Grandad's Bacon Vs Boar's Head Bacon (Comparison/Results)
I wanted to compare Grandad’s Bacon to the best bacon I could find in my local grocery store. I
chose Boar’s Head Bacon because Boar’s Head is a premium brand that has a great reputation
for cured meats. It isn’t sold with the other normal bacon brands, it is the only bacon sold with
the premium cured meats and salamis near the deli meat counter.
Label Comparison and Analysis:
Grandad’s Bacon Maple Syrup and Brown Sugar Uncured Bacon, cured with: Maple Syrup, Brown
Sugar, Salt, Celery Powder (Celery Powder, Sea Salt, Silicone Dioxide [anti-caking]), Black
Pepper
Boar’s Head Maple and Brown Sugar Bacon cured with: Water, Sugar, Salt, Maple Syrup,
Sodium Phosphate, Maple and Brown Sugar Flavor (Natural Flavor, Maple Syrup, Brown
Sugar), Brown Sugar, Sodium Erythorbate, Sodium Nitrite.
Ingredient statements are very educational once you understand the commercial production
process for making bacon. Here’s what the labels tell me:
Boar’s Head Bacon is made with a commercial process in which the raw pork bellies are
injected with a water solution containing all the above ingredients--notably, the chemicals
sodium phosphate, sodium erythorbate, and sodium nitrite. Because of the commercial
process, the USDA allows bacon manufacturers to inject approximately 15-20% of the weight of
the raw belly with this water/chemical solution. Commercial bacons are cured and packed in
about a day.
Sodium Nitrite is a salt and anti-oxidant used to cure meats like bacon. It blocks the
growth of botulism-causing bacteria and prevents spoilage. It also gives cured meats
their characteristic color and flavor.
Sodium Phosphate (a preservative) is added to help the meat retain moisture and
prevent the development of off-flavors in the fat
Sodium Erythorbate is used to help create a nice red color in the meat of the bacon. It
also assists in the curing process.
Grandad’s Bacon is made with an old-fashioned and slow “dry curing” process. This is very
different from commercial processing methods. With dry curing spices, flavors, and natural
curing ingredients are applied to the surface of the raw pork bellies and the bellies are
“marinated” in this mixture for about 1.5 weeks until the ingredients are infused throughout the
bellies. Importantly, Grandad’s Bacon is cured with natural ingredients—salt and celery powder-
-not with the added chemicals nitrites, nitrates, and preservatives. Also, dry curing enables me
to create bacon with great flavors that cannot be done with the commercial bacon making
process. Importantly, the USDA has approved Grandad’s Bacon’s formulas and dry curing
process, but because Grandad’s Bacon is not made with the “standard” commercial process,
the USDA requires me to label Grandad’s Bacon as “Uncured”, even though it is technically
cured as effectively as commercial bacons.
Dry curing with only natural ingredients costs a lot more and takes a lot more time than using
chemicals and commercial processing. But making Grandad’s Bacon this way is important to
me—this enables people to experience the superior taste and texture of bacon made the slow
old-fashioned way. This is the way bacon used to be, before commercial processors reduced
the quality of bacon by making it cheaper and faster.
The Fry Test:
The main objective of my “Fry Test” was to compare Grandad’s Bacon and Boar’s Head Bacon
after frying, I used equal weights of each bacon. I fried both bacons (as close as possible) to the
same end point. I recorded the weights, lengths, and widths of each type of bacon before and
after frying. I also collected and measured the amounts of fat rendered from each bacon during
frying. Also, I had my family do a “blind” assessment of flavor and texture after frying. Here are
the conclusions of the test (detailed results of the test are outlined in the table below):
Key Conclusions:
Grandad’s Bacon weighed 50% more than Boar’s Head after frying—That’s because Grandad’s Bacon is NOT injected with water, and is leaner.
Grandad’s Bacon rendered less fat than Boar’s Head—That’s because Grandad’s Bacon is leaner.
Grandad’s Bacon shrunk less when fried (strips lost less of their length and width) than Boar’s Head—That’s because Grandad’s Bacon is NOT injected with water, and is leaner.
Grandad’s Bacon had better taste & texture than Boar’s Head. Grandad’s Bacon had better taste, and was meatier, chewier, and heartier.
Grandad’s Bacon is higher in healthier unsaturated fats than Boar’s Head—That’s due to both the breed and diet of the pigs. The pigs I source my bellies from are pastured (allowed to roam freely and eat plants in the field) and are fed a non-GMO diet. Commercial bacons source their bellies from commercial pork producers that raise the pigs in confinement, and are fed a GMO diet.
Notes:
I repeated the experiment comparing Grandad’s Bacon to Boar’s Head bacon a second time with the same conclusions.
I also did another experiment comparing Grandad’s Bacon to Oscar Meyer Bacon, with Oscar Meyer frying up very similarly to Boar’s Head. Again, Grandad’s Bacon was superior to Oscar Meyer bacon (higher fried weight, less shrinkage, better taste/texture).
