New Mourne granite chilled bacon launched in Northern Ireland

Award-winning butchery/deli business Cunningham's in Northern Ireland has introduced a new dry-cured bacon prepared on granite sourced from the Mourne Mountains which overlook the business.

The family-owned and managed business is based at Kilkeel in county Down, which is in the foothills of Northern Ireland's largest and iconic mountain range.

The company won 'Best Bacon in Ireland' for the bacon in the annual Butchery Excellence Awards and has also won UK Butcher Shop of the Year and Best Northern Ireland Retailer in the prestigious Farm Shop and Deli Awards 2017.

A third generation family business, Cunningham's has been located in Kilkeel, Northern Ireland's leading fishing port for over 50 years and takes pride in developing innovative meat products sourced from its own and other local farms.

The Mourne granite used in bacon preparation is one of the area's best known stones and has been used in a broad range of applications.

James Cunningham, managing director of Cunningham's, explains how the unique dry-cured bacon is produced: "We have a unique cure that is used on our pork for eight days, turning after four. It's important to have a nice fat covering (but not too thick) and large eye.

The recipe is an old family one that's been used for 75 years to produce a delicious and richly flavoured bacon. It is finished with mustard and honey and is low in salt and fat.

"The granite part comes into play when the bacon is cured after eight days. We blast chill it to get it ready to be sliced. Before we slice the bacon, we place it on the granite work top in our fridge and air it for one day.

"Granite is a naturally conductive material. When you stand on granite your feet are cold as the granite absorbs the heat from your feet.

"It also works the opposite on the chilled bacon loin. Sitting on the granite for one day, it becomes perfectly ready to be sliced! If we have it on any other surface, we find it doesn't slice the same.

"We believe it's a great and original product. It's now on sale in our shop and will be available to other retailers that we supply a range of meat and other products," adds Mr Cunningham.