Kevin Bacon has revealed that he no longer eats bacon, pig or goat products of any kind.
In People magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive” issue, the 65-year-old Footloose actor explained how his eating habits are largely influenced by the animals he has at home. “I no longer eat goat and I no longer eat pig, because I have goats and I have pigs,” he said. “My wife [Kyra Sedgwick] is like: ‘We can’t get any more animals, because you’re going to stop eating everything.’”
In addition to their goats and pigs, the couple has three alpacas and three miniature horses residing at their Connecticut farm. “I love animals, they are a joy to be around and they’re very, very calming for me,” Bacon said. “But we also really love to go into the garden and get fresh herbs or tomatoes or basil or peppers or zucchini.
The Tremors star added: “Taking something hot off the vine that feels warm and smells like it’s been created by all these natural forces of the sun and air and water and earth and dirt, and then putting it back into your body to sustain yourself…it’s a great lesson in terms of just how important it is to do our best to try to protect this boat that we’re all riding in.”
Bacon explained that he developed a love for cooking as a struggling young actor in New York City, recalling some of his earliest concoctions made with leftovers. “I would take anything that I had and put it into a pan and just fry it up, and then eat it with a fork out of the pan, because it would also cut down on the minimum amount of dishes for me to have to clean,” he told the outlet.
To this day, Bacon said he prefers home cooking over dining out. “I feel like if you’re always eating out or you’re always getting something to go, then you’re always giving your power over to the people that are going to prepare the food for you,” he shared. “I can’t do that my whole life. I need to have a little bit more control over what I’m putting in my body.”
While his wife prefers to follow recipes, Bacon admitted that his culinary style is more easygoing. “I rarely follow a recipe,” he revealed. “I love recipes because I learn something new, I get inspired by something. I like that stuff, but I generally adjust it.”
Still, the Golden Globe winner is far from relaxed when it comes to cleaning. He admitted: “I clean up as I go along. My wife does not. I clean up as she goes along. I want to sit down and know that the clean-up is not going to be longer than the dinner.”
Bacon and Sedgwick, who have been married since 1988, have also made an effort to raise their now grown-up children - Travis, 34, and Sosie, 31 - with the importance of kitchen skills, while still getting creative with cooking.
“We love to cook and we love to eat. Cooking and eating together is something that we’ve always done as a family,” Bacon added. “Both of my kids are now... we never gave them lessons. We never sat down and said: ‘OK, this is how you cook.’ But just in the course of life, they’ve ended up making great, great dishes, and they both really enjoy it.”
