Buying internationally from Amazon or Alibaba

What's the difference between the smuggled bacon and the bacon you get here?

There is no bacon here. There is panceta ahumada, but it's not bacon, as we Americans know it.

It is the one great shortcoming of Argentina, the one unforgivable sin. It's downright unAmerican, and I blame it on the Communists. Where, oh where, is Joe McCarthy when you really need him?
 
what about the customs taxes in Uruguay for receiving the packages?
Uruguay has the same customs regulations as Argentina. There is no "collecting a package in DHL" but a lengthy visit to Montevideo's aduana, plus a hefty payment to retrieve your stuff.
 
There is panceta ahumada, but it's not bacon, as we Americans know it.
Please answer the question: What is the difference between bacon and panceta ahumada? What is "bacon as we Americans know it"? I'd like to know. I'm no bacon expert, but as far as I remember, there was nothing special about USA's supermarket bacon.
 
Uruguay has the same customs regulations as Argentina. There is no "collecting a package in DHL" but a lengthy visit to Montevideo's aduana, plus a hefty payment to retrieve your stuff.

(shrug) If you say so. But have you talked to DHL in the last 6 months? To be honest, I am not sure that there is a DHL office in Colonia.


Please answer the question: What is the difference between bacon and panceta ahumada? What is "bacon as we Americans know it"? I'd like to know. I'm no bacon expert, but as far as I remember, there was nothing special about USA's supermarket bacon.

To begin with, when someone starts talking river pirates & bacon smugglers, and ranting about Communists, it should be fairly clear that they're pulling your leg ;)

But to try to answer your question -
You're obviously not American, so I understand that you don't get our love affair with bacon, but it's a thing almost holy to us. And the good bacon doesn't usually come from the supermarket, but rather some place like Trader Joe's. US bacon is much more salty than panceta, and it has a different cure. Panceta has what I would describe as a mild ham cure, and it just doesn't scratch the bacon itch. Also, American bacon, the good stuff, has a stronger smoke flavor to it, and there are many different woods that are used in the smoking process, such as apple wood, for one example.

In conclusion, if I have caused misunderstanding, my apologies.
 
Thanks for the explanation - you sound like a real connoisseur. Have seen many posts about "American" bacon but never knew the difference.

I shopped at Trader Joe's for the past three decades - it is my idea of grocery heaven.
A giant Whole Foods opened in my town, not a mile from Trader Joe's, but I'm happy to report it hasn't made a dent in their faithful customer base.

As to DHL, service in Uruguay is dismal. Once they took a whole week to deliver my next-day letter to the US. When I complained there was no apology, no price adjustment, nothing. Let buyers beware...!

Customs regulations there are as bad or worse than in Argentina. A friend received a bread-making machine as a gift from a Swiss relative. Taxes due were 1.5 times the value of the machine, so he refused delivery.
 
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I'd say us Brits would complain about the standard of bacon here more than anyone else. To be honest I like the panceta ahumada my only complaint is it's not cut thick enough. It shrivels up so much when cooked you need about six rashers to make a decent bacon butty. Doesn't come cheap either.
 
Coincidentally I had really good American style bacon here for the first time. Got it delivered by Carrefour.
 
Coincidentally I had really good American style bacon here for the first time. Got it delivered by Carrefour.

Tell me more, please!
I am living in Microcentro right now, and there is a Carrefour Express every third block but no fullsize one. The same with Jumbo, there's this tiny little location on Arenales, but their selection is kaka.
 
Tell me more, please!
I am living in Microcentro right now, and there is a Carrefour Express every third block but no fullsize one. The same with Jumbo, there's this tiny little location on Arenales, but their selection is kaka.

Don't know about in the stores, we got it online. It was displayed in the cold cuts section of their website.
If you can't find it on their website I'll ask her to check and see if there's a record of our order. Just let me know.
 
Don't know about in the stores, we got it online. It was displayed in the cold cuts section of their website.
If you can't find it on their website I'll ask her to check and see if there's a record of our order. Just let me know.
OK, I looked and the only thing I can find is called -

Espuña

Panceta ahumada Espuña feteada 150 g.

-at about 200 pesos (1300 per kilo), and something very similar but with the words "de cerdo" added, at 450 pesos for 200 grams, (2250 per kilo). Is that what you bought?
 
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