# Leave the Rind on or take it off before ?



## kdallmer

Question for everyone:

I have read to leave the rind on your Pork belly and I have read you can take it off before curing..  What is the difference?

Also  does any one know how to take the skin off a belly after smoking or before curing? 

The rind is a pain in my *Pork-butt! *

Keith


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## bigfish98

Keith,

I have to admit that I don't have personal experience with this.  The place I get my bellies takes it off before hand.  But from what I have read here there isn't a whole lot of difference curing it other than it increases the thickness of the belly which will increase curing time. 

As for taking it off, I have heard that it is easier after the bellies are smoked.  Most just lay it skin side down and use a sharp thin knife like a filet knife to "filet" it off.  Just like taking the skin of a fish filet.

Hope that helps.

Bigfish


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## diggingdogfarm

You can do it either way, it's a matter of personal preference, as Bigfish said it's usually easier to remove it after curing and smoking, but if you have a very sharp knife (blunt tip referred), it's no so much of a chore to remove it before. I prefer to cure and smoke mine rind-off most of the time.

[VIDEO][/VIDEO]

~Martin


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## boykjo

kdallmer said:


> Question for everyone:
> 
> I have read to leave the rind on your Pork belly and I have read you can take it off before curing..  What is the difference? There's no difference. There is a difference after you smoke and then remove the skin you lose that nice brown outer coating but when you slice up the belly you'll never know it.....
> 
> Also  does any one know how to take the skin off a belly after smoking or before curing? I use a sharp fish filet knife
> 
> The rind is a pain in my *Pork-butt! *
> 
> Keith


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## bluebombersfan

I use to take the skin off before cure and smoke but I made a mess out of too many bellies.  Now I just cure smoke and then remove with a sharp knife.  You do lose that nice color but still have a great tasting bacon!


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## linguica

The rind is great in a pot of beans.


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## kdallmer

To everyone So far..   Next time, I think I wil have the butcher remove it, he wont charge me for the service..  ( I'll cure and smoke the skin for home made Pork&beans)


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## smokinhusker

Great answers and there's nothing I can add!


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## mballi3011

Now I have always got my bellies with the rind on and removed it before curing n smoking. Mayb I'll try it with the rind on since there's one whole bellie in the freezer right now.


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## linguica

I guess the question is will the exposed fat, after the skin is removed, take the smoke properly.


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## pops6927

I've cured and smoked thousands and thousands of bellies.  We (my dad's store) always cured and smoked them rind on.  We would remove the rind on about half of each batch (300 lb batches) after smoking, fresh out of the smokehouse while still warm; it was so much easier and quicker.  We'd cool down the rest, and if needed, we would remove rinds as necessary by the slab.  The only problem, if someone wants rind-on bacon, you can't glue it back on!  We'd run the knife under the first 2" of skin, the grip it with a pair of vise grips, holding it up and keeping it taut while you skinned it off, leaving little to no fat on the skin.  We'd just throw them out, but they made great treats for the neighborhood dogs; cutting them into strips.  Some bellies you could actually pull the rind off all at once, esp. the overcooked ones right next to the smokehouse walls!

Rind-on bacon is the 'old-fashioned' way to eat bacon; you have that strip of rind that you can chew on, getting all the flavor possible from it, it really is delicious!  And, an hour later you can go back and chew on it some more and get more flavor out of it!   You do need a commercial slicer to cut it clean by the slice, however.  Just like skin-on side pork  - it wouldn't be sidepork if you didn't have the rind to chew on!


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## kdallmer

LOL 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





   MAYBE NEXT TIME i WILL LEAVE THE RIND ON!   ALL DAY BACON


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## kdallmer

LOL 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





   MAYBE NEXT TIME i WILL LEAVE THE RIND ON!   ALL DAY BACON


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## kryinggame

When I see a pork shoulder with rind, I buy it--not to smoke but to make Puerto Rican Pernil.  It's heavily fused with fresh garlic and other spices and cooked at 375 for a few hours.  Man, the rind gets nice and crispy and soooooooo good.


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