Shagbark Hickory Bacon

The meat curing maestros at Smoking Goose in Indianapolis double down on hickory for this superbly savory bacon.

They start by curing the humanely raised pork belly under shagbark hickory syrup. While other syrups like maple come from sap, this syrup is made from the long, flat strips of bark. The bark is toasted and infused into water which is then boiled with sugar into a syrup that is more earthy and nutty than sweet. After curing in the syrup, the bacon is smoked over whole hickory logs. The thick-cut slices are a little sticky from the syrup, with a rich, salty flavor.

The bacon is perfect for BLTs and burgers, or cut the slices into chunky lardons for pastas and stews.