Is Iridescent Bacon Safe

But according to researchers in Oklahoma, the glossy green sheen that occurs sometimes around the edge of your bacon is usually a result of the way in which the bacon has been cured and is not in fact dangerous.

What is the green shiny stuff on bacon?

‘ The research team led by George Richter-Addo and Jun Yi, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry in the OU College of Arts and Sciences, discovered that the green pigment seen in nitrite-cured bacon and other meats is due to an unusual chemical reaction of nitrites with the meat protein myoglobin.

Why does my ham look rainbow?

What gives sliced ham that iridescent sheen? The shiny, greenish, rainbow like color on sliced ham is a sign of oxidation that occurs when the meat is exposed to the metal on a knife or slicer. The nitrate-modified iron content of the meat undergoes a chemical change that alters the hams pigmentation.