Local Find: Vande Rose Farms Artisan Bacon
In my family, bacon reigns supreme. As a dinner party guest or Webster clan member, you will find bacon fat, lardon, or bacon strips, in almost every dish coming out of the kitchen. For this reason we have made it a full time to job to cull the Fairfield County market in search of great tasting bacon. Recently we came across a find that is worth noting as you head out on your next shopping trip in search of cured pork.
Cooks Illustrated did an exhaustive taste test of artisan bacon in 2008, ranking Vande Rose Farms Artisan Dry Cured Bacon, Applewood Smoked at the top of the list. Brands it beat out were Applegate Farms, Niman Ranch, Nodine's, and North Country Smokehouse. Previously we had to satisfy our pork craving by mail ordering our Vande Rose bacon, but we found it at Balducci's in Westport for $8.99 (It is not sold at their Greenwich location). This is significantly less expensive than the mail order price from Vande Rose. Stock up...but leave a few boxes for us.
Here is what the testers had to say @ Cook's Illustrated:
Recommendation Status: Highly Recommended
Tasters raved that this bacon—which scored a distinct few notches higher than the rest of the lineup—had it all: “Nice balance of sweetness to salt, great deep complex ham flavor, very meaty,” with a “faint fruity taste, sweet and salty.” “A nice, thick cut, very hearty and substantial.” “Classic bacon, but with lots more genuine smoke flavor and in every way better.” “Now you’re talking! This has lots of sex appeal—good balance of everything.” In sum: “A winner.”
Great bacon is all about a balance of sweet, smoky, salty, and meaty—and striking that flavor balance turned out to be the biggest factor for success with our tasters.
By contrast, artisanal bacon takes much more time, as well as hand labor and real wood smoke. It begins with fresh pork bellies, which artisanal producers say make bacon with superior texture and flavor compared to starting with frozen bellies.
Description
Dry-cured with brown sugar, salt, and pepper; hand-rubbed; applewood-smoked
Specialty Market
Reader Comments (11)
Hello! Steph Steph Steph... Did you really write an article about bacon?? OK now I have to step in.. Don't you think you should have told your trainer about this? Or maybe you don't think I read... Anyhow, you just earned 100 pushups next time I see you!
Andrew
I must concur. This stuff is excellent and worth the extra $$. But then again, it's not difficult to justify spending money on pork products in my house either :)
FYI, Fairway in Stamford is also selling this bacon. I believe I paid $6.99.
What's the point of good health if you waste it not eating bacon?
uuuummmmmm....bbbbbaaaaaaccccccooooooonnnnnnnn!!!
Let's see...Fairway sells this bacon, chicken thighs are on sale this weekend for $0.99, plenty of red wine from holiday visitors...sounds like coq au vin on Sunday night to watch the football games. :-))
Want a real treat? Coat your Vande Rose bacon in brown sugar and bake @ 375 for 25-30 minutes...or until delicious.
For some reason, this thread reminds me of one of my favorite Simpsons moments ever:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1pMDXHTJYs
Ha, Coq au Vin it was and the bacon at Fairway was $7.49. As for ingredients, the wine and bacon were more expensive than the chicken at $.99 per il!
Bought it at Fairway yesterday and had some this am. Excellent. Our family has been addicted to Niman Ranch's bacon for a long time, and this brand is just as good! I would have to have a "side by side" to determine which one is better.
Eduardo-If you proceed with a side by side taste test, please report back to the curious masses.