What do you get if you cross the most luxurious steak in the world with one of the most loved food items on the planet? You get Wagyu Beef Bacon, of course! Wagyu can be any one of the four Japanese breeds of cattle being raised for meat. Wagyu beef is known for its marbling and its melt in your mouth texture. Since Wagyu Beef fat melts at much lower temperatures, the typical problems with beef bacon being so chewy is eliminated, just leaving you with how beef bacon should be. Crispy, crunchy, bacon-y, and beefy.
Wagyu Beef Bacon Trivia
- The name Wagyu means Japanese Cow. Wa meaning Japan, and Gyu meaning Cow.
- Wagyu beef fat has a real low melting point; it can LITERALLY melt in your mouth.
- Wagyu calves can cost up to forty times the price of US cattle.
- High-grade Wagyu can cost as much as $200 a pound.
Wagyu Beef Bacon Buying Guide
You really can’t go wrong with Wagyu beef bacon. That being said, the only thing you need to remember when buying anything made from Wagyu beef is to check if the producer is a member of the American Wagyu Beef Association.
This will ensure you that are actually getting a Wagyu beef product and not just something that is labeled as Wagyu beef.
Wagyu Beef Bacon Production & Farming in Texas
Commercially Produced Wagyu Beef Bacon:
Since Wagyu beef is a very exclusive meat product, there is no large-scale commercial production of Wagyu beef bacon, and there probably won’t be any in the near future.
Small Batch/Artisanal <Product> Production:
Just like how Wagyu cattle are treated with immense attention and care, so does turning the beef belly into wagyu beef bacon. Every slab of meat is carefully trimmed so that nothing goes to waste. Wagyu beef bacon is dry-cured anywhere from five days to two weeks, depending on the taste of the producer. After the curing process, it is very carefully cold-smoked to infuse the beef with the signature smoky taste of bacon.
It is then hand cut to thickness and then vacuum packed to maintain maximum freshness and to protect the wagyu beef bacon from contamination.
Preservatives and Chemicals:
Some producers will use just enough nitrites to preserve the beef, but not too much. Some producers will forgo nitrite use altogether and dry age their meats before curing it as bacon.
Packaging:
Producers who sell their product online will vacuum pack their wagyu beef bacon, but local butchers who serve the local communities will usually offer it on a per-order basis and pack it in wax paper as the order is being picked up.
Enjoying Wagyu Beef Bacon
Wagyu beef bacon still needs to be cooked before consumption.
Storage:
Wagyu beef bacon is best cooked and consumed on the day of purchase. But if storage is needed, it can be stored in the fridge for up to three days and inside the freezer for up to a month.
Cooking:
Wagyu bacon can be prepared the way regular bacon is prepared. But since it is beef, it can also be given just a quick sear on a hot place and consumed yakiniku-style.
