Does bacon have to be frozen

[georgevan]

or will it keep for long periods in the frig

 

[Kathleen]

It keeps for a while, but I will freeze it if I near the "use by" date.

 

[Andy M.]

I just bought a four pound bundle of bacon from Costco. have no plans to cook some right away so it all went into the freezer. A pound defrosts fairly quickly on the kitchen counter and is ready for coking in no time.

 

[rodentraiser]

For some reason, pork meat seems to have long expiration dates. Ham, hot dogs, bacon, etc. But I still always freeze mine.

 

[Kathleen]

@rodentraiser Many pork products such as bacon, hotdogs, and some hams have been preserved via a smoking process. One of my grandmothers had a smokehouse to preserve many pork pieces after she butchered a pig. Smoked ham hocks in greens.....mmmmm.

 

[Sir_Loin_of_Beef]

I recently bought a two pound package of thick siced bacon. I froze one pound, then baked the other pound on a sheet pan in the oven. Once it is cooked it lasts in the fridge for a pretty long time.

 

[dragnlaw]

What Kathleen says. All those you mentioned are processed in some way. Raw roasts, chops, ground are like any other raw meat and have limited shelf life.

 

[taxlady]

I recently bought a two pound package of thick siced bacon. I froze one pound, then baked the other pound on a sheet pan in the oven. Once it is cooked it lasts in the fridge for a pretty long time.

You are kidding, right? I imagine it wouldn't go off for a long time, if one didn't eat it. But, how the heck isn't it getting used/eaten for a long time? How do you even know?

 

[taxlady]

Bacon in a sealed package will last a long time in the fidgicator. I have a pack that I recently opened that must have been in the fridge for over a month past the best before date when I opened it. It still smells and feels fine a week later. I do give it a serious sniff and feel the surface before using it when it's that iffy.

 

[Badjak]

It depends
The stuff I buy here is sliced & very wet. I freeze those.
If I make or buy a slab of bacon, then I don't. Wrap in a teatowel and keep in the fridge. Note that I have an old fridge that needs defrosting every now and again. Advantage of this is that it dries out my slab of bacon. The fat becomes firm. No fat needed for frying (unlike those bought sealed packs)

 

[Linda0818]

I'm reading that an opened package of bacon will last up to one week in the fridge and unopened bacon lasts roughly two weeks.

I personally freeze mine as soon as I buy it, since we don't use bacon that rapidly around here. But I don't freeze the package whole. I open it up and grab two slices at a time. I kinda fold them over and lay them on a cookie sheet lined with wax or freezer paper, then stick the whole sheet into the freezer until the bacon 'bundles' are frozen solid, then toss them into a zipper bag. Anytime I need bacon (like for a BLT, etc) I just grab out a 2-piece bundle of bacon and let it thaw.

 

[Andy M.]

. . . But I don't freeze the package whole. I open it up and grab two slices at a time. I kinda fold them over and lay them on a cookie sheet lined with wax or freezer paper, then stick the whole sheet into the freezer until the bacon 'bundles' are frozen solid, then toss them into a zipper bag. Anytime I need bacon (like for a BLT, etc) I just grab out a 2-piece bundle of bacon and let it thaw.

I freeze individual portions of bacon too. I just pull a few strips at a time from the one pound package, stuff them into individual plastic bags and toss them into the freezer.

 

[Linda0818]

I freeze individual portions of bacon too. I just pull a few strips at a time from the one pound package, stuff them into individual plastic bags and toss them into the freezer.

That's exactly what I used to do. Then I started freezing them all at once and putting them all into one bag, just to save on baggies. Either way works well.

I do the same thing with hot dogs and packages of chicken, freezing each piece individually. I hate struggling to get a frozen block of hot dogs apart when I only want to cook one or two.

 

[dragnlaw]

Linda, I do the same with hot dogs. Loose freeze, then bag.
Chicken, I put in individual bags. I weigh ea. Sometimes the breasts are whole but if they are super huge I pull off the tenders for a separate bag - they usually go into a stir fry. Thighs & Drumsticks, I pkg 2/3 per bag (skin & bone. That way I can mix and match however I want.
Bacon I do 2 ways, depending on how I feel. Sometimes loose individual pieces on a tray (with wax or plastic wrap) then all into a big bag when frozen.
Most times I cut the bacon across the equator, then divide the slices (why is there always 15/17 slices? never an even count) so I'll have 2 pkgs of 6/7 slices. When defrosted I can grab a left and a right piece, yeah, sometimes 2 each, for my breakfast.

 

[Linda0818]

Linda, I do the same with hot dogs. Loose freeze, then bag.
Chicken, I put in individual bags. I weigh ea. Sometimes the breasts are whole but if they are super huge I pull off the tenders for a separate bag - they usually go into a stir fry. Thighs & Drumsticks, I pkg 2/3 per bag (skin & bone. That way I can mix and match however I want.
Bacon I do 2 ways, depending on how I feel. Sometimes loose individual pieces on a tray (with wax or plastic wrap) then all into a big bag when frozen.
Most times I cut the bacon across the equator, then divide the slices (why is there always 15/17 slices? never an even count) so I'll have 2 pkgs of 6/7 slices. When defrosted I can grab a left and a right piece, yeah, sometimes 2 each, for my breakfast.

Oh, good idea with the overly large chicken breasts. I'll do that next time.

 

[Rascal]

I buy in 500gm packs of streaky bacon. I normally get 12 slices. I freeze 6 and leave 6 in fridge.
My wife likes me cooking her 3 rashers and scrambled eggs every Saturday. I keep up til 6 months in the freezer.
I know I spoil her!!

Russ

 

[medtran49]

I personally freeze mine as soon as I buy it, since we don't use bacon that rapidly around here. But I don't freeze the package whole. I open it up and grab two slices at a time. I kinda fold them over and lay them on a cookie sheet lined with wax or freezer paper, then stick the whole sheet into the freezer until the bacon 'bundles' are frozen solid, then toss them into a zipper bag. Anytime I need bacon (like for a BLT, etc) I just grab out a 2-piece bundle of bacon and let it thaw.

That's us now. I got tired of throwing 1/4 to 1/3 packages away because they smelled off and had a slimy feel.

I've been cutting the package in half crosswise and putting them in a 1 gallon bag. I'll take 1 package piece, let it thaw enough to separate what I want, then pop it back in the freezer. Haven't had any problems at all doing that so far.

 

[Andy M.]

I usually cook bacon in bulk. I will cook two pounds of bacon in the oven at one time when we are having BLTs for dinner. What we don't use for the sandwiches gets laid out on a strip of paper towels, rolled up and put into a gallon Ziplock bag for the freezer. Then It's really easy to unroll the paper towel roll and take off the bacon slices you want for a breakfast and heat them in the microwave. The cooked bacon keeps forever in the freezer.

 

[Jusa]

I recently bought a two pound package of thick siced bacon. I froze one pound, then baked the other pound on a sheet pan in the oven. Once it is cooked it lasts in the fridge for a pretty long time.

That's what I do. It's really nice to have a few slices already cooked when I want it and baking it in the oven is less messy. I line my baking sheet with parchment paper.

When bacon goes on sale I buy lots of it and most of it goes in the freezer.

 

[taxlady]

I tried cooking an entire pound of bacon at once in the oven. The bacon was great. Unfortunately, none of it made it into the freezer. We just kept munching "one more slice".