Clarifying Canadian bacon

When celebrating Canada Day, revelers may want to enjoy some of the classic foods borne out of this land in the North.

Thanks to the wide array of people of varied cultures that reside in Canada, cuisine can range from French foods to wild game first hunted by Inuit and other native peoples. Outside of Canada, the country may be best known for a few exports, including maple syrup and Canadian bacon.

“Canadian bacon” describes different products depending on where the person is consuming the food. Americans, Canadians and even the British have different items in mind when referring to Canadian bacon.

To Americans, Canadian bacon is typically a salted, precooked, cured, and smoked pork product that is quite similar to ham. It is commonly offered as a breakfast food and doesn’t crisp up when cooked like traditional bacon. But this isn’t quite what Canadians and the Brits are referring to when they mention Canadian bacon.

Canadians say that true Canadian bacon is something Americans call peameal bacon. Authentic Canadian bacon is cut from lean boneless pork loins, pickle-cured and rolled in golden cornmeal. This bacon is not precooked, so it needs to be cooked before serving. Sometimes Canadian bacon is also referred to as “back bacon” because this is the area of the pig from where the bacon is sliced, rather than the pig belly for other bacons.

Canadian bacon tends to be leaner with considerably less fat than streaky bacon or American bacon. When enjoyed in moderation, Canadian bacon is typically a healthier option than traditional bacon.

Despite Canadian bacon being a term used to describe different pork products, at least its origins are not disputed. It was actually exported to England during the turn of the century when England had a pork shortage. It was smoke cured there, which could, perhaps, be one of the reasons precooked back bacon was eventually called Canadian bacon by Americans. Other foods, such as French fries and French toast, are misnomers, and do not actually refer to their country of origin.