# bacon experiment (completed with results and pics)



## boykjo (May 13, 2011)

Well here is my first try at bacon. I did a lot searching trying to use a tender Quick bacon brine but really could'nt come up with exact ammounts of cure to water and cure times. Mortons say 1 cup cure to 4 cups and cure 24 hrs. but I wanted to do a 10 day brine like using insta cure #1. I was planning on cutting the cure in half using 1/2 cup cure to 4 cups water but cant remember if I put 2 or 4 cups of water  with the 1/2 cup cure. (old age is settin in). so I am guessing I started with 1/2 cup of TQ , 2 cups of water and 2 cups of jeffs rub. cut the bacon slabs in half and put them in the bag and sealed. I dont know how long i am going to let them set in the fridge but I would say at 4 days being 24hrs  by the directions. Now I dont know if the 24 hrs pertains to pumping the pickle into the meat.

I removed the skin on the first slab and hacked it a little. It was the practice piece. Did better on the second piece located in front of pic. I have three more bacon slabs to fall back on if this attempt fails...

skin removed








TQ water and jeffs rub







cut in half to fit in bag







in the bag







brining







thanks for looking

Joe


----------



## Bearcarver (May 13, 2011)

That brining with TQ is totally Greek to me, so I have no idea how much or how long.

Somebody should know----Eric???

Bear


----------



## desertlites (May 13, 2011)

Looking good Joe,I just do the #1. I figure if it ain't broke don't fix it.looking forward to see your outcome.


----------



## fpnmf (May 13, 2011)

I do bacon either with TQ as Bear taught me or with #1 as Pops taught me..

Never thought of combining the 2...hmmm

Good luck!!

  Craig


----------



## SmokinAl (May 13, 2011)

I have a question for you cure#1 guys who are using it in a brine. It says on the package 3 oz. of cure #1 to 1 gallon of water. So it's my understanding that the amount of meat that you put in the brine does not matter, only that the brine covers the meat. Is this correct? In other words it wouldn't matter if I put 3 lbs. of bellies in the brine or 5 lbs. it would still be 3 oz. #1 to 1 gallon water, correct?


----------



## fpnmf (May 13, 2011)

Yes that is correct.

 I put 16 pounds of bellie into a 2 gallon mixture--- 2 one gallon mixtures..

Pops recipe:

1/2 cup salt

2 cups sugar

1 tablespoon of #1 (he sez the amount is variable, take longer for less)

1 gal water

5-7 days

Put a baggie half full of water to hold the bellies under the mixture.


----------



## SmokinAl (May 13, 2011)

Thanks Craig!


----------



## killnsmoke (May 13, 2011)

i always use instacure #1


----------



## eman (May 13, 2011)

Check w/ mballi he cures w/ TQ for his bacon.


----------



## fpnmf (May 13, 2011)

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/forum/thread/85569/cures-and-curing


----------



## meateater (May 13, 2011)

Rub on bacon, interesting! Let's see some with eggs.


----------



## boykjo (May 14, 2011)

meateater said:


> Rub on bacon, interesting! Let's see some with eggs.




The thought just popped in my head..... Three more days and then in for a cold smoke......


----------



## boykjo (May 17, 2011)

well here are the results of my first bacon experience............  I went into this doing something that seems not normally done using tender quick in a wet cure. I have searched and found little information on wet curing bacon with TQ. I was thinking what flavor would I like the bacon to have so Jeff's rub came to mind... Well I thought it couldn't hurt... So i followed the instructions on the TQ bag to do brine curing. 1 cup TQ per 4 cups water. I did 1/2 cup cure to 2 cups water and added 2 cups of Jeff's rub with some turbinado sugar added into it and bagged the bellies. I was planning on curing for 4 days but on the second day the bellies stiffened up pretty good so I thought the cure had penetrated to the center so I pulled them and cold smoked with the amns and a heat lamp in the offset moving the pieces around near the lamp. Cold smoked for 14 hrs. I set t in fridge for two days to dry and sliced and fried. The cure was perfect I would say. I am pleased how it turned out. The cure  amounts were correct as the pkg said except i went two days instead of 24hrs. The flavor was good... I can taste the rub and the hickory in the bacon that i used to smoke it. I can come up with two things wrong with the bacon. It needed some salt added to the wet cure. Not much but just a little bit and I am really disappointed in the size of the bellies I bought. If you look at the bacon or mini bacon, by time you fry it up they are tiny little pieces... The good thing is as soon as I fried some up the wife and kid  jumped in and made a bacon sandwich with left over taco toppings.....

I will do this again but I need to find a belly that will produce the correct size length and width you would get in the grocery.....

Thanks for looking

Joe

in the smoker







out of the smoker







sliced up













fried up


----------



## Bearcarver (May 17, 2011)

I got here just in time!

It looks mighty tasty Joe!!!

Thanks for the great views,

Bear


----------



## fpnmf (May 17, 2011)

Looks great Joe!!!

  Congrats!!

Craig


----------



## gros cochon (May 17, 2011)

mmmmmm bacon ! That looks fantastic my friend.


----------



## raptor700 (May 17, 2011)

Looks very good Joe, Hope my first try goes as well as yours.

I like the heat lamp idea


----------



## fpnmf (May 17, 2011)

raptor700 said:


> Looks very good Joe, Hope my first try goes as well as yours.
> 
> I like the heat lamp idea


Lemme know when you are ready to start..

  Craig


----------



## raptor700 (May 17, 2011)

Will do neighbor......


fpnmf said:


> Lemme know when you are ready to start..
> 
> Craig


----------



## beer-b-q (May 17, 2011)

Looks Great...


----------



## boykjo (May 18, 2011)

Thanks everyone. It wouldn't have turned out this well if it weren't for SMF


----------



## pops6927 (May 18, 2011)

Next time, try leaving the rind on until after smoking; it will harden up, then you can slip your knife under the edge of the skin and loosen it and peel it off much easier.  The skin is pervious and will allow smoke flavor to penetrate it even though it's not brown underneath, you have more than adequate smoke flavor left in the belly after you remove the skin.  We did 24 full slabs at a time in one smokehouse and would de-rind 18 - 20 of them after smoking; the slabs closest to the smokehouse walls would sometimes overcook a bit and we'd just slip the knife under the edge all the way around, then grab the rind with a pair of channellock pliers and pull the rind off if warm enough, lol!  But, we never de-rind'd the belly before smoking, it would be way too floppy and hard to do, esp. with the soft skin.  The rest of the smoked bellies we sold with the rind on; about 20% of people liked to chew on the rind (just like fresh sidepork (fresh belly), always sold that with the rind on, as well as salt pork (pickled belly)...).


----------



## SmokinAl (May 18, 2011)

Great looking bacon Joe, especially for your first try at it.


----------



## Bearcarver (May 18, 2011)

Good idea Joe,

Try it with the rind on to see which way you like it. It seems a lot of people like the rind on, so they can chew on good smokey skin, plus it will hold together better when hanging. But I never heard anyone say their Bacon tastes "better" with the skin on.

Personally I tried it both ways, and I disagree that it doesn't lose flavor with the rind on. If the rind has good flavor, in my book that means some of the flavor stopped off on the way in. I guess it's just a matter of preference, but you won't know if you don't try it.

I also find I get more smoke flavor on my Beef sticks if I don't stuff them in skins, but that's MY OPINION, and that is why I make "Unstuffed Beef Sticks". I have had quite a few people agree with that one too.

Anything you don't try will always be a mystery, and it will just be someone else's opinion.

Bear


----------



## shooter1 (May 18, 2011)

Looks good to me Joe, I'm going to have to try this sooner or later.


----------

