Hanging Bacon

[navionjim]

This is a question for all the rest of you bacon makers. What is your preferred way to hang bacon for smoking?

When I'm making "Butt Bacon", AKA "Buckboard Bacon" I've usually just set it on the racks. For "Belly Bacon" I've done the same when it was in small chunks, or hung it using a big aircraft rib-stitching needle and butchers twine when smoking a full slab. I've always been too cheap to buy the commercial bacon hangers but the needle and thread method is a real pain in the ***.

I'll be doing a pretty large batch of bellies this weekend about five full slabs, that amounts to too many of the $12 commercial hangers I see on the web for me to want to buy considering the number of times I'd use them per year.

I was thinking of making some hangers from wood using stainless steel nails to fashion the meat hooks and a 1/4" threaded hook and nut for the actual hanger hook. Then I thought someone out there may have already thought this one out and have a better idea. Any suggestions before I head to Lowe's for some hardware?

Jimbo

 

[cowgirl]

Jim, I have bacon hangers, but have used stainless steel wire in the past. I keep a roll of it on hand.

Like your wooden hanger idea. :)

 

[richtee]

Thread 'em with stainless MIG wire?

 

[navionjim]

Thanks Rich and Cowgirl,
I did think of that one, and I have plenty of stainless steel .41 aircraft safety wire, but honestly that's almost as big a pain as the twine would be. I want something to make it easy to move the slabs from my drying area to the smoker and back. My vertical smoker will be packed pretty tight as it is. Good idea though and I'll do that before using the twine again.
Jimbo

 

[richtee]

Heck, Jim just a couple 4 inch or so lengths per slab, thread it thru and tie it off to a ring over whatever yer hanging it on.

 

[navionjim]

I think I figured out something even better Rich! At lunch I went to Lowe's to get some hardware for this project and found a chrome metal wire shoe rack on the clearance table. 40" long and $3. It's made of 1/8" wire spot-welded wherever the wires cross. Just like metal kitchen rack material.

I figure I can cut it into 10" lengths with my small bolt cutter (die grinder if I have to) and cut off the "tines" at about 5" then bend them into the identical shape as the $12 commercial item. I can cut at least five hangers from this one $3 wire rack. I'll steal the hook parts off five wooden coat hangers and attach those to the center span so the slabs can be easily hung up just like a coat.

I may not have described this very well, but I think you get the idea. I have some thinner bread cooling racks at home I'll try it with first for proof of concept. I can hack those up with a pair of dykes and bend them with duckbills. Should take me about ten minutes to try it out tonight,
Jimbo

 

[richtee]

Yer SOOO good... :{)

 

[cowgirl]

Yes you are goooooood Jim.

Sounds like it should work great!

 

[cowgirl]

Jim, did you ever post pictures of your bacon hanger?

 

[navionjim]

Sure did Cowgirl,
They are at the end of my Bacon Saga post. I never bent up the heavy duty ones because I tired bread cooling racks for proof of concept and they worked so well I thought why bother? My local Dollar Store has packs of two cooling racks for a buck, one rack snipped in half with a pair of dykes and bent up with my fingers makes two hangers. So thats four hangers for a buck! I used regular wire coat hangers for the hook portion and it only took about two minutes to make each of these. They worked so well and are so cheap as to be disposable. They could be reused but its easier to make new ones then to wash the old ones. Here are the photos again so you can get the idea. Cheap is always a good price for me!

Jimbo

 

[cowgirl]

Well shoot.....Those look great Jim!

I might have to borrow your idea.

 

[navionjim]

Well that's what we're here for Cowgirl. I was thinking of borrowing your dry stack idea for my smokehouse too!
Jimbo

 

[cowgirl]

That sounds like a good trade to me Jim.