September 27, 2015: What to NEVER do when cooking bacon, SIZZL app, and more

MY LIFE WITH BACON continues this week with a super HufPo article about what to never do with your rendered bacon fat, another review of the SIZZL dating app, and

BACON IN THE NEWS

SO, WHAT SHOULD YOU NEVER DO WHEN COOKING BACON? According to this article, in the Huffington Post (a friend to bacon,) you should NEVER pour your bacon grease down the drain. In all of my reviews, you may notice that I measure how much bacon fact is rendered out of the cooking process. What do I do with that fat? I NEVER pour it down the drain. WHY? because it WILL clog your pipes. Then you'll have a very expensive problem to deal with. I completely agree.

Here's what it would look like: (pic from the Huffington Post article, courtesy of Pinterest)

What exactly do I do? The article has a good solution. What I do instead, is either pour the rendered fat into a discarded can, or more frequently, I do the following: take the paper towels you used to dry your cooked bacon and stuff them into a sandwich baggie. Let the bacon fat cool, and while it is still liquid, pour it into the baggie. The paper towels will absorb the fat, and you can safely discard the entire thing in the trash without fear of the grease spilling out and possibly leaking out of your garbage bag. Simple!

SEVERAL OF YOU EMAILED ME ABOUT SIZZL! Well, a writer for the LA Times spend 24 hours on the bacon-themed dating app, and I think her experience and observations are entertaining! This app is a little different than other apps and she points out how it worked for her. Apparently, there are only a few dimensions worth considering when evaluating a mate. Crispness is one of them.

No bacon review this week! Too busy!

September 20, 2015: A Bacon Dating App? And Smoking Goose vs. Benton's

MY LIFE WITH BACON continues this week with more Oscar Mayer hi-jinks and another pair of bacons in a taste test.

BACON IN THE NEWS starts with SIZZL, the aptly-named new smartphone app by Oscar Mayer. It claims to match you up with the date of your dreams, by analyzing your specific bacon preferences. Do you like your bacon smoky? Fruity? Sweet? How about the texture - crispy or chewy? These and many other choices help you narrow down your dating universe. Of course, in my book, if folks like bacon and they are looking for love, they've found the right place. It's obvious that if both people are bacon-lovers, then they will be compatible. Click the link - a very entertaining introductory video.

The first Q&A on the FAQ is entertaining:

Q: Is this a real dating app? Can I really find my bacon lover here?

A: Yes. It’s real and it’s incredible.

BENTONS' BACON IS BACK VERSUS SMOKING GOOSE

I'm giving Benton's another taste test. My previous cook may not have been perfect, so we'll try again. The one pound package weighed in at 1 pound 2 ounces - a bit of a bonus (although, as you can see from the packaging, the front label didn't have a weight. Post cooking it was five ounces and produced a lot of bacon rendering: 215 ml!

The scent out of the package was good, solid, classic. However, it didn't crisp up very well (2/5), the flavor was somewhat below average (2/5) but it did have good succulence (3/5). Very chewy. Good bacon, but in my book, not worth ordering from out of state!

Smoking Goose 12 ounce package was the Uncured Applewood Smoked varietal (I like using those sophisticated-sounding words like they do with wine tasting). The package said 12 ounces, and the pre-cook weight was spot on. It came out at four ounces post cook, and produced 150ml of fat. The bacon was TANGY, which was refreshing. Not citrus, but more like vinegar (but not vinegar, if you know what I mean). It was of average crispness and succulence, but the flavor rating is 3 out of five. A good, solid bacon from your grocer.

September 13, 2015: Worldwide Bacon Consumption Habits, and Bacon on Money Island

MY LIFE WITH BACON continues this week with COSTCO bacon cooked up for a football team, some interesting bacon news, and bacon consumed on Money Island with poker buddies from NJ.

BACON IN THE NEWS

FOOTBALL TEAM CONSUMES MASS QUANTITIES OF BACON at the cook-out at Northcroft Park, following practice on Thursday, by the Lake Foreset High School Football Dad's Club. The varsity team, at that point 2-0 and playing under the Friday Night Lights against rival Warren, joined the sophomore team at the outdoor banquet. About 100 high school boys consumed about 300 pieces of meat, not including the COSTCO bacon. The bacon disappeared about 40 boys in... we're gonna have to get more bacon next year!

Friday night was also "NAVY NIGHT", as the Great Lakes Naval Station is only about 4 miles north of the high school. The navy base is the ONLY basic training facility in the Navy, so every sailor passes through here. That's why the kids are all sporting NAVY t-shirts... of course, for the game, I wore my ARMY stuff!

Go Scouts! Go Navy! Go ARMY, BEAT NAVY!


CRAZY WAYS PEOPLE EAT BACON AROUND THE WORLD has been reported in several ways by several news organizations this week. Seems like one group publishes a story, and like vultures, all the other newsies jump in and paraphrase the story or write it from a slightly different angle. Like me!

Anyway, here's a good link with some great pictures, provided by my good friend John Simmons. Many countries have little sections of write-up. I particularly like the Germany section, if only because of the picture.

ANOTHER DARN GOOD REASON TO AVOID TURKEY BACON is the recall of two million pounds of the junk. Apparently Kraft feared that the packages might spoil before their expiration date, and recalled the packages of Oscar Mayer before their time. Article here.

INTERNATIONAL BACON DAY WAS SATURDAY! I hope you got your bacon. Great write-up about the ways it's being celebrated, and a great picture.

Cocktail for bacon lovers: candied bacon martini.

 (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

I celebrated International Bacon Day by having some bacon before I left for the airport, headed to Hartford, to watch Army play UCONN in football. After playing some card games with the boys, wherein I took all their money, we also had bacon at the Parthenon diner in Branford on Sunday morning before heading out.

SOME GREAT BACON RECIPES HERE: http://www.bustle.com/articles/106813-30-bacon-recipes-that-prove-its-the-best-food-on-earth

September 6, 2015: Eggsperience Bacon

MY LIFE WITH BACON continues this week with breakfast at Eggsperience in Bannockburn, IL. That's all he wrote this week.

Great egg scramble and excellent pecan-smoked bacon. Next week it'll be bacon on Money Island!