I know what you’re thinking: “People eat raw cookie dough with eggs, and they’re fine!” That’s a good point, but it’s a different situation. Cookie dough is mostly sugar and flour, with maybe one egg. Raw bacon is pure meat with a much higher surface area for bacteria to colonize.
Also, a lot of bacon is cured using salt, sugar, and nitrates. While that helps preserve it, it doesn’t sterilize it. It’s not the same as a dry-aged ham, which is a whole different process. Think of raw bacon as “pre-seasoned risk.”
What Happens When You Eat Raw Bacon? A Serious Warning You Can’t Ignore
You might also hear about people eating “raw bacon” in Europe, but that’s often prosciutto or speck, which are dry-cured and aged for months. That’s a completely different product. It’s like comparing chalk to cheese (or in this case, raw belly to luxury ham).
