We Tried The Most Popular Bacon Brands–These Are 8 of Our Favorites

Ah, bacon. Sweet, salty, savory, smoky, beautiful bacon. Bacon is a Southern cooking staple, but choosing the right bacon at the supermarket can be a bit overwhelming. Standing in front of a refrigerator full of seemingly identical packages of bacon that have all sorts of different labels from a variety of brands can be intimidating. What's the difference in natural and organic? Is double smoked better than smoked? What in the world is a center cut? You could spend a lot of time mulling over your choices, so to save some of it for you, we've rounded up few mainstay types of bacon you might see at the store and explained them for you.

From thick cut to uncured and dry rubbed, here's your guide to the different types of bacon at the supermarket. Plus, we're sharing our favorite pick in each category. We're even letting you in on a little secret by sharing the Southern Living Test Kitchen's favorite bacon.