Wait, Bacon Bits Aren't Actually Bacon? (2024)

FAQs

Wait, Bacon Bits Aren't Actually Bacon? ›

According to Mashed, the components of your pre-made bacon bits vary by maker. McCormick Bac'n Pieces—one of the more popular brands—are 100-percent vegan. In place of cured pork, the food item contains textured soy flour and canola oil.

According to Mashed, the components of your pre-made bacon bits vary by maker. McCormick Bac'n Pieces—one of the more popular brands—are 100-percent vegan. In place of cured pork, the food item contains textured soy flour and canola oil.

HORMEL^® BLACK LABEL^® fully cooked bacon is ready to use right out of the package.

While neither brands are especially sinister, both types of bacon bits are highly processed—which definitely isn't good to shovel into your body. So if you're craving bacon bits, it's probably best to crumble nitrate-free strips of the real deal, or try making coconut bacon bits if you don't eat meat.

It's unsafe to eat this popular breakfast item raw due to an increased risk of food poisoning. Instead, you should cook bacon thoroughly — but be careful not to overcook it, as doing so can increase the formation of carcinogens. It's healthiest to limit your consumption of bacon and other processed meats.

Bacon is a cut from the belly of the pig along the ventral line. However, butchers may also make bacon from cuts of pork other than pork belly—for instance, back bacon is from the loin, jowl bacon is from the cheeks, cottage bacon is from pork shoulder, and slab bacon typically comes from side cuts.

SMOKE FLAVORING ADDED USA Domestic Ingredients: Bacon (Cured With, Water, Salt, Sugar, Sodium Erythorbate, Sodium Nitrite., May also contain Smoke Flavoring, Dextrose, Brown Sugar, Sodium Phosphate, Sea Salt, Potassium Chloride, Sodium Diacetate, Flavoring, Honey).

Real Bacon Bits Jar - HORMEL® BLACK LABEL® Bacon.

So what are these bits actually made from? They're basically just flavored soy protein chunks. The texturized soy flour gives that same meaty texture you get from tofu or textured vegetable protein. This is an easy (and most likely affordable) way to make a shelf-stable version of our favorite cured meat.

Can you eat bacon bits cold? ›

If bacon is to be served cold it has to be cooked until quite crisp, carefully drained and then thoroughly blotted to remove every bit of excess fat. Strips of cold, crispy bacon on a sandwich or bits of cold crispy bacon in a salad is delicious. Congealed bacon grease is not.

Some bacon bit brands are vegan

If you're vegan, you are likely already wary of any product labeled "bacon," and for good reason. While rumors have long claimed that this popular baked potato topping is actually meatless, not all brands of commercial bacon bits have ditched the meat in their recipes.

What are bacon bits made of? Many brands of bacon bits are vegan because the main ingredient is actually textured vegetable protein (soy protein), typically soy flour, which is produced from ground soybeans. Brands choose to use soy flour because it is typically cheaper than bacon, and has a much longer shelf life.

Ingredients: Pork Bellies Cured With Water, Salt, Sugar, Natural Smoke Flavor, Sodium Phosphate, Sodium Erythorbate, Sodium Nitrite.