We can’t talk about the Art of Breakfast without talking about the art of bacon (and sausage). For some people, breakfast without bacon (and sausage) is like breakfast without bacon (and sausage).
History of Bacon
For the information of the general public, historians believe the first occurrence of bacon was in about 1500 BC in China. This advanced civilization invented bacon, fireworks, opium, and perfected the art of human reproduction long before the rest of the world.
The word “bacon” originated in northern Europe, and is one of the two words that sounds the same in both French and German. Here is a video on this important topic.
What is bacon?
Europeans are well aware of what bacon is, but for Californians, you should know that bacon is the common word for cured strips of thinly sliced pork belly. In order for you to know what pork belly is, you have to know something about pigs.
What is Sausage?
It’s what you do with all of the little ends and pieces left over. This fellow is making high-end craft sausage. There is such a thing as low-end commodity sausage.
The Art of Bacon (and sausage) is about beauty. We’re not going there.
Pigs
The pigs that everybody knows are as follows: The five little piggies that went to market, stayed home, had roast beef, etc. The three little ones, one of which was bright enough to build his house out of bricks. Arnold Ziffel, the pig on Green Acres that could go off diving boards and watch TV. And, Wilbur, who was Zuckerman’s Famous Pig from the famous kids’ book. The Zuckerman case is particularly interesting, and we will discuss it in a minute.
Real pigs, as found in nature, are smart, adaptable, and mean as hell. Domesticated pigs that have managed to spring themselves have overpopulated a lot of the country.
They also get big, as you can see. Fayette County, for your information, is about 66 miles away from the Firefly.
Industrial Pigs
Industrial pigs, like everything else that is industrial, are standardized. The size, shape, and body fat content of a “lean hog” is specified as a commodity. Lean hog contracts are traded in the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.
https://www.barchart.com/futures/quotes/HE*0/profile
The part of the lean hog that is made into bacon is called the “pork belly” and there is also a specification for that.
In fact, a great amount of human energy has been devoted to economically producing the perfect pig. The people that do this sort of thing found out long ago that they needed to confine them, like industrial chickens, and feed them a standardized diet.
They also need to feed them a steady dose of antibiotics to keep them from making each other sick.
The Unintended Cost
The unintended price that society pays for an endless supply of standardized pork is the stink. Where this practice has reached its full expression, namely North Carolina, managing these huge pools of pig excrement is a very serious environmental problem.
The Art of Bacon (and sausage) is not about getting rid of pig crap.
Pasture Pigs
The permaculture people believe in something called “pasture pigs.” Here is how it works:
You get a few pigs, buy a solar powered electric fence, and have a small, relatively happy, and non-stinking bunch of pigs. You move them around occasionally so they don’t tear up the place, which they will.
The pigs more or less hang out like this (until they pay the ultimate sacrifice). They don’t need this abundance of antibiotics. When they get to the right size, they make the trip into town, and a few days later, you get your freezer full of pork chops, if you have a freezer.
The work on this is done by someone you know, and this is thought to be more respectful of the pig. It is also though to provide better, more meaty, more firm pork, and that goes double for the pork belly.
Where you buy your bacon (and sausage).
So, to make a long story short, there is a school of thought that says that how good your bacon (and sausage) is for you is affected a lot by how it was treated when it was a pig. Therefore you, as a responsible consumer, should seek out “pasture pork” if possible.
The local source for pasture pork is the Farmview Market. This lovely place, which is about five miles from the Firefly, features this type of pork on a commercial scale.
https://farmviewmarket.com/product-category/meat/pork-meat/
The pork source for this place is Rock House Farm, which is 11 miles of curvy road away from the Firefly.
So if the Earth Goddess feels like she can afford bacon this week, the message on this is that it was born, fed, smoked and sold within a 15 mile radius of the Firefly. Buy local.
Chain Hotel Bacon (and Sausage)
Ah, we have to have a talk about this.
Chain hotel bacon (and sausage) comes in one of these big stainless steel tubs. Do you think the Chain Hotel Breakfast Goddess gets up at 4 AM and diligently stands there with a frying pan cooking all of that bacon (and sausage?)
Of course she doesn’t. The truth of the matter is, somewhere in the vast pork supply chain, there are operations like this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xkyhf1OIvvo
High Speed Slicer (Video Link)
This high-speed bacon slicer will give you 600 perfect pieces of bacon per minute, and feed them into some kind of a big oven. A bagging robot at the end will put them into a big bag, and it will be sent to either the Hampton Inn or Arby’s.
Do you know what it takes to keep a piece of equipment like this operating? An endless stream of perfectly uniform pork bellies.
So this is why chain hotel bacon (and sausage) tastes exactly like Arby’s bacon (and sausage), and it all tastes like bacon-flavored styrofoam.
The Art of Bacon (and sausage) at the Firefly
It usually comes from the Farmview Market. It is cut by a slicer, which is run by the meat counter guy, who we know the name of. The Earth Goddess actually does get up, and grill it on her little grill.
The pig it came from grew up nearby. Any leftovers will be recycled to the chicken empire, and any grease will be used to flavor something interesting.
You will not get a bacon milkshake or any of a number of other bacon-infused products that are made with industrial bacon.
Zuckerman’s Famous Pig
Zuckerman’s Famous Pig (Video Link)
This is the first recorded incident of a pig becoming famous enough to become a tourist attraction. Mr. Zuckerman made more money on this as such versus a few pounds of bacon and some pork chops.
The Zuckerman Farmstay is probably a B&B now.
We hope that you will visit the Firefly, bed and breakfast near Atlanta for the Earth Goddess Experience, and we will refer you to the pasture pigs. Don’t make us get one of our own.
Friends don’t let their friends try to raise a pig.
