May 30, 2018 | Ari's Favorites

Nueske’s Wisconsin Applewood Smoked Bacon

“The beluga of bacon, the Rolls-Royce of rashers.”  R.W. Apple

by Ari Weinzweig

Every morning, the aroma of Nueske’s applewood-smoked bacon sizzling off of stainless steel sheet trays has shimmered over the corner of Detroit and Kingsley streets. Depending on which way the wind is blowing, some, if not all, of the folks in the neighborhood are getting a wonderful, aromatically inspiring start to the day. If you grew up in the neighborhood, the smell of Nueske’s bacon, I would imagine, is the smell of morning.

It’s hard for me not to have Nueske’s on my mind this week. It is, after all, the week of the 9th annual Camp Bacon! The “Davos of Pork”, the country’s top conclave for caring pork curing professionals, and a feast of bacon for the brain, the belly and, of course, the soul. The Nueske family have been a big part of Camp Bacon since the beginning. I wrote about them extensively in Zingerman’s Guide to Better Bacon—the book from which the concept of the Camp originally emerged.

How we us Nueske’s bacon at Zingerman’s.

If you haven’t already tried Nueske’s amazing bacon, you’ll want to come by and try some. You’ll find Nueske’s in one form or another all over the ZCoB—at the Deli on a plethora of sandwiches (I’m partial to Renee’s Kitchen Magic), at the Roadhouse (try it in the Grits and Bits Waffle), or at the Creamery in our Bacon-Pimento cheese. This weekend, Nueske’s bacon will be out in force at the Bakehouse for their “Bakin’ with Bacon” classes at BAKE! and special bakes of Pepper Bacon Farm Bread and the delicious Bacon Pecan Sandies (one of Roadhouse’s Zach Milner’s all-time favorite foods—featured lovingly in the beautiful Zingerman’s Bakehouse book). We, of course, ship lots of Nueske’s bacon all over the country—the Bacon of the Month Club at Mail Order is one of our all-time top gifts. And, of course, we sell large quantities of it for folks to take home and cook in their own kitchens!

Nueske’s at Camp Bacon.

Tanya Nueske, who caringly took on the leadership of the business after her father’s all-too-early-passing, said, “Camp Bacon has been something Nueske’s has been lucky to be a part of, whether presenting our story to the campers or being campers ourselves and enjoying the day of learning, eating terrific food, and making new, like-minded friends. Thank you to all of our Zingerman’s friends for being such amazing bacon educators and good food proponents! Zingerman’s and Nueske’s have been BFFs (Bacon Friends Forever) since around the time the Deli opened, in the early 1980s.”

Nueske’s bacon will be out in force at every Camp Bacon event for sampling and tasting all week. Bring some home—in any of the many forms we offer it —to cook up in your own kitchen. Come to the Main Event on Saturday at Cornman Farms, the Biscuit Love Brunch on Sunday morning (also at the Greyline), and the Street Fair at the Farmer’s Market on Sunday from 11-2pm. The Nueske’s will be sizzling and sampling their wonderful product throughout the week! Grab a slice and raise a pork-centric toast to this terrific family, their fabulous product, and the much-missed spirit of Bob Nueske! The aroma, the flavor, and the energy are guaranteed—as is everything associated with Nueske’s—to be great!!