I bought a different brand of bacon this week, a brand called Leadbetters, made in Ontario. The bacon seems so much wetter than the Schneiders, Metzgers, Maple Leaf, President’s Choice, various Farm Boy Bacons or bacon from the butcher that I’ve bought. I’ve been trying a lot of different brands lately.
Any thoughts? I noticed a slight odor- not bad exactly , the pack had been opened 4 days ago.
It’s a naturally cured bacon without sugars and probably less preservatives. Slightly less red in colour which I figured was oxidation while being low on preservatives.
No weird colours. Could it just be a different style?
Ok- looks like wet or slime means the bacon was starting to go bad.
Guess I’ll toss it. I think this bacon already was on the wet side when I opened it 4 days ago.
Harters
(John Hartley - a culinary patriot eating & cooking in Northwest England)
2
At a guess, the wetness may be due to the way they cure it. Although if the smell seemed “wrong” to you, maybe it was starting to turn bad. If it was me, I wouldnt be buying it again - who needs wet, smelly bacon.
By the by, is your trying different brands something of a mission for you? We did a similar exercise with sausages when our then favourite went out of production and we need a new product.
I am cooking dinner around 27 nights a month, so my shopping habits have changed a lot over 3 years! Before 2020, I was cooking 16 nights a month, and dining inside restaurants around 10- 20 meals a month, because most of my social was meeting up with friends in gastropubs, restaurants for brunch or dinner.
Part of the change has been to try different bacons , different coffees, different hot dogs, all the upscale bakeries, to keep things a little more interesting at home since we are eating almost all our meals here.
I’ve also been trying out the same type of pizza (deluxe in Canada, which typically means pepperoni, green pepper and mushrooms, and sometimes also bacon and onions) at many different pizzerias around town. And all the fish & Chip take-outs in town. Etc.
So, yes, it’s sort of a mission or a survey. So far, Metzgers bacon is my favourite streaky bacon in Ontario.
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I’m finding dozens of posts now about wet or slimy bacon being spoiled.
I usually buy my bacon in 2.5 to 3 pound packages, break it up and vacuum seal and freeze it. Upon thawing, it’s always wet. I just dry it with a paper towel and roll on down the road.
I’ve always seen Leadbetter products marketed as the cheap alternative in the local grocery stores. If you are able, try some bacon from a local farm store. It will be much firmer, will taste better, and will support your local farmer instead of a holding company (In this case Premium Brands).
I’ve been trying different brands of bacon, and I do buy bacon at the butcher’s counter at my indie market called Remark in London, as well as at Sanagans Meat Locker in Kensington Market in Toronto!
I didn’t know anything about Leadbetter until you mentioned this today. I had purchased it at Sobeys, where I also can purchase Metzger’s bacon, which is made in Hensall, and is my local go-to cured meat maker for southwestern Ontario.
Which butcher is your favourite, close to where you are based? Which are your favourite farm shop
My main farm shop near London is Crunican’s, which is an orchard that now sells a lot of Ontario-made goods, as well as apples.
The meat is all vacuum-packed and frozen. I buy BaconAcre pork products that are made jn Granton, ON, there. BaconAcre also sells their products at some local farmers’ markets from May to October.
Stone Horse Farm is terrific for pork products. When I was there, recently, Lisa was roasting a big batch of potatoes for the pigs. The animals are very well cared for.
Nicholyn Farms is one of the larger farm stores. Lots of local products and some food made on site.
Edwards farm store is smaller, but also has excellent quality products. I especially like their beef and eggs.
Though it’s a large scale operation, I get my ducks from King Cole..
As far as butchers go, there is no one near by that comes close to what’s in Toronto. If I need a butcher I go to Eddystone Meats.. It’s an Italian butcher shop/import store and is fantastic. On the weekend, they serve complimentary espresso to the customers lined up at the butcher cases. Be forewarned, it can be very busy.
Milk and cream are from Millers dairy in Creemore. They supply quite a few grocery stores.
Other places I visit are tiny, local producers that only operate seasonally but offer something special. Produce stand on the side of the road type of thing.
When I find a great place with good people, I go there often.
2 Likes
CCE
(Keyrock the unfrozen caveman lawyer; your world frightens & confuses me)
13
That right there is some kind of Pork Blasphemy!
But I’ve never noticed frozen/thawed bacon to be much wetter. Maybe if in the thawing process, I let it come all the way up to room temp, there’s be a bit more liquid in the pack.
I just buy whatever of my acceptable brands is BOGO and get 3-4 pounds at a time. A couple go in the fridge drawer if I think I’ll get at them before use-by (I’m generally cooking 2 pounds at a time) and the other 2 go in the freezer.
For this
To be honest when cooking only for myself I’ve lifted a couple of pieces off a slimy pack and if the slippery stuff is only on the outside (not in-between slices), then I’ve rinsed, patted dry, and proceeded to cook. I’ve had at least once where a bit of off odor remained after rinsing and tossed it. I’ve had a couple of other times where it smelled fine after the rinsing and cooked it.
I’ve done the same thing with a trout or salmon fillet that I forgot in the fridge day or 2 past when I should have, and they turned out fine. But again, I wouldn’t feed this to anyone else, just to be safe. If cooking for others I’d have tossed it like you did.
Unfortunately, I got stuck in traffic near Barrie. I decided to try to cut through Barrie rather than staying on the 400 which had 2 closed lanes, then I ran into more traffic crossing under the 400.
I got to Creemore at 4:10 pm and the bakeries and shops had closed.
I hope to visit another time. The colours are nice between Creemore and Shelburne right now, more vibrant than they are between Shelburne and London.
I don’t know about the moisture, but i can smell, loudly, when the white slim has set in. I wonder if the off smell might not have been the meat source. I’ve purchased jamestown brand, cheap stuff, and it is made of piss pig. Uncastrated boar bacon. It’s nasty.
