Bacon ~ Foamheart ( Experimental)

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foamheart

Gone but not forgotten. RIP
Original poster
OTBS Member
Ok, its not my first bacon. But it doesn't diminish the thrill in the least bit.

I smoked hocks and what I thought was good belly off a burnt belly last week. Bacon is good, I am happy, here is some sliced, (its been months since I ran out!) I have at least stopped the shakes! I probably got 10 or 12 lbs total.


I go to fry some up and I forgot!  IT BURNS badly because of the sugar in the brine. I knew that, its why you let it mellow so long.

Then I remember what a friend told me, a secret he said worked for him. Molasses!

So I thaw out another side, luckily it wasn't as freezer burned as the last one.

I hunk that baby up to bucket size.


really not too bad looking, remember it does swell a little while curing and this has some fat!

I round up the wet cure ingredients


Brown sugar, white sugar, canning salt, and #1 pink! Also my multi tasker tupperware 1 gallon pitcher. I use it for brining chickens up to 6 lbs, whole fryers slide right in. But it perfect for "The cure" If I can fit it in that jug, its one gallon and perfect. I cool my hot solutions with ice in it and then just fill it up with whatever I want. That jug and Pop's wet cure, I mean how did the cave men make bacon without 'em?

Ok, the secret ingredients. OK, not so secret......


Maple extract, and some molasses. I can't find it any more, anyone know if they still sell "Grandma Molasses"? Anyway the maple extract fools the nose into believeing it and saves my precious store of real maple syrup hidden in the reefer. Its Louisiana, We get the best cane sugar and syrup, but alas no maple syrup.

BTW its Pops recipe. I do reduce the salt from 1 C to 3/4 C because its canning salt, its more finely ground to dissolve better. So its weight to volumne differs, so I compensate accordingly.

I failed to mention my canning bucket, you're gonna love this. Tractor transmission oil.


Its made of Polyethylene, Thats what I sold to make a living. Let me give you some hints. On nearly all plastic items, usually on the buttom there is a stamp, a triangle. It will give you a number in a triangle (made of three arrows), and usually the abberiation for either high density, mdeium density, or low density polyethylene. HDPE, MDPE, or LDPE.

If its HDPE your good its so dense nothing permeates the wall, MDPE about the same, LDPE is questionable. BUT its only used in the very cheapest of beach sand buckets and largely in the film sheeting industry. It may or may not say food grade. I know bad picture but.....


All poly will have a stamp somewhere.

Now add my go to cleaner before and after any project!


Now back to the 'spear-a-mint!

I sizeably reduced my white sugar and replaced it with molasses. If the sugar is in-fact the culprit in causing newly made bacon to burn before a long mellow cycle, we are going to find out! A friend said it did. I am going to see.

Its in the beer reefer for 2 weeks, we will see what happens. Who knows molasses might cause roping?

We will see what happens.
 
 
I use molasses. I like the maple, don't get me wrong, but it caramelizes and burn quickly. Molasses handles the heat way better, and I find I'm really liking the flavor.
Well I am looking forward to seeing it. Nothing I hate worse than having to wait till it mellows. I am not a patient person, and burning good bacon is a sin! I know I could bake it in the oven, but....... Bacon is supposed to fried!

I smothered some potatoes w/ onions the other night in bacon grease and threw in some thick sliced bacon.......... I believe bacon can make anything good.

I have yet to try smoking to the done stage bacon as a main course. I don't know I could stand the goodness.
 
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"anyone know if they still sell "Grandma Molasses"?"

Yes. Have some in the pantry. If you can't find any let me know and I will send you some.

Nice looking BTW. Gonna put mine in the smoker tomorrow. Hope for the best.

dave
 
I'm in.

popcorn.gif


Happy smoken.

David
 
If this works I am thinking I would like to try a regional flair. Using Steen's cane syrup in the wet cure, and then try adding some sugar cane in the smoke.

I am not to sure about cane smoke though. I hated it when I was a kid living in the middle of a cane field. When they would burn the fields, gwad it was nasty and that black soot and ash settled everywhere. I know thats the leaves burning off and not the cane. 
 
 
"anyone know if they still sell "Grandma Molasses"?"

Yes. Have some in the pantry. If you can't find any let me know and I will send you some.

Nice looking BTW. Gonna put mine in the smoker tomorrow. Hope for the best.

dave
Thank you, I know to keep looking. Its what we always had as a kid.

Oh you don't need luck with your bacon, its just 15% preperation, 5% blind luck, and 80% patience.

I still love your car!
 
 
If this works I am thinking I would like to try a regional flair. Using Steen's cane syrup in the wet cure, and then try adding some sugar cane in the smoke.

I am not to sure about cane smoke though. I hated it when I was a kid living in the middle of a cane field. When they would burn the fields, gwad it was nasty and that black soot and ash settled everywhere. I know thats the leaves burning off and not the cane. 
The black soot is sugar burning....   remember the lava in a school made volcano... the black is sugar...
 
Can you get cane pulp from the sugar refinery ?????  All the sugar has been removed...  never used it.... never heard of using it to smoke food...  but it might be worth a try.... 
 
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Not all the sugar is gone, but its crushed and squeezed. Its very fiberous. I get fresh made sugar, course its still extremely dirty, those ain't raisinettes in it!

I had someone tell me that their Dad had used cane to smoke their meats, he might have. I don't know, so maybe I'll have to try it on a cheap chicken, but the cane has all been harvested this year already. I have to look around.
 
I like the molasses in my back (Canadian) bacon and get less charring when I cook so I am really looking forward to how it turns out with side bacon! I'm watching!

Disco
 
Thank you, I know to keep looking. Its what we always had as a kid.

Oh you don't need luck with your bacon, its just 15% preperation, 5% blind luck, and 80% patience.

I still love your car!

We had grandma's too in MS, I still see it here in Denver. Sweet stuff I miss the most is Blackburn's syrup. I think it was cane but not 100% positive. That was the secret to my grandma's pecan pie. The recipe calls for karo, but but she always used the Blackburn's and it was much better.

Sorry for the derail. Back to the bacon.
 
Foam, your bacon sounds good.  Because of the nitrites in the cured bacon, it is advised to not cook it above 350°.  To resolve this problem along to keep from burning the sugars in the bacon, I found that baking it solves both problems.  I usually bake a large portion at a time then reheat prior to use. The thickness of the slices will determine the cooking time.  For best results and when time allows, I like to bake it at 200° until done, nearly two hours.  If in a hurry, bake at 325° for approx. 25 minutes.  It takes a little longer, but the results are well worth the trouble.  After all you have a good amount of time in it already.  Don't forget to collect the drippings.

Tom
 
 
"anyone know if they still sell "Grandma Molasses"?"

Yes. Have some in the pantry. If you can't find any let me know and I will send you some.

Nice looking BTW. Gonna put mine in the smoker tomorrow. Hope for the best.

dave
I see it a our local grocery store Brookshire's   I use it in one of the BBQ sauces I make

Gary
 
We had grandma's too in MS, I still see it here in Denver. Sweet stuff I miss the most is Blackburn's syrup. I think it was cane but not 100% positive. That was the secret to my grandma's pecan pie. The recipe calls for karo, but but she always used the Blackburn's and it was much better.

Sorry for the derail. Back to the bacon.
Around here, a day or two ago there was still families pressing and cooking their own syrup. That before my time BTW.  Then the small communal mills set up all close to railtracks or the river. Now they have consolidated to just a few handling what  was a large industry of small indepentent sugar mills. And I think about the last of the syrup makers is Steens which started as a family business outside of Abbieville, they use a different type cane than is used for sugar. Steen's now I am guessing the State syrup of Louisiana. I am guessing 95% of my recipes that call syrup call Steen's by name. The other 5% is corn syrup.
 
 
Foam, your bacon sounds good.  Because of the nitrites in the cured bacon, it is advised to not cook it above 350°.  To resolve this problem along to keep from burning the sugars in the bacon, I found that baking it solves both problems.  I usually bake a large portion at a time then reheat prior to use. The thickness of the slices will determine the cooking time.  For best results and when time allows, I like to bake it at 200° until done, nearly two hours.  If in a hurry, bake at 325° for approx. 25 minutes.  It takes a little longer, but the results are well worth the trouble.  After all you have a good amount of time in it already.  Don't forget to collect the drippings.

Tom
I was at another site, these folks were talking about saving that bacon grease and even freezing it for later.....LOL I just can't imagine having enough to do that, and I cook a bunch of bacon. But when I have bacon "Drippins", I use 'em in bisquits, bread, crusts, etc.... heck I even used some tonight brushed on my homemade bread for croutons on a salad! Fired eggs, fried chicken, I just can't imagine having enough to save in the freezer! Bacon fat ison;y one very small step below duck fat IMHO.

We'll see how it turns out. Its hard to deviate from what Pops has shown us, and especially when my Pop loves it so much.
 
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