Tomorrow is going to be a day of wonders. And artery clogs. But mostly wonders.
Also: I actually need some feedback; my wife is not really supposed to have nitrates, and even the organic, ‘nitrate-free’ bacon still has some of that stuff in it thanks to celery salt or something. Is there a way to have a pork product that lacks nitrates, but can still be realistically referred to as ‘bacon?’ Because I’d like to be able to cook it more often. …Not that maybe I should, given that it’s really not all that great for me.
Bacon Pickle Fries https://t.co/ZbuW1ZvaRs via @delishdotcom
— Ogiel (Moe Lane) (@Ogiel23) August 3, 2017
Haven’t found a bacon product that doesn’t have celery in it, which is one natural source of nitrites.
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That said, per U MN, “vegetables high in sodium nitrate include beets, cabbage, carrots, celery, radishes and spinach. Around 90 percent of the nitrite in your body comes from vegetables, while just 10 percent comes from processed meats.”
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No idea how Mrs. Lane and Mrs. Cat stack up; Mrs. Cat tolerates occasional “uncured” (celery) bacon okay, she seems to have a negative reaction to pork in general, so the rare bacon-wrapped date is tolerable.
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Mew
Is pork belly cured?
My wife (the biologist / cook of the house) says “buy the bacon and smoke it yourself”. Not flippantly – we have a family friend who is in a similar boat, and that’s how she (the friend) had to work around the dietary problems. That’s probably not the most convenient answer, admittedly.
So some ‘uncured’ bacon might not contain nitrates, but I wouldn’t count on it. Because without nitrates it won’t be pink. But if you are willing to make it yourself, you can do it with just salt.
https://www.smallfootprintfamily.com/how-to-cure-bacon Is a fairly decent overview. Now when I make mine I totally use nitrates, but you don’t have to. The only change I would make is 150 is too done. You want 140-145, so that it is medium, but not really rendering the fat out yet. If you oven it because you don’t have a smoker, you can add liquid smoke.