It's a natural reaction that is pretty hard to control, but have you ever wondered why bacon causes such an uncontrollable reaction? Wobbly Boots Roadhouse did a little research on the subject, and we found out there are actually some scientific reasons why this particular food is so very appealing.
The Science of Bacon
Some foods contain a single molecule that is responsible for what you taste. For example, bananas and almonds are very distinctive flavors that mainly rely on a single molecule for flavor, but as yummy as they may be to you, those are foods that aren't too difficult to resist.
Bacon, on the other hand, has a phenomenal combination of factors that come together to create that crispy goodness. The best explanation that we found came from an online article from the BBC. It gets a bit scientific, but it's extremely interesting for any bacon-lover.
" 'Some of the major flavour players are the result of the pork belly's fat breaking down,' says Guy Crosby, food scientist and science editor at America's Test Kitchen. 'It's not just the white marbling that's in play. The cell membranes of the muscle tissue contain fatty acids that disintegrate during cooking to yield a bouquet of flavourful compounds like aldehydes, furans, and ketones. By themselves, some of these molecules have distinct tastes or smells – furans have a sweet, nutty, caramel-like note, aldehydes a green, grassy note, and ketones tend to be buttery – but whatever they are doing together seems to be key. If any of these classes of molecules were missing from the overall bacon flavour, you would notice it.' "
So basically, the combination of sweet, nutty, caramel-like notes + green + grassy notes + a buttery flavor all come together in a magical way to create the magnificent bacon flavor we all know and love! The kind that you get from our family-friendly restaurant in Des Moines takes bacon's flavor one step further because we prepare it in a smoker over hickory.
Hickory-Smoking Makes It Better
Even though bacon seems like a food that couldn't possibly get any better than it already is, the Boot goes and does it! The rubs and spices that we add to our bacon play a part in the final flavor it takes on. The chemical reactions of everything combined create a variety of tastes, pointing the various molecules in different directions.
The act of smoking bacon causes the meat to take on a distinct set of flavor compounds. The best hickory-smoked meats in Des Moines go through a long, slow cooking process, making them the best in the Midwest. The smoke created by our hickory wood releases both acrid and sweet-smelling compounds that combine to add that amazing extra flavor that puts our bacon far ahead of any other you've ever tasted.
Bacon at the Boot
The menu at Wobbly Boots BBQ features quite a few items that have to give the credit for a portion of their great taste to the addition of bacon. There are plenty here to get you started, but if you see another menu item that you want to have bacon added to, we can definitely do that for you.
- Bacon Wrapped Shrimp
- Texas Fries
- Turkey Bacon Ranch Wrap
- Cowboy Cobb Salad
- Loaded Baked Potato
- Baked Potato Soup
- B-L-T Flatbread
- Buffalo Bacon Chicken & Jalapeno Flatbread
- Wobbly Melt
- El Diablo Burger
- Bacon Egg & Cheese Burger
- Wobbly Style Club Sandwich
- Buffalo Chicken Sandwich
- Catfish BLT
- The Griller
Wipe the drool off your chin, hop in the car, and get yourself to Wobbly Boots Roadhouse in Clive. You can enjoy not only our incredible bacon, but also all of our amazing hickory-smoked meats 7 days a week for lunch or dinner. If you're a bacon-lover already, come on in and give our fantastic version a try. If you're not big on bacon, we're willing to bet that ours just may change your mind.
Award-winning BBQ right here in Des Moines!
Don't forget you can take home 16 oz. bottles of Wobbly Boots House Recipe BBQ Sauce!!
Open EVERY DAY at 11:00 AM!
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Wobbly Boots Roadhouse
1301 NW 114th St
Clive IA 50325
Clive IA 50325
(515) 223-5700
