Bacon Facts for Kids

A Picture of Steaming Bacon
  • Name: Bacon
  • Type of Food: Meat
  • Produced From: Pork Belly
  • Total Calories: 43 (one cooked slice, 8 grams)
  • Total Fat: 3.5 grams (one cooked slice, 8 grams)
  • Total Protein: 2.9 grams (one cooked slice, 8 grams)
  • Total Carbohydrates: Negligible (one cooked slice, 8 grams)

27 Bacon Facts for Kids

  1. Bacon is a form of salt-cured pork.
  2. Bacon is a boneless meat usually cut from the under belly or back of a pig, also known as pork belly.
  3. Salt curing, or simply curing, is a method of preserving and flavoring food.
  4. There are other types of meat used to make bacon. For example, bacon made from a turkey is called turkey bacon.
  5. There are variants of meatless bacon, which uses tofu or soybeans instead of meat.
  6. There are five main types of bacon cuts.
  7. The five main types of bacon cuts are back bacon, collar bacon, cottage bacon, jowl bacon and side bacon.
  8. Side bacon comes from the belly of a pig (pork belly).
  9. Back bacon comes from the loin of a pig.
  10. Collar bacon comes from the back of a pig’s head.
  11. Cottage bacon comes from a pig’s shoulder, which is considered a lean meat.
  12. Jowl bacon comes from a pig’s cheeks.
  13. Bacon is a popular breakfast item and commonly considered part of a full breakfast.
  14. Bacon is also used to add flavor to many different types of food dishes, like a club or BLT sandwich.
  15. One sliced of cooked bacon (8 grams) contains 43 calories.
  16. One sliced of cooked bacon (8 grams) contains 3.3 grams of fat (5% of the recommended Daily Value).
  17. One sliced of cooked bacon (8 grams) contains 9 milligrams of cholesterol (3% of the recommended Daily Value).
  18. One sliced of cooked bacon (8 grams) contains 137 milligrams of sodium (5% of the recommended Daily Value).
  19. One sliced of cooked bacon (8 grams) contains 45 milligrams of potassium (1% of the recommended Daily Value).
  20. One sliced of cooked bacon (8 grams) contains negligible amounts of carbohydrates.
  21. One sliced of cooked bacon (8 grams) contains 3 grams of protein (6% of the recommended Daily Value).
  22. Bacon bits is a topping used on different types of food, like a potato or a salad.
  23. Bacon bits can be made from actual bacon, other meats or contain no bacon at all and use artificial flavors to mimic the taste of bacon.
  24. It’s believed bacon first came to North America in 1942 with Christopher Columbus. He brought eight pigs with him on his voyage and by that time bacon was already a staple dish throughout Europe.
  25. Bacon started to gain popularity in the United States when Oscar Mayer started to sell pre-sliced bacon in packages at grocery stores in 1924.
  26. Many cities across America hold an annual bacon festival. These festivals contain bacon tasting, eating contests and other fun activities involving bacon.
  27. Bacon is a common element in many internet memes. A popular one is a picture of bacon that contains the caption “you had me at bacon”.

Additional Resources on Bacon

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