Eating Bacon...good or bad on a diet
Replies
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Chef_Barbell wrote: »SusanMFindlay wrote: »Chef_Barbell wrote: »glenelliott5872 wrote: »I love the party line that others have written but the truth is that it is very difficult to know precisely how much fat is in bacon. Personally I love it and eat bacon often but I now go for leaner bacon and I cut off obvious fat. Eating fat is fine if you can count it but it can be difficult. Fried eggs are great too but I love poached so why have fried
It's on the package. Not hard to figure out at all.
Except that most of us drain off at least some of the fat that cooks out of the bacon. Which actually makes bacon a great diet food because it's one of the few foods that I know I am underestimating the calories of (unless I then use the fat to cook greens). And I haven't yet found a way to add negative calories for the bacon fat not eaten.
I use the bacon fat to make other things. So I figure the calories even out since I technically logged the fat at some point.
A friend of mine uses hers to pop her popcorn in. I definitely approve of such practices.5 -
crzycatlady1 wrote: »lynn_glenmont wrote: »crzycatlady1 wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »JaydedMiss wrote: »did you really expect people to say bacon is good diet food
? lol. Eat it just log it 
Why is it bad diet food? I don't eat diet food, I just eat food. The tastiest options I can fit into my calorie goal.
I've never understood why bacon gets such a bad rap, two slices of regular bacon are under 100 cals. That's pretty easy to fit into my breakfast on a regular basis. It's the eating bacon in excess, just like any other food, that becomes the issue...
Yesterday I took leftover bacon and added it to a Lean Cuisine Grilled Chicken Caesar entree, along with some frozen veggies, and it was amazing! Better than the pasta dish I regularly get at a local restaurant. Very filling and it came in under 400 calories!
?? I don't understand. What is this "leftover bacon" of which you speak?
I think we witnessed the birth of a new myth that will forever be thrown around on MFP.
Ha, yes we actually do have leftover bacon when I make up a package
There's 5 of us and two of my kids don't like it (weirdos!). I usually throw in the leftovers with whatever I'm eating for lunch the next day.
You're baconing wrong. You're supposed to cook all the bacon, eat all the bacon, and buy more bacon. Rinse, repeat.
It is so good in other dishes though!
I'm makin' bacon - current lot curing is Maple Espresso bacon. Nommy nommy.4 -
cwolfman13 wrote: »leanjogreen18 wrote: »Serious question for the bacon eaters...
Does the fact that's it's a #1 carcinogen worry anyone? I mean once in awhile I see it but eating often would worry me.
As a side note I don't eat meat for various reasons but when I did bacon was a staple for several years.
Actually, if you look at the studies and not articles, your risk goes up by a pretty infinitesimal amount...overall risk is multiplied by 1.2% or something like that...
That said, I only eat bacon probably a couple of times in a given month...usually a random Saturday or Sunday...I've never quite understood the obsession myself. I'd actually much prefer some good breakfast sausage...but nobody in my family seems to like that unless we're camping for some reason.
I get the bacon love (though breakfast sausage is delicious, too, I agree. ) It's the bacon-flavored-everything craze that bothers me.1 -
SusanMFindlay wrote: »Chef_Barbell wrote: »glenelliott5872 wrote: »I love the party line that others have written but the truth is that it is very difficult to know precisely how much fat is in bacon. Personally I love it and eat bacon often but I now go for leaner bacon and I cut off obvious fat. Eating fat is fine if you can count it but it can be difficult. Fried eggs are great too but I love poached so why have fried
It's on the package. Not hard to figure out at all.
Except that most of us drain off at least some of the fat that cooks out of the bacon. Which actually makes bacon a great diet food because it's one of the few foods that I know I am underestimating the calories of (unless I then use the fat to cook greens). And I haven't yet found a way to add negative calories for the bacon fat not eaten.
I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but the Calories in pan-fried bacon exclude the fat that is rendered in the cooking process.
In the below side-by-side comparison of the USDA entries for raw bacon and pan-fried cooked bacon, note the protein per slice of raw versus cooked pan-fried is nearly the same (the difference results from the lab taking the average of a number of tests), whereas the Calories and fat grams are much lower. This indicates that the USDA labs are taking a 28g slice of raw bacon with 117 Calories, cooking it, draining the fat, and the result, on average, is an 11.5g slice of pan-fried cooked bacon with 54 Calories.
I noticed this two years ago, and I now drain away and save the rendered bacon fat. When I use it for cooking, I log the rendered fat in MFP as "Pork - Bacon, rendered fat, cooked (bacon drippings)."
The bacon I use lists 200 calories per 50 grams (2 slices), so that's what I log. That matches your data for raw uncooked bacon (and I do weigh the slices not just count them). Maybe it's because I'm in Canada, so maybe they have to report the nutritional information that way? I noticed one package that listed two sets of values - one for raw weight and one for cooked. But I still use the raw weight data because I'd never be able to be sure that I drained off the same amount of fat as they did.2 -
SusanMFindlay wrote: »<<snip>>
The bacon I use lists 200 calories per 50 grams (2 slices), so that's what I log. That matches your data for raw uncooked bacon (and I do weigh the slices not just count them). Maybe it's because I'm in Canada, so maybe they have to report the nutritional information that way? I noticed one package that listed two sets of values - one for raw weight and one for cooked. But I still use the raw weight data because I'd never be able to be sure that I drained off the same amount of fat as they did.
Yet another reason to move to Canada! Canadians are much smarter.
Here is a sampling of the bacon trickery practiced in the U.S. I guess if you read carefully, some packages may say "as prepared." I don't have any packages in the house right now to check.
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Now I want bacon
I'm angry because I have none in the house. Fortunately, they usually serve some in the cafeteria in the mornings!2 -
dragon_girl26 wrote: »cwolfman13 wrote: »leanjogreen18 wrote: »Serious question for the bacon eaters...
Does the fact that's it's a #1 carcinogen worry anyone? I mean once in awhile I see it but eating often would worry me.
As a side note I don't eat meat for various reasons but when I did bacon was a staple for several years.
Actually, if you look at the studies and not articles, your risk goes up by a pretty infinitesimal amount...overall risk is multiplied by 1.2% or something like that...
That said, I only eat bacon probably a couple of times in a given month...usually a random Saturday or Sunday...I've never quite understood the obsession myself. I'd actually much prefer some good breakfast sausage...but nobody in my family seems to like that unless we're camping for some reason.
I get the bacon love (though breakfast sausage is delicious, too, I agree. ) It's the bacon-flavored-everything craze that bothers me.
Heh, I always feel grinchy in these threads because although I like bacon fine (it's good in various dishes and I might have it for breakfast once a month or so) I don't get the enormous love, as if it's the best of all possible foods. It's nice enough but IMO overrated, and I'd prefer a really good pork chop. But I know that's heresy. ;-)4 -
SusanMFindlay wrote: »<<snip>>
The bacon I use lists 200 calories per 50 grams (2 slices), so that's what I log. That matches your data for raw uncooked bacon (and I do weigh the slices not just count them). Maybe it's because I'm in Canada, so maybe they have to report the nutritional information that way? I noticed one package that listed two sets of values - one for raw weight and one for cooked. But I still use the raw weight data because I'd never be able to be sure that I drained off the same amount of fat as they did.
Yet another reason to move to Canada! Canadians are much smarter.
Here is a sampling of the bacon trickery practiced in the U.S. I guess if you read carefully, some packages may say "as prepared." I don't have any packages in the house right now to check.
Do canadian's even have real bacon?4 -
dragon_girl26 wrote: »cwolfman13 wrote: »leanjogreen18 wrote: »Serious question for the bacon eaters...
Does the fact that's it's a #1 carcinogen worry anyone? I mean once in awhile I see it but eating often would worry me.
As a side note I don't eat meat for various reasons but when I did bacon was a staple for several years.
Actually, if you look at the studies and not articles, your risk goes up by a pretty infinitesimal amount...overall risk is multiplied by 1.2% or something like that...
That said, I only eat bacon probably a couple of times in a given month...usually a random Saturday or Sunday...I've never quite understood the obsession myself. I'd actually much prefer some good breakfast sausage...but nobody in my family seems to like that unless we're camping for some reason.
I get the bacon love (though breakfast sausage is delicious, too, I agree. ) It's the bacon-flavored-everything craze that bothers me.
i'll take bacon flavored everything over pumpkin spice flavored everything any day of the week3 -
I'm pretty picky about where we get our pork from, but in our house, pork is king.
At one time, it was one of the few things my boy could eat that didn't cause a reaction. Now? We still love our bacon and sausage - daily. And bacon grease is a must when cooking. 
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lemurcat12 wrote: »dragon_girl26 wrote: »cwolfman13 wrote: »leanjogreen18 wrote: »Serious question for the bacon eaters...
Does the fact that's it's a #1 carcinogen worry anyone? I mean once in awhile I see it but eating often would worry me.
As a side note I don't eat meat for various reasons but when I did bacon was a staple for several years.
Actually, if you look at the studies and not articles, your risk goes up by a pretty infinitesimal amount...overall risk is multiplied by 1.2% or something like that...
That said, I only eat bacon probably a couple of times in a given month...usually a random Saturday or Sunday...I've never quite understood the obsession myself. I'd actually much prefer some good breakfast sausage...but nobody in my family seems to like that unless we're camping for some reason.
I get the bacon love (though breakfast sausage is delicious, too, I agree. ) It's the bacon-flavored-everything craze that bothers me.
Heh, I always feel grinchy in these threads because although I like bacon fine (it's good in various dishes and I might have it for breakfast once a month or so) I don't get the enormous love, as if it's the best of all possible foods. It's nice enough but IMO overrated, and I'd prefer a really good pork chop. But I know that's heresy. ;-)
This is how I feel about all the peanut butter threads. :laugh:0 -
If eating bacon is wrong then I don't want to be right.
Everything in moderation. I switched to turkey bacon. 30 calories a slice.
I did the same thing to save on calories. I really like the uncured stuff from Costco. That said, the rest of my family still eats their pork bacon. They call my turkey bacon "fake." 1 -
nothing is either good or bad, but thinking makes it so... just stay within your calories and you should be good. then their are those of us who choose to eat clean and vegan, it is not a diet, just a way of life for me. i believe what goes into my body makes a difference, not based on a diet, but my choice of how i want to care for my body. jmo1
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ronjsteele1 wrote: »If eating bacon is wrong then I don't want to be right.
Everything in moderation. I switched to turkey bacon. 30 calories a slice.
I did the same thing to save on calories. I really like the uncured stuff from Costco. That said, the rest of my family still eats their pork bacon. They call my turkey bacon "fake."
Turkey "bacon" has just about the same calories as center cut pork bacon. Not sure why people think turkey fakeon is somehow lower in calories or "healthier".2 -
Chef_Barbell wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »dragon_girl26 wrote: »cwolfman13 wrote: »leanjogreen18 wrote: »Serious question for the bacon eaters...
Does the fact that's it's a #1 carcinogen worry anyone? I mean once in awhile I see it but eating often would worry me.
As a side note I don't eat meat for various reasons but when I did bacon was a staple for several years.
Actually, if you look at the studies and not articles, your risk goes up by a pretty infinitesimal amount...overall risk is multiplied by 1.2% or something like that...
That said, I only eat bacon probably a couple of times in a given month...usually a random Saturday or Sunday...I've never quite understood the obsession myself. I'd actually much prefer some good breakfast sausage...but nobody in my family seems to like that unless we're camping for some reason.
I get the bacon love (though breakfast sausage is delicious, too, I agree. ) It's the bacon-flavored-everything craze that bothers me.
Heh, I always feel grinchy in these threads because although I like bacon fine (it's good in various dishes and I might have it for breakfast once a month or so) I don't get the enormous love, as if it's the best of all possible foods. It's nice enough but IMO overrated, and I'd prefer a really good pork chop. But I know that's heresy. ;-)
This is how I feel about all the peanut butter threads. :laugh:
I almost added that of course my opinion should be further devalued since I don't care about peanut butter and dislike cold cereal, heh!1 -
Alatariel75 wrote: »As long as you're accurately counting the calories for it, have at it. Fat does not make you fat. Excess calories make you fat.
What about sugar?0 -
Alatariel75 wrote: »As long as you're accurately counting the calories for it, have at it. Fat does not make you fat. Excess calories make you fat.
What about sugar?
Similarly, sugar does not make you fat, excess calories make you fat.4 -
Alatariel75 wrote: »As long as you're accurately counting the calories for it, have at it. Fat does not make you fat. Excess calories make you fat.
What about sugar?
Sugar doesn't make you fat. Excess calories (which can come from sugar or any other food that you eat) make you fat.2 -
Bacon is something I gave up for years, switched to a lower cal turkey alternative. Damn was I ever stupid. To think of the pleasure I deprived myself of because of misinformation.
Eat bacon.2 -
deannalfisher wrote: »i'll take bacon flavored everything over pumpkin spice flavored everything any day of the week
Here in Texas there's a grocery store called HEB that just recently came out with something called "Hayride Bacon". It's thick cut bacon with pumpkin and cinnamon spices, it's really good. 90 cals/slice.
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Chef_Barbell wrote: »ronjsteele1 wrote: »If eating bacon is wrong then I don't want to be right.
Everything in moderation. I switched to turkey bacon. 30 calories a slice.
I did the same thing to save on calories. I really like the uncured stuff from Costco. That said, the rest of my family still eats their pork bacon. They call my turkey bacon "fake."
Turkey "bacon" has just about the same calories as center cut pork bacon. Not sure why people think turkey fakeon is somehow lower in calories or "healthier".
Turkey bacon is great because the taste/texture really makes me cut down on the portion sizes while almost but not quite erasing my bacon craving.0 -
IIFYM = Good, pass the bacon please!0
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deannalfisher wrote: »i'll take bacon flavored everything over pumpkin spice flavored everything any day of the week
Here in Texas there's a grocery store called HEB that just recently came out with something called "Hayride Bacon". It's thick cut bacon with pumpkin and cinnamon spices, it's really good. 90 cals/slice.
i think i just threw up a little...you can have it (but i'm not a pumpkin spice fan and that would be a ruination of good bacon to me1 -
UNCURED bacon is fine, as are fried eggs (as long as you're using coconut oil)1
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SusanMFindlay wrote: »<<snip>>
The bacon I use lists 200 calories per 50 grams (2 slices), so that's what I log. That matches your data for raw uncooked bacon (and I do weigh the slices not just count them). Maybe it's because I'm in Canada, so maybe they have to report the nutritional information that way? I noticed one package that listed two sets of values - one for raw weight and one for cooked. But I still use the raw weight data because I'd never be able to be sure that I drained off the same amount of fat as they did.
Yet another reason to move to Canada! Canadians are much smarter.
Here is a sampling of the bacon trickery practiced in the U.S. I guess if you read carefully, some packages may say "as prepared." I don't have any packages in the house right now to check.
Do canadian's even have real bacon?
I really want to flag this as abuse.7 -
Eat the bacon!
Just say "NO" to turkey bacon!5 -
Pumpkin spice (or more correctly pumpkin pie spice)=cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, and allspice, or some combination thereof. I like all of those spices in the right dish (including pumpkin pie), but not on everything (and certainly not in coffee personally), so agree they are overused. I probably wouldn't use them on bacon (although am interested in the experiment, I suppose), and I personally make pumpkin and other winter squashes much more often without using those spices (plain roasted or in a spicy (as in hot) dish). That said, I think the main problem with "pumpkin spice" is that it often tastes kind of fake and perhaps does not really use the relevant spices. Any X-flavored item can have that problem (including bacon flavored, I'd guess).
I also am not personally a fan of bacon in sweet dishes (or chocolate) as currently seems to be popular. On the other hand, bacon with maple syrup on it, yum.0 -
trigden1991 wrote: »As everyone has said, calories matter most.
As a lower calorie suggestion, try turkey bacon.
Depending on the bacon, I have found some regular bacon with just about the same calories as turkey bacon.4
This discussion has been closed.
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