European Bacon vs. American Bacon – What’s The Difference?

Bacon is a crispy dish especially consumed at breakfast. Everyone loves the taste of bacon; however, there exist different kinds of bacon such as European bacon, American bacon and Canadian bacon. Well, let us focus on the two main types, which are European bacon and American bacon.

Both kinds of bacon are consumed at breakfast, but American bacon consists of beans, tomatoes, eggs, which British bacon consists of different fillings. American bacon is thin, crispy and made in fat with the addition of salt, while European bacon is thick, larger, chewier and round in shape.

There is a slight difference between both kinds of bacon: taste and appearance.  British bacon is also called rashers because of its chewer, thick appearance, and taste. American bacon is smoked to get a unique flavor, while British bacon is left unsmoked.

To help you know more in detail, we have mentioned below further information related to American and European bacon and its preparation method and nutritional properties.

American Bacon

American bacon is crispy and salty, along with having a thin appearance. This streaky bacon is made from the pig belly, the area of the pig where there is more fatty and meat layer.  Sometimes pork belly is used to prepare bacon as this area is not thick, and when it is sliced, it comes as long thin strips.

Recipe of preparing American Bacon

There are many ways in which American bacon can be prepared, out of which one recipe is mentioned below.

1. Take pork belly meat and don’t remove its skin.
2. Add pink salt to it, which would be around one teaspoon.
3. Some other ingredients you can add to marinate the bacon are kosher salt (two-ounce), one and fourth cup brown sugar, and maple syrup. This will help your bacon taste delicious.
4. Marinate these ingredients well on the bacon pieces and pack the bacon in a plastic bag. This will release water, and brine will be formed.
5. Leave the meat for at least seven days for better results.
6. After seven days, remove the plastic sheet and wash the bacon and leave it in the fridge for another day.
7. Now cook your bacon in the oven or on the stove with heat around 200 degrees Celsius for three hours at least.
8. After three hours, slice the bacon into pieces and if you see that the inner part remains uncooked, fry the uncooked part in the frying pan.

Nutritional Properties

The nutritional facts related to American bacon are mentioned below according to the serving size of three or 35 grams.

• 161 Kcal total calories
• 12 g Total Fat
• 34 mg cholesterol
• 581 mg sodium
• 172 mg potassium
• 6 g Carbs
• 12 g protein
• 3 percent vitamin A and C
• 8% iron

Health benefits

Some of the health benefits of American bacon are mentioned below.

1. American bacon contains no sugar content; that’s why it is an excellent source of a low carbohydrate diet.
2. The sodium present in it allows fulfilling daily sodium intake according to RDA.
3. American bacon contains fat content, is enriched in oleic acid, and is good for heart health.
4. As it contains high protein content, it helps build muscles and carry out basic functions.
5. One micronutrient present is potassium which improves heart health and prevents high blood pressure.
6. Selenium and phosphorus are also present in bacon, strengthening bone and acting as antioxidants.

As we have learned about American bacon, let’s step towards European bacon.

European Bacon

European bacon is not crispy or streaky, yet it is made from pig loin and is only meat pat. It is a leaner meat portion as compared to American bacon. When the loin part is extracted from the pig, some pork bellies are also added, giving a unique taste and flavor.

Recipe of preparing European Bacon 

There are many ways to cook European bacon, but mostly it is fried in a frying pan.

1. You have to add some oil to the frying pan and leave it to get warmer on high heat.
2. When the oil is ready, add the bacon to the pan and cook it for one minute.
3. If you want to cook the bacon in the oven, then add the oil on the bacon slice and place it inside the oven until bacon comes out all brown and crispy.
4. Lastly, you can also cook the bacon in the microwave and leave it for fifteen minutes on the setting grill, which will give a smoky touch to your bacon.

Nutritional Properties

The nutritional values of European bacon of two serving sizes or 37 grams include as:

• 130 Kcal total calories
• 7 g total fat
• 45 mg cholesterol
• 280 mg sodium
• 0 g carbs
• 16 g proteins
• 2% vitamin C
• 4% iron

Heath Benefits

There are many health benefits of European bacon out of which some are:

1. It promotes HDL cholesterol which maintains heart health and lowers LDL cholesterol in the blood.
2. It contains fewer carbs; it can be consumed even when on a diet.
3. It contains a significant protein amount which acts as a great precursor of amino acid.
4. The high amount of selenium present is vital for keeping the thyroid gland healthy.
5. Vitamin E is also present, which ensures the prevention of eye disease and hair loss.
6. The bacon also maintains brain health by containing choline, which improves memory and learning speed.

So, what’s the difference between American Bacon and European Bacon?

Summarizing the article and highlighting the main difference between American bacon and European bacon underneath.

1. American bacon is taken from pork belly, and European bacon is taken from pork loin.
2. American bacon has meat to fat ratio while European bacon has only meat part mostly.
3. American bacon consists of smoked flavor, while British bacon consists of unsmoked flavor.
4. American bacon contains fats while European bacon doesn’t or in little amounts.
5. The European bacon takes less time to cook as compared to American bacon.

Sources:

• Foodsguy
• Myrecipe
• Foodcrumbles