Most people would agree that companies put preservatives and similar chemicals into foods we eat for one simple reason — profit. Chemical additives allow food to stay ‘fresh’ longer and travel better over longer distances… such as from the farm or slaughterhouse to your breakfast table… and that means companies can process foods in bulk without worrying about spoilage which would cost them money.
A lot of people forget, though, that without certain chemical additives, such as nitrites, some of the foods we love, such as bacon, would not taste nearly as good as they do.
In the tasting, the nitrite-free product took tasters by surprise. Complaints arose about its unexpectedly pale color and particularly mild flavor, which led to a rating of “not recommended.” A little knowledge of nitrites explains these characteristics. Sodium nitrite helps fix the red shade of the meat from its raw state by combining with the pigment myoglobin. Nitrites also contribute to bacon’s characteristic cured flavor. It makes sense, then, that nitrite-free bacon neither looked nor tasted the way most tasters expected. Having conducted hundreds of blind tastings over the years, our test kitchen has found that most folks prefer the familiar to the unfamiliar. For most of us, nitrite-free bacon is clearly an acquired taste. ( source )
Now don’t get it twisted. We do not condone the use some preservatives or additives such as MSG (Monosodium Glutamate). Also, in some cases, too much of some preservatives can prove harmful to humans.
Yep. Most bacon contains at least some level of nitrites… and damn if bacon doesn’t taste GREAT!
