratio for supermarket bacon is about 105g of pork per 100g of finished product.

Any bacon with less than 90% pork is always going to be average supermarket bacon.
 
Soldato
Joined
5 Mar 2010
Posts
12,305
I still love the taste of bacon, but I hate the all day unquenchable thirst it seems to give me. I can eat it at 10am and still be thirsty 6 hours later.

This is definitely true if you have bacon on pizza! I certainly find myself going to bed very thirsty.

I'm sure i've seen at Aldi they now sell low salt bacon.
 
Soldato
Joined
19 Mar 2012
Posts
6,558
Agree about the grilling it on the rack.

Although we don't, we get proper thick butcher slices from round the corner. When I flip the bacon I drain off the excess liquid into a salsa jar.

It does help reduce the saltiness, it also gives you a fantastic base for sweetcorn, butter and bacon fat mixed to your taste and gently sautee canned sweetcorn. That's lovely with pulled meat and smoky mash.
 
Soldato
OP
Joined
21 Sep 2008
Posts
4,408
Location
somewhere out there!
Thank you for all the lovely replies!

Thank you, i will double check the bacon is being drained etc but i think it is. Unfortunately, the persons tastes are changing (no comments on this required) rapidly and we are just trying to help. The M&S bacon i will look into thank you. The be good to yourself bacon less convinced but i will buy some and try it. Thank you almost everyone, i do appreciate it. :)
 
Soldato
Joined
3 Oct 2005
Posts
6,330
Location
England
It could be the sodium nitrate making it taste more salty. I only eat nitrate free bacon now which I either source from a butchers, farm shop or get the "naked" bacon from a supermarket :)
 
Soldato
Joined
17 Oct 2002
Posts
5,538
It could be the sodium nitrate making it taste more salty. I only eat nitrate free bacon now which I either source from a butchers, farm shop or get the "naked" bacon from a supermarket :)

I've not looked it up, but I have heard before, the 'nitrate free' bacon has celery juice - which during the curing process converts to nitrates. So at best you're getting 'natural nitrate' rather than 'nitrate free'.

To the OP I'd suggest making your own bacon, but be aware the salt is what makes bacon taste like bacon, not the nitrates - nitrates don't taste salty, it just stops botulism (not a concern for home made, constantly refrigerated).

You can reduce the salt to a point, considering shelf life isn't a concern, but below a certain point it will be less 'bacon' and more 'pork'. Of course you can adjust to taste and find the level you're happy with.
 
Soldato
Joined
19 Mar 2012
Posts
6,558
Have you tried eating it with different things to take the edge off?

Although a BLT might be traditional, the acidity of tomato might be too much for someone with rapidly changing tastes, IME.

Avocado, though, takes away some of the saltiness without being a strong flavour.
 
Soldato
Joined
13 May 2003
Posts
8,831
Most commercial bacon is already very heavy in sugar to mask the salt. For contrast go and try a butchers own dry cure and be prepared for very salty bacon. Try looking for sweet cure or maybe Wiltshire cure both normally mean a higher level of sugar in the cure.
 
Soldato
OP
Joined
21 Sep 2008
Posts
4,408
Location
somewhere out there!
I've not looked it up, but I have heard before, the 'nitrate free' bacon has celery juice - which during the curing process converts to nitrates. So at best you're getting 'natural nitrate' rather than 'nitrate free'.

To the OP I'd suggest making your own bacon, but be aware the salt is what makes bacon taste like bacon, not the nitrates - nitrates don't taste salty, it just stops botulism (not a concern for home made, constantly refrigerated).

You can reduce the salt to a point, considering shelf life isn't a concern, but below a certain point it will be less 'bacon' and more 'pork'. Of course you can adjust to taste and find the level you're happy with.
Thank you David. We have done!
you do know who OP is right? :D
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom