Bacon is no longer an ingredient on the guilty list. Both research and common sense have proven that if you can, eat it, because we need these fats too.
Many diets and special diets often leave us with a deficiency in our bodies, which not everyone consciously fills. Educated vegans are already aware of the sources of vitamins and nutrients in their own diet, but not everyone is fully informed.
Beneficial effects
Bacon contains Omega-6 fatty acid, which is very difficult for our bodies to produce naturally and we have to get it from somewhere. We can substitute it with food or concentrates, but I always go for the former. Few people know that vegetarians can get this fatty acid into their bodies even without bacon. Omega-3 and 6 fatty acids are also found in sunflower seeds, walnuts, tofu, flaxseeds and soya beans in high levels. But for those of us who are not vegans, I think we prefer to replace these fatty acids with a few slices of bacon on our onion bread, or even a bit of meaty with bacon from Kolozsvár.
The meaty bacon: the kolozsvári
My favourite of all, it's slightly smoky, with lots of layers of meat, some of which is softer and juicier, but it doesn't lack fat. It's just as good roasted, fried or raw, and is probably the best-selling meat for barbecuing in the garden. A bacon from Cluj Napoca marinated for a longer period, matured and then smoked. The pork is skinned from the backbone of the pig, which alternates between the fatty and the meaty parts. The process has been used for over 200 years and has not been changed much, as it is tried and tested and delicious.
Is bacon the children's favourite?
One of the most interesting things about all the cooking camps I have attended in my many years of experience in cooking school was that bacon was one of the children's favourite ingredients, both in the villages and in the city. When a big slab of smoked delicacy was brought out, most of them would scream and immediately try it. I think we see bacon not just for its taste and saltiness, but as part of our culture. It comes with fresh bread, onions and a good knife. Grandfathers and grandmothers still eat it for dinner, and to be honest, as we get older, it's coming up more and more in our house. When we've tasted all the Italian pastas, the Indian cuisine, the French dessert specialities, we have bacon with our homemade bread in the evening with a glass of wine. Just because it feels good.
The best recipes for Cluj Napoca bacon
A big favourite of our family is the cabbage casserole from Cluj-Napoca, which is not from Cluj-Napoca, but still requires the meaty bacon, so that we don't bite into the fatty bacon while eating. The thinly sliced Cluj-Napoca bacon is a good way to wrap the poultry livers, then cook a pear compote and rice biscuits to go with it. It's also a great classic in casseroles under fried eggs, and diced on its own on the barbecue with vegetables on summer evenings.#
