The ways of bacon

RobtE said:

The recent thread(s) about peameal bacon have got me doing a bit of
researching, and I think I've finally got my head around bacon
terminology. As I understand it, it works something like this:

The UK has three kinds of bacon - back, streaky and middle. Back bacon
if from the loin, streaky from the belly, and middle from in between the
other two.

In the UK, you can get all three types of bacon in either smoked or
unsmoked. "Unsmoked" is what used to be called "green" bacon. I can see
how the use of "green" dropped out of fashion. It doesn't conjure up an
appetising picture. My guess is that the meaning of "green" in this
sense is related to green fruit (as in "unripe"😉 or green timber (as in
"not seasoned"😉 - basically, not yet ready.

In the US, "bacon" means streaky bacon. "Canadian bacon" means bacon
from the loin, or what in the UK is called "back bacon".

So the question is, is this right or have I missed something?

I've read that in Eire the word bacon can include cured ham. Anyone
know if it's true? It gives better meaning to the expression "Bring
home the bacon."

Canadian bacon is cured similarly to ham not smoked and dried like bacon.

Lynne

bacon
a fabricated cut of the pork carcass, cut from the sides and belly; consists
of fat interspersed with strands of meat; it is salted and/or smoked,
available sliced or in a slab.

Canadian bacon
Function: noun
: bacon cut from the loin that has little fat and is cut into round or
oblong slices and cured.

"RobtE" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

The recent thread(s) about peameal bacon have got me doing a bit of
researching, and I think I've finally got my head around bacon
terminology. As I understand it, it works something like this:

The UK has three kinds of bacon - back, streaky and middle. Back bacon if
from the loin, streaky from the belly, and middle from in between the
other two.

In the UK, you can get all three types of bacon in either smoked or
unsmoked. "Unsmoked" is what used to be called "green" bacon. I can see
how the use of "green" dropped out of fashion. It doesn't conjure up an
appetising picture. My guess is that the meaning of "green" in this sense
is related to green fruit (as in "unripe"😉 or green timber (as in "not
seasoned"😉 - basically, not yet ready.

In the US, "bacon" means streaky bacon. "Canadian bacon" means bacon from
the loin, or what in the UK is called "back bacon".

So the question is, is this right or have I missed something?

RobtE

I once checked out a book from the University library on curing bacon.
It was published in the UK and intended for the ag/tech school market.
Bacon, in the book's context, included the whole pig which was cured.
Smoking was an option. The book went on to say that the main source of
the cured carcasses was Denmark. Don't know what current usage is in
this regard.

D./M.

King's Crown said:

Canadian bacon
Function: noun
: bacon cut from the loin that has little fat and is cut into round or
oblong slices and cured.

Thanks. That confirms what I suspected.

RobtE

King's Crown said:

Canadian bacon
Function: noun
: bacon cut from the loin that has little fat and is cut into round or
oblong slices and cured.

Thanks. That confirms what I suspected.

RobtE

D.A.Martinich said:

I once checked out a book from the University library on curing bacon.
It was published in the UK and intended for the ag/tech school market.
Bacon, in the book's context, included the whole pig which was cured.
Smoking was an option.

Yes, I've got 3 or 4 books written for the professional chef/advanced
amateur chef. Those published in the UK seem to be saying the same thing
as you found.

RobtE

D.A.Martinich said:

I once checked out a book from the University library on curing bacon.
It was published in the UK and intended for the ag/tech school market.
Bacon, in the book's context, included the whole pig which was cured.
Smoking was an option.

Yes, I've got 3 or 4 books written for the professional chef/advanced
amateur chef. Those published in the UK seem to be saying the same thing
as you found.

RobtE