Bacon

Wraithlady · 30 November 2019 at 1:58PM

Is it just me, or is supermarket bacon become really shoddy recently?

I came to this conclusion while trying to chop up rashers for last night's dinner - they were literally so thin they were see-through, wet and tore rather than cut. You also cannot seem to get drycure (our preferred type) for love nor money.

When compared with some of the bacon we got from a butchers in Whitby - labelled as Cheshire bacon (we live in Cheshire), thick-sliced, firm and really tasty - it's hardly even the same product.

I guess I know the answer - but the good butchers is not convenient to get to and that is where most supermarkets win.

elsien · 30 November 2019 at 2:00PM

They do drycure in some superkmarkets but you can't beat thick sliced bacon from a proper butcher.

sooty&sweep · 30 November 2019 at 3:37PM

Hi
I do try to buy bacon rashers from a butchers as I think it tends to be better than supermarket prepackaged bacon. A couple of local butchers also cure their own bacon & it is so much nice

However some supermarkets do sell packs of bacon misshapes & quite often it's big chunks left from when they've sliced it & that's great for chopping into pasta sauces etc

Jen

unrecordings · 30 November 2019 at 3:44PM

Waitrose smoked streaky here. Does the job for me so long as I can rummage to get the pack with the right fat distribution and a good date. I've not noticed a decline in quality, but maybe the slices have been very slightly thicker in recent months (and I mean very slightly). Keep meaning to return to back bacon but forget when i'm in there

p00hsticks · 30 November 2019 at 3:56PM

Wraithlady wrote: »

When compared with some of the bacon we got from a butchers in Whitby - labelled as Cheshire bacon (we live in Cheshire), thick-sliced, firm and really tasty - it's hardly even the same product.

Which butchers is that, please ? Interested to know for next time we're there...

Wraithlady · 30 November 2019 at 4:54PM

Pretty sure it was Landers - on Baxtergate

joedenise · 30 November 2019 at 7:19PM

We've given up buying bacon as fed up with how wet it is, even the ones labelled dry cure! All you get coming out when you cook it is white stuff which you have to keep mopping off and without goes the flavour so once cooked it's completely flavourless.

Our butcher's is no better as he buys his in ready sliced in big packs and it's just the same as the supermarkets!

Slinky · 30 November 2019 at 7:24PM

I've recently started buying streaky dry cure from our local butchers. Thick, smoky and very tasty. And I can buy it in the quantity I want rather than the packet sizes the supermarket sells. One of the good things about having moved home is access to a decent butcher and greengrocer (next door to each other).

unrecordings · 30 November 2019 at 9:20PM

With the stuff I buy (Waitrose essential smoked streaky) I note from their website that water is added, but I only ever notice 'white stuff' when the bacon is a couple of days past its best. So is that the water coming out maybe ? Or down to coincidence and the lean to fat ratio of that particular pack ?

(when I open a pack it goes straight into one of those lock & lock bacon storage tubs)

Petula · 1 December 2019 at 12:24PM

You can normally get dry cure, what we buy, in Waitrose, Tesco and Sainsbury’s. I don’t find the Waitrose or Tesco offerings ‘wet’ but agree our butchers is the best plus you can get it sliced to the thickness you like.