# It's been years since I cooked bacon. It's delicious but I forgot what a ferocious stink it makes! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 1, 2016, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-years-since-i-cooked-bacon-its-delicious-but-i-forgot-what-a-ferocious-stink-it-makes/741923 "2016-01-01T17:51:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2016, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-years-since-i-cooked-bacon-its-delicious-but-i-forgot-what-a-ferocious-stink-it-makes/741923/21 "2016-01-01T19:59:53Z")
> [@astro](#): > > Most bacon when cooked in quantity has (to me) a very obvious, sometimes overpowering urine note or “glandy” smell. This does not detract from it’s deliciousness, but I have learned that there are number of people who (for whatever reason) cannot detect this smell as part of the overall bacon smell. Seriously? What kind of “bacon” are you buying? ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2016, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-years-since-i-cooked-bacon-its-delicious-but-i-forgot-what-a-ferocious-stink-it-makes/741923/22 "2016-01-01T20:41:37Z")
> [@astro](#): > > It’s been years since I cooked bacon. It’s delicious but I forgot what a ferocious stink it makes! > Last night all the stores were closed except for the Wawa gas-convenience store. So for tomorrow’s 2016 breakfast eggs, an apple, OJ, some cheddar… oh it’s bacon! Been a while…hum… bacon. Sweet memories. Ok get some bacon! > > Oh my God! I now have all the windows open and that acrid hog urine tinge stink is still floating in the air! “It’s been years” since you cooked bacon. There’s your first tip off that you aren’t a fan of bacon. You bought your bacon at the convenience store. Probably OK but not great. > [@astro](#): > > Yes the bacon was perfect and very crispy the way I like it. This requires having the bacon roast itself in it’s own grease as it cooks and as this happens things get pretty smoky near the end. I will tolerate no limpness or gelatinous fat on my bacon. It’s fried to a perfect brown crispy crunch. You overcooked the bacon until the fat burned. Not the fault of the yummy bacon. If it’s smoking near the end, you overcooked it. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2016, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-years-since-i-cooked-bacon-its-delicious-but-i-forgot-what-a-ferocious-stink-it-makes/741923/23 "2016-01-01T21:17:14Z")
So I’m trying to figure out what’s going on with the OP. There’ve been times when I’ve cooked bacon that was a little past its best-by date, and it’s had a weird sour smell, and I’ve thrown it out. Is it possible that this bacon was slightly spoiled? In reading about making modern bacon (in McGee’s [On Food and Cooking](http://www.amazon.com/On-Food-Cooking-Science-Kitchen/dp/0684800012)), it looks like most modern bacon is only “cured” for a few hours, mostly just injected wtih a brine of 15% salt and 10% sugar. This watery brine is cooked off. So, there’s a mist in the air of sugar, salt, and animal proteins. I guess I could see how that might evoke urine in some people’s minds. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2016, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-years-since-i-cooked-bacon-its-delicious-but-i-forgot-what-a-ferocious-stink-it-makes/741923/24 "2016-01-01T21:29:54Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > You need to see a doctor. Two doctors, one for your nose, and then a psychiatrist. Here [Controlling boar taint](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boar_taint) ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2016, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-years-since-i-cooked-bacon-its-delicious-but-i-forgot-what-a-ferocious-stink-it-makes/741923/25 "2016-01-01T21:36:32Z")
Bacon is one of the foods we aren’t allowed to microwave in the break room kitchen at work. The Smell lingers and gets around the entire building. I microwave it at home and don’t notice the smell after 15 or 20 mins. I haven’t cooked bacon in a skillet in at least 10 years. Microwave is so much easier. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2016, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-years-since-i-cooked-bacon-its-delicious-but-i-forgot-what-a-ferocious-stink-it-makes/741923/26 "2016-01-01T21:38:38Z")
> [@](#): > > Quoth **Left Hand of Dorkness** : > > I like mine crispy too, but there’s a super-fine line between crispy and burnt, and the instant you cross that line, it smells terrible, like burnt hair. For the last thirty seconds or so, you have to watch and flip the bacon a lot. Almost exactly what I was going to say. Though it depends on just what you’re using it for: Eating it straight, crispy is ideal, but a little bit chewy is OK. For a BLT, the crisp is essential. And as a first step in cooking something else, like chili or baked beans, it should be a bit short of crisp. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2016, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-years-since-i-cooked-bacon-its-delicious-but-i-forgot-what-a-ferocious-stink-it-makes/741923/27 "2016-01-01T21:54:53Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Almost exactly what I was going to say. Though it depends on just what you’re using it for: Eating it straight, crispy is ideal, but a little bit chewy is OK. For a BLT, the crisp is essential. And as a first step in cooking something else, like chili or baked beans, it should be a bit short of crisp. Crispy to burny … skating a razor’s edge of deliciousness. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2016, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-years-since-i-cooked-bacon-its-delicious-but-i-forgot-what-a-ferocious-stink-it-makes/741923/28 "2016-01-01T22:13:49Z")
Anybody remember the contest for the [Bacon Alarm Clock app](http://www.360i.com/work/awaken-bacon/), complete with scent emitter. I entered but didn’t win. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2016, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-years-since-i-cooked-bacon-its-delicious-but-i-forgot-what-a-ferocious-stink-it-makes/741923/29 "2016-01-01T22:42:45Z")
> [@astro](#): > > Here > > [Controlling boar taint](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boar_taint) Well there’s your problem. Don’t buy bacon made from a pig’s taint. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2016, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-years-since-i-cooked-bacon-its-delicious-but-i-forgot-what-a-ferocious-stink-it-makes/741923/30 "2016-01-01T23:01:34Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > For a BLT, the crisp is essential. Yup. My main bacon consumption is in sandwiches (cold cuts, bacon, lettuce, pickled onions, avocado, tomato, sriracha, mayo, pepper, salt on toast–goddamn I’m hungry), and the crispness is necessary there as well. If the bacon is eaten straight, I’m okay with anything more done than rubber and less done than charcoal. ---
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-years-since-i-cooked-bacon-its-delicious-but-i-forgot-what-a-ferocious-stink-it-makes/741923/31 "2016-01-03T02:20:55Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > Cooked bacon smells okay. Cooked maple bacon smells stomach turning and lingers _for days_. I gave up eating breakfast sausage years ago after catching a whiff of the pan used to cook some maple sausage. XP ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-years-since-i-cooked-bacon-its-delicious-but-i-forgot-what-a-ferocious-stink-it-makes/741923/32 "2016-01-03T21:13:52Z")
> [@astro](#): > > Christ! Cough! Yum! Crunch! Nom! Christ! How do you feel about chitlins? ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-years-since-i-cooked-bacon-its-delicious-but-i-forgot-what-a-ferocious-stink-it-makes/741923/33 "2016-01-03T21:24:46Z")
> [@astro](#): > > Yes the bacon was perfect and very crispy the way I like it. This requires having the bacon roast itself in it’s own grease as it cooks and as this happens things get pretty smoky near the end. Cooking bacon should never smoke; you have the heat too high. You can make perfectly crispy brown bacon at a lower temperature that does not smoke. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-been-years-since-i-cooked-bacon-its-delicious-but-i-forgot-what-a-ferocious-stink-it-makes/741923.md?page=1)