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TalenaGor

(1,103 posts)
Fri Jul 26, 2019, 06:09 PM Jul 2019

Processed meats are bad but....

So i've been wondering - what if I still want breakfast meat? Ham, Bacon, Sausage - all bad? is there no other options?

but what if I made my own sausage? ground pork, spices...is that still 'processed'? I grew up on a mini-farm and one year we did make our own sausage - it was awesome

can we make our own bacon or ham? and would that be a healthier option?

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Processed meats are bad but.... (Original Post) TalenaGor Jul 2019 OP
Yes you can. My brother in Florida, I think has a recipe he found OnDoutside Jul 2019 #1
oohhhh yes please!!! TalenaGor Jul 2019 #2
Here you go OnDoutside Jul 2019 #10
awesome thank you!! TalenaGor Jul 2019 #13
You can buy ground pork, beef, turkey, chicken at the grocery store. Add your own seasonings and japple Jul 2019 #3
I just don't trust grocery stores or factory meats, so safeinOhio Jul 2019 #7
Whatever you prefer...not making any judgments here. japple Jul 2019 #9
Yes you can! iwillalwayswonderwhy Jul 2019 #4
No fennell? irisblue Jul 2019 #5
There are several things I find interesting about this question Clash City Rocker Jul 2019 #6
+1. yonder Jul 2019 #8
well yeah but I was thinking sausage might be the easiest to do at home TalenaGor Jul 2019 #11
also ill add... TalenaGor Jul 2019 #12
Nitrates are what turns pork into bacon and ham Major Nikon Jul 2019 #14
Homemade breakfast sausage is super easy to make Kilgore Jul 2019 #15
there is a local company near us that makes an 'uncured' ham that is smoked demigoddess Jul 2019 #16
Nitrates used to cure meat pre-dates Christ Major Nikon Jul 2019 #17
Check the ingredients, I'll bet there's a ton of... sir pball Jul 2019 #18
No fresh sausage is cured sir pball Jul 2019 #19

OnDoutside

(19,908 posts)
1. Yes you can. My brother in Florida, I think has a recipe he found
Fri Jul 26, 2019, 06:14 PM
Jul 2019

for briming Irish style bacon. I can ask him if he has it ?

Btw I've made pork sausage burgers. I got my local butcher to mince some loin pork chops, and then added spices, salt, pepper. You can add whatever you want.

japple

(9,773 posts)
3. You can buy ground pork, beef, turkey, chicken at the grocery store. Add your own seasonings and
Fri Jul 26, 2019, 06:17 PM
Jul 2019

then form into patties, fry them, and then cool and freeze for later use. I do this all the time usually with pork and turkey. You could do a huge batch if you have a big freezer. Make sausage patties & cook in a skillet, then cool and freeze on a large sheet pan. When they are solid, transfer into a freezer bag or other type of container.

safeinOhio

(32,531 posts)
7. I just don't trust grocery stores or factory meats, so
Fri Jul 26, 2019, 06:34 PM
Jul 2019

lamb and goat from local farmers and fresh road kill for me.

iwillalwayswonderwhy

(2,598 posts)
4. Yes you can!
Fri Jul 26, 2019, 06:20 PM
Jul 2019

Ground pork, sage, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, red pepper flakes, mix it up and fry it off. I usually fry off a tiny one to check my spices and salt.

What’s missing? Nitrates and other chemicals.

I make a bunch and freeze them, so that I can take out one or two for the microwave with breakfast.

Clash City Rocker

(3,379 posts)
6. There are several things I find interesting about this question
Fri Jul 26, 2019, 06:33 PM
Jul 2019

First, the obligatory Simpsons joke...

“I’m going to become a vegetarian.”
“Does that mean you’re not going to eat any pork?”
“Yes.”
“Bacon?”
“Yes Dad.”
“Ham?”
“Dad all those meats come from the same animal!”
“Right, Lisa, some wonderful, magical animal!”

I’m tempted to make a joke about tofu bacon, although I’m sure that actually exists. Not sure what it tastes like.

Also it’s interesting that you know how sausage is made and you still enjoy it. That old line about knowing how the sausage is made always implied that the process is so disgusting that it would turn a person off sausage forever.

My best answer is that anything is okay in moderation, just don’t overdo it. Of the three you mentioned, I would think that ham is the healthiest, but I’m not a nutritionist, so what do I know.

Or you can just get your protein from eggs, or be European and eat beans for breakfast.

TalenaGor

(1,103 posts)
11. well yeah but I was thinking sausage might be the easiest to do at home
Fri Jul 26, 2019, 07:13 PM
Jul 2019

that way im not using all the pig anuses scraped up off the floor lol

TalenaGor

(1,103 posts)
12. also ill add...
Fri Jul 26, 2019, 07:15 PM
Jul 2019

I was vegetarian for 3 years and regularly used Morning Star breakfast 'sausage' but bottom line, I knew it was still just processed foods so i quit it....

Major Nikon

(36,814 posts)
14. Nitrates are what turns pork into bacon and ham
Fri Jul 26, 2019, 07:50 PM
Jul 2019

So while you can make your own pork products, without nitrates they won’t be bacon or ham and the shelf life will be far more limited.

The reality is nitrates protect people from food poisoning which is far more of a “bad” thing than any risk derived from nitrates added during the curing process. It’s also true that the vast majority of nitrates you are already consuming comes from vegetables as it occurs naturally. Your own body produces them as well.

As with many other things, everything in moderation, including moderation.

Kilgore

(1,733 posts)
15. Homemade breakfast sausage is super easy to make
Fri Jul 26, 2019, 07:52 PM
Jul 2019

I use this recipe,

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/breakfast-sausage-recipe-2103185

Also leave out the fatback and nutmeg for my taste. When pork butts are on sale at Costco is when I make a batch. They get put up packs of 4 smallish patties which is just right for breakfast.

Super tasty and I know whats in it. Cost comes in about half of Jimmy Dean.

demigoddess

(6,640 posts)
16. there is a local company near us that makes an 'uncured' ham that is smoked
Fri Jul 26, 2019, 09:32 PM
Jul 2019

but does not have the nitrates etc. I love it and buy it whenever I see it and stick it in the freezer. They also make an 'uncured' pepperoni stick and 'uncured' bacon, which I buy whenever I see them. My grown kids smoke their own meats on their patios. None have died or gotten sick yet. Americans made home cured meats like ham, bacon, & sausage since the 1800s at least. and I bet they did not have nitrates as far as I know.

Major Nikon

(36,814 posts)
17. Nitrates used to cure meat pre-dates Christ
Fri Jul 26, 2019, 10:51 PM
Jul 2019

Saltpeter has been around for pretty much all of recorded history. Long before refrigeration people figured out botulism and other pretty nasty pathogens are best controlled with nitrates.

sir pball

(4,726 posts)
18. Check the ingredients, I'll bet there's a ton of...
Sun Jul 28, 2019, 09:55 PM
Jul 2019

...celery powder in the "uncured" products. Provides just as much nitrate/nitrite as standard pink curing salt, but the FDA considers it a flavoring agent so the.company can't even legally call it "cured" even though it's, well, cured.

sir pball

(4,726 posts)
19. No fresh sausage is cured
Sun Jul 28, 2019, 09:59 PM
Jul 2019

Even the cheapest store-brand brown-n-serve or Italian sausage won't have added nitrate/nitrite, that's only in bacon, ham and dried sausages...the quality of the other ingredients might leave something to be desired, but fresh sausage itself is more akin to a flavored hamburger than a country ham.

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