Let me preface this by saying I'm not trying to get into a debate about Nitrates. I love all the cured meats.
Just curious if anyone has attempted a nitrate free bacon recipe. How did it taste, was it worth the effort?
Most bacons that claim to be free of nitrates/nitrates actually say something like "no ADDED nitrites...". They instead use celery, which "naturally" contains the same.
Stuff like this just reinforces in my mind the inherent deceptiveness of many purveyors of "natural" products.
I used Michael Ruhlman's recipes in Charcuterie for basic bacon, maple bacon, pancetta and guanciale. In all cases, I replaced the pink salt with regular or just omitted it.
Most of those recipes are available on the internet.
I agree with Willy, I used to try to avoid it and buy "no added nitrate" bacon until I realized they were just using "natural" sources. But, as always, you can always overdo it. The only bacon I made was @meathead’s recipe that includes the prague powder nitrate cure. It was wonderful! For as little as I ultimately eat bacon, meaning not every day, I’ve decided not to worry about it. Like EdF says, you just need to be a bit more cautious with real nitrate-free bacon so it can be done.
I have tasted "nitrate free bacon". Tastes like flavored, smoked pork belly. It's OK, but it's not really bacon. Couldn't see the point so have never made it myself.
To be clear; it wasn't my intent to start a conversation/argument over the pros and cons of nitrites. I had just come across the link I posted and thought it was full of good info. Alas, I have no experience with home made, nitrate-less bacon, so I can't help there. Let us know what you discover!
Comment