Meet/meat our air-dried bacon. A pancetta-style bacon of British heritage breed pork, this is bacon with credentials.
The Makers' Inspiration
As nose to tail charcutiers, you have to make a bacon. Pork belly, aged slowly so that the meat flavour is concentrated while the fat is cured, is a fantastic experience. It's a classic, and you don't really mess with a classic.
How We Make It
Made in the style of Italian pancetta, with a couple of our own special ingredients added, air-dried bacon is first cured in a special blend of spices. The next step is what divides bacon as we know it from pancetta. Months of hang time give additional, inimitable depth of flavour.
Tasting Notes
The little black dress of cured meat, air-dried bacon is a classic that goes with everything and works for all occasions. It's an exceptional pizza or salad topping, and perfect in a layered sandwich. It also works really well as a rollito wrapper, or for upscale pigs in blankets.
The Judges' Verdict - Great Taste 2 Star
"This is full of salty, porky flavour and would work wonderfully in a quiche, spaghetti carbonara or crumbled over broad beans."
"This is beautifully striated, lacily thin and crisp in aspect. Crispness translates immediately to the palate along with marked, almost funky porkiness. The spice is sound, and happily plays second fiddle to the porky impact. Chewing reveals a depth of sweetness to the cure. A delightful example of British pancetta."
Our sliced air-dried streaky bacon is often rolled before curing, depending on the size of the cut we're using. If it's been rolled, you'll receive round rashers, as shown in this photo. You'll be able to stretch these out into straight rashers before cooking if you wish or keep them round and pop them straight in a sandwich when cooked.
Cooking tip: Air-dried pancetta contains a lot less water than normal bacon, and it's thinly cut, so it'll cook much quicker than you're used to - keep a close eye on it!