My Bacon

[stonegoat]

My bacon turned out great! I used pecan wood.

 

[Fueling Around]

Great show
How about the tell?

 

[smokerjim]

Looks good

 

[JLeonard]

Looks good. All these bacon posts got me wanting to get some belly and make some more.

jim

 

[Steve H]

Looks good! Want to share you recipe/procedure?

 

[stonegoat]

Looks good! Want to share you recipe/procedure?

Dry brine: 2% salt, 0.25% sodium nitrate, 1% sugar (I used brown).
Vacuum sealed and rotated every day for a week.
Rinsed and dried overnight in my fridge then smoked at 200F for about 4 hours using pecan pucks (I use a Bradley smoker).
Turned out amazing!

 

[DougE]

Dry brine: 2% salt, 0.25% sodium nitrate, 1% sugar (I used brown).
Vacuum sealed and rotated every day for a week.
Rinsed and dried overnight in my fridge then smoked at 200F for about 4 hours using pecan pucks (I use a Bradley smoker).
Turned out amazing!

A little saltier than I go but looks great. Try pushing your cure time out to about 14 days. Doing so will give more flavor development that is worth the wait.

 

[Steve H]

A little saltier than I go but looks great. Try pushing your cure tome out to about 14 days. Doing so will give more flavor development that is worth the wait.

Beat me to it Doug. Good points.

 

[crankybuzzard]

I must say, that bacon looks great, but those bellies look GREAT compared to what I can get here!

I agree with the longer cure time for flavor development, but still a great looking bacon.

 

[stonegoat]

A little saltier than I go but looks great. Try pushing your cure time out to about 14 days. Doing so will give more flavor development that is worth the wait.

What % salt would you recommend?

 

[Culinary Otter]

Dry brine: 2% salt, 0.25% sodium nitrate, 1% sugar (I used brown).

Saw your other thread - assuming the "0.25% sodium nitrate" you listed there was 0.25% cure #1?

If was cure #1, just an FYI that's sodium nitrite, not nitrate. Nitrite (cure 1) is for what bacon and other short cures (like what you're doing here); nitrate (cure 2) is for long cures like dry cured sausages.

Not trying to be pedantic or anything, just want to make sure you used the right stuff

Bacon looks tasty, btw!

 

[stonegoat]

Saw your other thread - assuming the "0.25% sodium nitrate" you listed there was 0.25% cure #1?

If was cure #1, just an FYI that's sodium nitrite, not nitrate. Nitrite (cure 1) is for what bacon and other short cures (like what you're doing here); nitrate (cure 2) is for long cures like dry cured sausages.

Not trying to be pedantic or anything, just want to make sure you used the right stuff

Bacon looks tasty, btw!

Sorry. I always get the nomenclature wrong! It was definitely cure #1

 

[Fueling Around]

What % salt would you recommend?

A lot of people use 1.5% salt with the 0.25% cure #1 for about a 1.7% total salt

I use 0.8 - 1.0% salt as I go lower sodium in my cures.

 

[DougE]

What % salt would you recommend?

It's a matter of taste. My numbers aren't necessarily better, just what I prefer. The salt and sugar can be played around with to suit your own taste.

What I use:
0.25% cure#1 (never changes)
1.5% salt (which gives you 1.75% total salt including the salt in the cure)
0.75% sugar

 

[nlife]

It's a matter of taste. My numbers aren't necessarily better, just what I prefer. The salt and sugar can be played around with to suit your own taste.

What I use:
0.25% cure#1 (never changes)
1.5% salt (which gives you 1.75% total salt including the salt in the cure)
0.75% sugar

This is what I'm using this go round on a belly. Last belly I did I was using 1.5% total (salt and cure). This time I'm using 1.75% total.