Bacon With Chocolate: Why It Works
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Why is bacon with chocolate a match made in heaven? The sweet-and-salty combination has a great deal to do with the success.
Salted caramels, introduced to the American public in the 1990s (from France), gained great favor—especially when covered in chocolate. The chocolate-bacon fusion is a similar sweet-and-salty palate pleaser, with the addition of smoky, meaty notes.
From caramels, chocolates and cupcakes to marshmallows and toffee, bacon with chocolate really work.
Of course, bacon with chocolate is a concept that doesn’t work for everyone. I have urged friends to try what I thought was an excellent example of chocolate-dipped bacon, only to have them take a bite, grimace and—shall we say for the sake of delicacy—cease to eat it.
Not every producer crafts a tasty recipe. As with any type of food, we’ve sampled products that simply were not good. Even the squirrels wouldn’t eat one batch of bacon chocolate chip cookies we received. (We think it’s because the combination simply doesn’t work in chocolate chip cookie dough, but we’ll be glad to be proven wrong.)
Sometimes, a particular product will have too much going on at once, with one particular flavor or texture overwhelming the others. We were seeking an excellent balance of flavors. That’s why we tasted products from 30 well-regarded companies to recommend just six as “favorites,” plus five runners up.
Bacon With Chocolate Is Not Always Crisp
We’ve heard some complaints about bacon-with-chocolate goodies, that the bacon is chewy instead of crisp (sometimes it’s both).
But the increasing number of businesses offering bacon-with-chocolate treats is an indication that many producers are getting it right, and many Americans love the combination.
Continue To Page 3: What We Reviewed,
Favorites & Runners Up.
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