The Other Bacons
Printed From: Foods of the World Forum
Category: Other Food-Related Topics
Forum Name: Curing of Meats, Charcuterie and Smokehouse Specialties
Forum Discription: From basic sausages and smoked bacon to specialised meat products such as cured hams or other charcuterie, this is the place to discus it!
URL: http://foodsoftheworld.ActiveBoards.net/forum_posts.asp?TID=3881
Printed Date: 26 March 2026 at 20:28
Topic: The Other Bacons
Posted By: HistoricFoodie
Subject: The Other Bacons
Date Posted: 09 November 2013 at 06:49
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I notice that all our bacon discussions focus on pork bellies. That stands to reason, being as pork belly is the most familiar bacon to most of us. Back when I was making my own, we cured more than just the bellies to make bacon. Jowl bacon used to be fairly common, at least in the South. And it can still be found in many markets. Less known is bacon made from the hog's neck. I've never seen a commercial version of this, which is a shame, because it makes a really nice bacon. I've heard of, but have never experienced, bacon made from the butt. Given the ratio of fat to lean in the butt, that has always sounded intriguing. Anyway, I was wondering if anyone has experimented with these cuts, and, if so, did you use a cure other than the one you use for belly? |
Replies:
Posted By: Rod Franklin
Date Posted: 09 November 2013 at 08:08
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I have smoked, skin on, fully cooked jowl bacon in the refrigerator right now. A few thin slices with a bit of dense, dark bread, some fruit and a few pickles. A shot or 2 of that left over aquavit from making Swedish meatballs and I'm a happy Franklin.
------------- Hungry |
Posted By: MarkR
Date Posted: 09 November 2013 at 08:45
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I've made "buckboard" bacon, which is butt bacon and "Canadian" bacon from loin both really good. A little more "hammie" than belly bacon. I've heard of people making beef bacon but I haven't tried that.....yet. I've also seen turkey bacon, haven't tried that either. ------------- Mark R |
Posted By: gonefishin
Date Posted: 09 November 2013 at 15:24
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I've never heard of pork bacon from the neck...I'll have to look into that, thanks! I've made bacon from the belly, shoulder, jowls, loin and baby back ribs. I think bacon from the loin and shoulder benefit from being heavily spices though...they make a great ingredient to throw into almost any dish. Dan ------------- Enjoy The Food! |
Posted By: Hoser
Date Posted: 10 November 2013 at 02:34
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I've also done "buckboard" bacon...from the shoulder, and like Mark says it's a bit more like ham than like bacon, but very tasty and quite easy to do.
Never done jowl bacon...not sure at all if I could even buy jowls around here locally. ------------- Go ahead...play with your food! |
Posted By: HistoricFoodie
Date Posted: 10 November 2013 at 07:59
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Unfortunately, nowadays, many cuts are unavailable unless you start with a live animal and do your own butchering. My understanding is that the necks, commercially, are used to produce ground pork. Just as, in the South, beef ribs are all but unobtainable because they strip the meat and use it for ground beef. |
Posted By: gonefishin
Date Posted: 10 November 2013 at 10:12
I've got half of Berkshire ready in January. This one will be my half, instead of splitting it, so I'll be able to specify how it's butchered. Getting hocks, back fat, etc is all in how I order it. I'll certainly give it a try...if nothing else I could smoke it and use like hocks. ------------- Enjoy The Food! |
HistoricFoodie wrote: