If I had to make a list of the most universally loved foods in the world, bacon would definitely be on it. There aren’t too many people out there who dislike bacon. Although bacon is often made from pork belly, I suspect public opinion on the latter is much more divided! I’ll admit I’ve never been a huge fan of pork belly even though I love bacon. My husband likes pork belly though, so when we saw this Kirkland Signature Sous Vide Pork Belly while traveling in the U.S., he wanted to try it.
If, like me, pork belly isn’t your favorite, you might like the Kirkland Signature Smoked Pulled Pork, Kirkland Signature Brats, Kirkland Signature Master Carve Ham, Kirkland Signature Beef Pot Roast, Kirkland Signature Roasted Garlic Chicken Legs, Kirkland Signature Rotisserie Chicken and the Kirkland Signature Seasoned Chicken Wings.
Location in Store
We found the pork belly in Kona, Hawaii and it’s located in the refrigerated deli section at Costco. The item number is 48010.
Taste
The first thing I noticed was that the outside and inside of the package was very greasy. I wasn’t expecting the outside to be greasy! After trying the pork belly I decided it reminds me of a fatty piece of ham or back bacon but not regular bacon.
The pork belly has a nice smokey flavor which I liked, I think it has the perfect combination of smoke and salt. You have to be okay with fat though to enjoy this, if you’re turned off by fat you won’t find this edible. Although it’s very fatty there’s still a good amount of meat, some pieces are more meaty than others.
I had the pork belly on a bun with just a bit of Kewpie Japanese mayo and enjoyed it that way. I think you could use it in any dishes that use ham or bacon. We also enjoyed some on burgers as a bacon alternative.
Cost
The box costs $13.78 USD and comes with two one-pound packages of pork belly. The pork belly costs $6.89 per pound.
That seems pretty cheap to me but when you consider that you’re paying for pretty much pork fat.
Convenience
Because the pork belly has already been sous vide, it’s fully cooked and you’re simply just warming it up. We grilled the pork belly but there are cooking instructions for pan-frying and baking the pork belly in the oven as well.
The pork belly needs to be refrigerated and has a best-before date about two months from when we purchased it. If you’re not going to use the pork belly by the best-before date I think you could also freeze it.
There are many ways to use pork belly, in buns, rice dishes, tacos or served on it’s own with some mashed potatoes and beans!
Nutrition
Calories
A 91-gram slice contains 320 calories, 28 grams of fat, 590 milligrams of sodium, five grams of carbohydrates, zero grams of fiber, four grams of sugar and 13 grams of protein. I was expecting more fat and more protein!
That’s not a ton of protein for the considering it’s a meat product and for the amount of calories, fat and sodium.
Ingredients
The ingredients list is short and simple with pork belly being the only ingredient listed. However, the pork belly contains preservatives, nitrites and sugar. The pork belly is gluten-free as well as dairy and nut-free.
Scoring
Taste: 8/10 (if you like pork belly)
Cost: 8/10
Convenience: 6/10
Nutrition: 4/10
Overall
Give it a try if you like pork belly!
If you like pork belly, I think you’ll like this. If you don’t like pork belly or haven’t tried it, be aware that it’s a very fatty cut of meat, which isn’t for everyone!
Have you tried the Kirkland Signature Pork Belly? What did you think of it?
Please note that this review was not paid for or sponsored by any third party. This product was purchased by Costcuisine for the purpose of producing this review. The opinions in this review are strictly those of Costcuisine. Costcuisine is not affiliated with Costco or any of its suppliers. In the event that Costcuisine receives compensation for a post from the manufacturer of a product or some other third party, the arrangement will be clearly disclosed (including where the manufacturer of a product provides Costcuisine with a free sample of the product).
