''Bacon: A Love Story, A Salty Survey of Everybody's Favorite Meat'' is a 2009
non-fiction
Nonfiction, or non-fiction, is any document or media content that attempts, in good faith, to provide information (and sometimes opinions) grounded only in facts and real life, rather than in imagination. Nonfiction is often associated with b ...
book about
bacon, written by American writer Heather Lauer. It describes
curing and cooking bacon, gives over 20 bacon recipes, and analyzes the impact of bacon on
popular culture
Popular culture (also called mass culture or pop culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as, popular art or mass art) and objects that are dominant or prevalent in a ...
. The text is interspersed with facts about bacon and bacon-related quips from comedian
Jim Gaffigan
James Christopher Gaffigan (born July 7, 1966) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and producer. His material often addresses fatherhood, laziness, food, religion, and general observations. He is regarded as a "clean" comic, using l ...
.
Background
Before the book's publication, Heather Lauer was a public affairs consultant in
Arizona
Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
.
She got the idea to write a book about bacon after going out for cocktails with her two brothers in 2005.
Lauer explained to ''
The Arizona Republic
''The Arizona Republic'' is an American daily newspaper published in Phoenix. Circulated throughout Arizona, it is the state's largest newspaper. Since 2000, it has been owned by the Gannett newspaper chain. Copies are sold at $2 daily or at $3 ...
'': "I was out drinking with my brothers one night, and the topic of bacon came up. We had eaten bacon as kids, and bacon was a special thing on Sunday mornings. Somehow, the idea came up about how funny it would be to start a blog about bacon ... I took it and ran with it." She began the blog ''Bacon Unwrapped'', at www.baconunwrapped.com,
and a
social networking site about bacon at baconnation.ning.com in 2005.
She began the blog as a joke, but said, "I started to realize there is something about bacon that gets people incredibly excited, and that was fascinating to me."
[Sarah Hepol]
Bacon mania
July 7, 2008 Salon She completed a cross-country bacon tour of America.
Lauer thought that the surge in interest in bacon products prior to the book's publication was "media driven".
She noted that a response to
political correctness as related to cooking and food consumption may have driven interest in the product.
Lauer said that bacon seems to be "the one thing that people are unwilling to give up".
In a post of her blog in March 2009, Lauer lamented those that were willing to posit an end to the trend of interest in bacon.
She commented, "Bacon is something that everybody is familiar with and most people grew up eating. It has a comfort aspect to it and a familiarity. It's also got an addictive aspect to it — that sweet and salty combination of flavors."
She asserted that interest in the product is as much due to the culture surrounding it as to bacon itself.
"Current food trends focus on eating real and eating local, and there's nothing more real than a delicious strip of bacon. In many U.S. cities, local producers and chefs are making a name for themselves because of bacon," said Lauer.
She stated that "most chefs would admit that bacon has long been one of their secret weapons in the kitchen."
Book
''Bacon: A Love Story'' contains information on cooking and
curing bacon,
including "time-honored methods and traditions".
The book analyzes how bacon has affected
popular culture
Popular culture (also called mass culture or pop culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as, popular art or mass art) and objects that are dominant or prevalent in a ...
.
Lauer includes information on chefs who love bacon and venues that serve the product throughout the United States.
The book contains over 20 recipes for dishes made with bacon,
including Bacon
Bloody Mary
Bloody Mary originally referred to:
* Mary I of England (1516–1558), Queen of England and Ireland, so called because of her persecution of Protestants
Bloody Mary may also refer to:
Film
* '' Urban Legends: Bloody Mary'', a 2005 horror fi ...
, Bacon-Wrapped
Tater Tots
Tater tots are grated potatoes formed into small cylinders and deep-fried, often served as a side dish. The name "tater tot" is a registered trademark of the American frozen food company Ore-Ida, but is often used as a generic term. "Tater" ...
, Bacon Bleu Salad, and bacon brownies.
Another recipe is Bristol Bacon by chef Duncan Bristol, who owns the restaurant Brick 29 in
Nampa, Idaho
Nampa () is the largest city in Canyon County, Idaho. Its population was 100,200 at the time of the 2020 Census. It is Idaho's third-most populous city. Nampa is about west of Boise along Interstate 84, and six miles (10 km) west of Meridian. ...
. Interspersed throughout the book are bits about bacon from comedian
Jim Gaffigan
James Christopher Gaffigan (born July 7, 1966) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and producer. His material often addresses fatherhood, laziness, food, religion, and general observations. He is regarded as a "clean" comic, using l ...
, and random information such as that "Cracker Barrel serves 124 million slices of bacon per year".
Lauer notes, "
Speck
Speck can refer to a number of European cured pork products, typically salted and air-cured and often lightly smoked but not cooked.
In Germany, speck is pickled pork fat with or without some meat in it. Throughout much of the rest of Europe a ...
is the direct German translation of the word 'bacon, and observes that the word "creates cross-cultural confusion". The book's "Bacon 411" section provides further information on the product.
''Bacon: A Love Story'' features a tour of country-style
bacon outfits, profiles bacon-loving chefs, includes a "Bacon 411" resource section, has cooking tips and has 20 bacon
recipes
A recipe is a set of instructions that describes how to prepare or make something, especially a dish of prepared food. A sub-recipe or subrecipe is a recipe for an ingredient that will be called for in the instructions for the main recipe.
Hist ...
.
[Food for Thought: Pick vegetables good for grillin]
The Dish On...
Posted May 05, 2009 GateHouse News Service The Holland Sentinel
The book was marketed as the "most comprehensive book about bacon to date".
Lauer promoted her book in a September 2009 appearance as a co-host at the Blue Ribbon Bacon Tour in
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
, hosted by fellow bacon blogger Jason Mosley (Mr. Baconpants, at mrbaconpants.com).
Reception
Writing for ''
The Sacramento Bee'', Allen Pierleoni recommended the book as a gift for
Father's Day
Father's Day is a holiday of honoring fatherhood and paternal bonds, as well as the influence of fathers in society. In Catholic countries of Europe, it has been celebrated on 19 March as Saint Joseph's Day since the Middle Ages. In the Unite ...
, and called the work "entertaining and informational, full of anecdotes, history, recipes and explanations of what pork belly has brought to the popular culture".
Rita Zekas of the ''
Toronto Star
The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and pa ...
'' also recommended the book as a Father's Day gift.
Kerry J. Byrne noted that the book covers "everything from bacon-curing methods to bacon blogs" and includes "easy recipes".
Rachel Forrest of ''
The Portsmouth Herald
''The Portsmouth Herald'' (and ''Seacoast Weekend'') is a six-day daily newspaper serving greater Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Its coverage area also includes the municipalities of Greenland, New Castle, Newington and Rye, New Hampshire; and Eli ...
'' recommended the book in her "Annual Summer Reading List for
Foodie
A foodie is a person who has an ardent or refined interest in food, and who eats food not only out of hunger but also as a hobby. The related terms " gastronome" and "gourmet" define roughly the same thing, i.e. a person who enjoys food for plea ...
s".
"Another of my favorites this year is 'Bacon: A Love Story: A Salty Survey of Everybody's Favorite Meat' by Heather Lauer. A book all about bacon... she profiles chefs that use it, odd finds across the nation and plenty of recipes," commented Forrest.
''
The Arizona Republic
''The Arizona Republic'' is an American daily newspaper published in Phoenix. Circulated throughout Arizona, it is the state's largest newspaper. Since 2000, it has been owned by the Gannett newspaper chain. Copies are sold at $2 daily or at $3 ...
'' highlighted the book among its selection of "Books to help turn pages of summer".
''
Publishers Weekly
''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...
'' reviewed called the book a "voluminous look at all things bacon";
the review concluded, "Readers who, like Lauer, possess a borderline-obsessive love for bacon are likely to embrace this as their new Bible, but anyone else will quickly get their fill."
See also
*
Bacon mania
*
Joanna Pruess
*
List of books about bacon
*
National Pig Day
References
External links
Bacon: A Love Story HarperCollins
HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News ...
Bacon Unwrappedblog
{{Good article
2009 non-fiction books
Cookbooks
Books about bacon