# What do you call an individual unit of bacon? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 8, 2013, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-an-individual-unit-of-bacon/649719 "2013-02-08T18:06:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-an-individual-unit-of-bacon/649719/81 "2013-02-11T00:55:40Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > In a standard hotel, cafe or greasy spoon, you’re probably likely to be served back bacon, for some reason - so visitors tend to experience British bacon as you describe. Natives enjoy a wider choice. This is true. My main experiences with bacon in the UK was in fry ups, where it was invariably back bacon. I know streaky bacon exists, given that I know the name and it’s not called such in the US. I just thought “bacon” generically usually referred to back bacon, as opposed to the streaky bacon in the US (where we also commonly have back bacon in the form of Canadian bacon.) ---
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-an-individual-unit-of-bacon/649719/82 "2013-02-11T01:04:04Z")
> [@Steophan](#): > > In the UK. The answer here is _rasher_, which refers to a single slice, of either back or streaky bacon. I didn’t realise it meant something else in the colonies… FWIW it means the same in the loyal colonies anyway … 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Kiwi\_Fruit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kiwi_fruit/32/12_2.png) [@Kiwi\_Fruit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiwi_Fruit)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-an-individual-unit-of-bacon/649719/83 "2013-02-11T03:32:04Z")
It’s a rasher to me, here in NZ. By the way, [this](http://lucys.co.nz/products/the-delicatessen/bacon/) shows what bacon looks like. I think the “streaky” is what is known as bacon in the US. Middle or shoulder is what I’d expect to get served with my bacon and eggs. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-an-individual-unit-of-bacon/649719/84 "2013-02-11T04:22:37Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > I’ve mostly encountered the word “rasher” in relation to provisioning for expeditions or in relation to an army or navy mess as an individual’s allowance of bacon. I’ve always associated the word with “ration”. Now that you mention it, I think the first time I ever encountered the word was when I was reading John Keegan’s _The Face of Battle_: the morning of 1 July 1916, every Tommy on the Somme was given “a rasher of bacon” and a mug of tea for breakfast. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-an-individual-unit-of-bacon/649719/85 "2013-02-11T05:55:53Z")
I said “strip,” but that’s probably due to those “Beggin’ Strips” (dog snacks) ads. I suppose I call them pieces or slices, usually. Slices, pieces, strips, all good descriptive words. “Rasher” seems more specialized, and is not a word I grew up with. Missouri with Ohio roots. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-an-individual-unit-of-bacon/649719/86 "2013-02-11T18:22:07Z")
Kevin. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2013, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-an-individual-unit-of-bacon/649719/87 "2013-02-11T18:37:17Z")
A **milli-Arnold** … ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2013, 9:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-an-individual-unit-of-bacon/649719/88 "2013-02-12T09:16:53Z")
> [@Steophan](#): > > In the UK. The answer here is _rasher_, which refers to a single slice, of either back or streaky bacon. I didn’t realise it meant something else in the colonies… Depends what colonies you mean. I’m from the Cape Colonies, and it’s _rasher_ to me. Or _lardon_. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2013, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-an-individual-unit-of-bacon/649719/89 "2013-02-12T14:24:05Z")
I use all of the first three - piece, slice, strip - interchangeably, so I didn’t respond to the poll. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-call-an-individual-unit-of-bacon/649719.md?page=4)