MINI BACON TASTING

The 'Research & Development' department of Mad Meat Genius got a hot tip of a bacon being created and sold in Redding California. The place called 'Kents Meat & Groceries', did not have a lot of info. They did have an advertisement in the Yellow Pages. I gave them a call and talked to the butcher. The butcher only gave me sparse information about his product. Yes, they do smoke their own bacon. It is smoked with hickory chips and a couple of hundred pounds are made a week. That was enough to set the hook. A quick call to my Metrosexual brother in law, who just so happens to live close to Kents, for a bacon delivery to be set up. You may remember John. He was an integral part of the Cedar Plank Roasted Tofu adventure. John is the best Brother in Law ever. He owns a Harley and is a very dapper and a well accessorized dresser. Best of all he is a good sport.

John arrived with his wife, who We will call Shastina. A couple of cold ones were thrown back. The matter of the Mini Bacon Tasting was brought up. John said He had to leave. As he left, he muttered something under his breath, which I think he said; {"That Chile's out of Kesslers again, I am out here, My bike needs polishing and He will NEVER ride it!!."}. Actually a home emergency needed Johns attention. That left Ms. Goofy, Shastina and myself to taste three bacon's. Let's meet Shastina.

Chilebrown: Hello Shastina, Welcome to Mad Meat Genius!

Shastina: Hi Chile, Its great to be here. What did you say to John?

Chilebrown: Can you tell us a little about yourself.

Shastina: Ms. Goofy and I have know each other for a long
time. In fact we are sisters.

Chilebrown: Does Johnny let you ride his Harley?

Shastina: Yeah, All the time, We love to go for rides.

Chilebrown: Do you think John will let me ride his Harley?

Shastina : NO!

Chilebrown: Do you have any special qualifications for today's
Mini Bacon Tasting?

Shastina: Well, Every time I go to the "All-You-Can-Eat-Big-
House-Buffet", I get a double scoop of 'Bac-o-Bits'
for my salad.

Chilebrown: That is perfect! Let's move on and meet the
Bacon's.
A) Kents Meat & Groceries
8080 Airport Rd. Redding Ca. 96002 530 365-4322
4.98/pound

This bacon is not heavily smoked. The slab was smoked with the rind on and was removed later. There is a good fat to meat ratio.



B) Swingle Meat Co.
12640 Kennedy Flat Rd. Jackson Ca. 95642 209 223-0731
6.19/pound

This bacon was smoked at an Old Fashioned Smokehouse. It has a beautiful color. The first thing you notice is a pleasant smoke odor. This is eye candy bacon. The fat to meat ration leans to the meat side.


C) Chilebrown's 'Maple Bacon Salt' Bacon Experiment.
Mad Meat Genius Kitchen
Rodeo, Ca. 94572
priceless/pound

I am a little biased about this slab of meat. It is very Meaty, NO RIND, great smoke smell.

The tasting was done blind. Our two tasters, Ms. Goofy, and Shastina did not know which bacon they were tasting to the end of the event. The slices were cooked in separate cast iron pans. They were served on paper plates. with only a letter for judging purposes. They were given note pads for tasting notes.

Bacon 'A' was from Kent's Meats. Shastina said this bacon would make great Bac-o-bits. Ms. Goofy thought it was fairly mediocre,it was nothing to write home about.

Bacon 'B' from Swingle's was enjoyed by everybody. It had a smoke flavor that would not quit and was sweet too. Everybody was in agreement that this was quality cured pork.

Bacon 'C' was no surprise. They knew it was my bacon right away. It was very meaty. It was salty just like ham. I am proud to say it was the crowd favorite. Maybe this crowd was a little stacked in my favor.

We had a fun time tasting bacon. We wished Brother John could have stayed. He had to take care of business. I bet he is polishing his Harley right now so I can take it for a spin. Not!