Bring home the bacon: Top 8 sizzling supermarket rashers

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What’s the difference between dry cured and ‘traditional’ rashers? Is the extra price for dry cured worth it and how does it affect taste and texture?

Bacon is created by curing pork with salt, as it was years ago before refrigeration when the household pig was killed and needed to be preserved to feed the family. Dry curing was the traditional method of rubbing pig meat with salt for weeks. These days wet curing accelerates the process by soaking or pumping the bacon with water and curing salts, including potassium nitrite and sodium nitrite. It’s more profitable for producers and costs less to consumers. These are often labelled ‘traditional’ but are not dry-cured.