When plastic contamination in food was a big deal a few years ago I switched to the stacked pack bacon or buying it straight from the butcher. I always liked mine a little crunchy anyway, but I didn't know the meaty bacon could taste just as good or better than the stuff I was raised on. Now I can't go back.
I've had what England calls bacon and it just looks and tastes like a good boneless pork chop sliced like lunch meat. If I want that I'll have the poor chop and a dash of spices (have you tried lemon pepper or chili powder on a pork chop?)
I started buying my bacon from the butcher counter in the supermarket, and I'm now spoiled and can't go back to the packaged bacon. I like my bacon thick-sliced, and while I don't hate fat, I don't want to cook up a pound of bacon and drain off a whole coffee can full of grease - which I have done with packaged bacon. The funny thing is, that nice, good quality bacon that's up there with the filet mignons and shish kabobs at the counter, is the same price per pound as the Oscar Meyer thin-sliced garbage.
Have you tried baking your bacon yet? Line a shallow baking pan with foil and lay out strips, put it in a cold oven and turn it to 400 degrees. For thick-cut bacon, it will be done in 22-25 minutes. The ends may get a bit crispier, but it does such a wonderful job rendering the fat throughout the slice. SO tasty. None of the chewy partly-cooked fat. At all.
In my experience the best places for bacon are at independent grocers. Both of them carry bacon in the cool cases like other meats, not behind the deli counter. One was $5 per pound and the other was $4.50 per pound. It's just plain bacon, not the fancy smoked kind, but it's massively better than the usual Hormel stuff.
Both of them also carry ends-and-pieces for even cheaper. Some of the packages have pretty big pieces, like third or half slices. Tends to be a bit fattier overall but that may be to some people's tastes.
I like pork chops with a rub made of ground dried sage, with a bit of dried garlic, salt and black pepper.
And i don't think it's accurate to say that British bacon tastes like a pork chop - it is cured and may be smoked, and has a pretty distinctive bacon flavour.
I've had what England calls bacon and it just looks and tastes like a good boneless pork chop sliced like lunch meat. If I want that I'll have the poor chop and a dash of spices (have you tried lemon pepper or chili powder on a pork chop?)