Back bacon

Pork · Loin
GrillSmokeCure
HeadBladeArm ShoulderLoinLegRibsBellyHock

British (and Irish) bacon, made from the pork loin with a strip of attached belly — the rounded lean eye on a rasher of back bacon is the loin, the fatty streaky edge running along it is the belly. The dominant bacon style in the UK and Ireland: leaner than American streaky (which is belly only), fattier than Canadian bacon (which is loin only). Sold as rashers (slices) for breakfast — the canonical "bacon butty" or "full English" component. Available smoked or unsmoked, dry-cured (best, more expensive) or wet-cured (cheaper, more water content). Specific British regional variants include *middle bacon* (longer rasher continuing into the belly) and *Wiltshire bacon* (specific cure protocol).

Raw Back bacon — Pork Loin cut

Names by country

CountryNameNotes
🇬🇧United KingdomBack baconprimaryCured pork loin with attached belly strip; the dominant British bacon style. Sometimes "middle bacon" for the longer-cut version that continues further into the belly.

Similar cuts

Pork loin roastapproximate

Same anatomical primal — back bacon is the cured (and usually smoked) form of the fresh pork loin, with attached belly. Cure changes the texture and flavour profile fundamentally.

Pork bellyapproximate

Anatomically adjacent — the streaky/fatty edge of a back-bacon rasher is from the pork belly (where US streaky bacon comes from). British back bacon combines both loin and belly in one rasher.

Kasslerapproximate

Both cured pork loin products. Kassler is German brine-cured and cold-smoked, eaten reheated (poached or pan-finished). Back bacon is British wet-or-dry cured, sliced into rashers and pan-fried fresh. Same primal, different finished products.

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