# confused about bacon



## afogg (Feb 3, 2017)

I got a 5 lbs slab of pork belly I'm going to be curing tonight and I've browsed through a lot of forums and recipes and there seems to be a huge variant of how to do things. Some folks cure their meat for 14 days, some for 5 days. Cold smoke vs hot smoke, etc etc.

All I know is that I would like to cure my meat for 7 days and then probably smoke it between 110-130 F for about 12 hours (following Bear's post)

Now....a few things....my butcher told me to keep the skin on and then take it off after I smoke it and most people here say to take it off, what is the difference? Why do you soak the meat in ice water (this seems to be common with dry bring recipe, since I'm doing wet brine should I soak it?) Should I let the meat air dry for 24 hours? What should the internal temperature of the meat be before it's done?

A side note: I don't have the equipment to do cold smoke nor do I have the time or patience to watch something cook for 3 days...12 hours is about my limit (at least for now).

This is the recipe that I'm using (http://amazingribs.com/recipes/porknography/making_bacon_from_scratch.html) 
[h2]Maple Bacon Recipe[/h2]
*Takes.*  30 minutes prep, about 3 days of curing, about 2 hours of smoking.

*Makes. *About 75 thick slices, about 100 ppm nitrites
[h3]Ingredients[/h3]
3 pounds of unsliced pork belly about 1 1/2" thick and 6 to 8 " wide across the grain to make slicing easy and to make sure it fits in the frying pan

4 1/2 teaspoons Morton's kosher salt

4 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper

3 tablespoons dark brown sugar

1/2 cup dark maple syrup

3/4 cup distilled water

1/2 teaspoon Prague Powder #1

_*About the maple syrup.*  I use real maple syrup in this recipe, but it is expensive. The darker grades have more flavor. If you wish, you can use Steens Cane Sugar, pancake syrup, sorghum, honey, Lyle's Golden Syrup, or molasses._

_*Scaling.*  If you scale up, be sure to count the maple syrup as liquid so this recipe has 1.25 cups of liquid._


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## ab canuck (Feb 3, 2017)

Try that recipe and see how it turns out, You can leave it soak longer if wanted. Then see what the turn out is. If not happy try another recipe. There are a ton of them here. just don't get smoker too hot. Good luck and let us know what you think.


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## afogg (Feb 3, 2017)

> You can't just say  I want to brine for 7 days


Sorry that was wrongly worded....based on my research my minimum cure should be 5 days but I'm doing 7 because of timing


> Every question asked has been answered many times over in this forum.


Maybe I'm not digging deep enough? There's hundreds and thousands of posts and many of them tell you what to do but not so much the why or the reasoning. And it's because I want to be 100% safe that I'm asking these questions for extra precaution.


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## rexster314 (Feb 3, 2017)

First off, what are you using for a smoker? That needs to be shown before people start trying to help you. 7 days is pretty much the standard. I dry brine and do it for 7 to 10 days, Rinsing/soaking a wet brined belly is up to you. There's a lot of trial and error making bacon. Some like their bacon a little salty, some don't. My routine is 7-8 days of dry cure, then set out to form the pellicle. I've got my ratio of salt/sugar/pink salt where it doesn't require a rinse or soak. When you find a cure time you like, make sure you write it down, don't rely on memory. 

Smoking bacon should be done at a lower temp. I don't go over 100[sup]o [/sup]F. You don't want to render any of the fat out of the belly.

Maybe this will get you started. Refine your search parameters to narrow down what you want to look at


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## afogg (Feb 3, 2017)

I'm using MES30. And unfortunately it doesn't go any lower than 100


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## murraysmokin (Feb 3, 2017)

I just use my Amazen & cold smoke for 6 + hours.


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## rexster314 (Feb 3, 2017)

afogg said:


> I'm using MES30. And unfortunately it doesn't go any lower than 100


I have 2 MES 40's and when I do a full load of bacon, I only use an AMZTS for about 7 hours. No heat


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## slipaway (Feb 4, 2017)

Here is the recipe I use for Bacon. Maybe there is a piece or 2 of info here that might help you.

I don't cold smoke - takes too much time..............

Made from Scratch Bacon


4-5 pound pork belly, skinned (with plenty of meat on it)
For the cure:


1/3 cup Kosher salt

3 tablespoons course ground black pepper

2 teaspoons pink curing salt, such as Prague Powder #1

1/3 cup light brown sugar

1/3 cup maple syrup flakes
Step 1: Place the salt, pepper and pink salt in a bowl and mix well with fingers. Mix in the sugar and maple flakes, breaking up any chunks of sugar with your fingers.

Step 2: Place the pork belly on a rimmed baking sheet. Rub half of the cure on one side of the belly, invert and rub the other half of the reverse side. Place the pork belly (plus any excess cure) in a large, sturdy plastic bag (I use a large bag from my vacuum sealer) and put on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator.

Step 3: Cure the belly for 10 -12 days, turning each day to redistribute the liquid that will accumulate in the bag.

Step 4: Drain the pork belly and rinse well with cold water. Blot it dry with paper towels. Now is the time to do a fry test. Cut a slice and fry up to see if too salty. If so, soak in cool water for 1 hour, changing the water 2 times during that soak. (Can do another fry test, if desired)

Step 5: Set up smoker to smoke with hickory, apple or cherry, aiming for a low (200-225) smoking temp. Place belly on rack and let smoke until firm and golden bronze. The internal temperature should be at 150 degrees!

Step 6: Transfer the bacon to a wire rack and let cool to room temperature. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Step 7: Slice not too thin and cook, or vacuum wrap and freeze.


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## dirtsailor2003 (Feb 4, 2017)

Okay so far everything I see here is leading to disaster. Wrong cure amounts in every post and no explanation of curing times. 

As for hot or cold smoking it's personal preference. I prefer the texture of cold smoking so that's what I do. 

You have a 5 pound slab. For dry curing you'd need 1 teaspoon of cure #1 for dry curing. The ratio is 1 teaspoon of cure per five pounds meat.

As for cure time it depends on the thickness of the meat. Figure 1/4" per day per inch then add 2 days. This applies if you have cure on all sides of the meat. This is the minimum cure time. 

If you are leaving the skin on it is recommended to cure longer (double) as the cure doesn't penetrate the skin so you are only curing from one side. 

If you want to do a liquid brine you need to read up on equilibrium brining. Dave Omak is your guy for explaining that. Or use the following simple wet brine: 

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/110799/pops6927s-wet-curing-brine

For dry curing all you need to use is this calculator. You can add any other spices and flavorings you like. 
I have found that adding dry seasonings after the cure has the best results. 

http://diggingdogfarm.com/page2.html


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## myownidaho (Feb 4, 2017)

dirtsailor2003 said:


> Okay so far everything I see here is leading to disaster. Wrong cure amounts in every post and no explanation of curing times.
> 
> As for hot or cold smoking it's personal preference. I prefer the texture of cold smoking so that's what I do.
> 
> ...



This. [emoji]128070[/emoji]


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## afogg (Feb 4, 2017)

dirtsailor2003 said:


> Okay so far everything I see here is leading to disaster. Wrong cure amounts in every post and no explanation of curing times.
> 
> As for hot or cold smoking it's personal preference. I prefer the texture of cold smoking so that's what I do.
> 
> ...


Thank you!! The part about the skin really helps. Fortunately I did get the cure amount right and I'll take the skin off.


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## Bearcarver (Feb 4, 2017)

afogg said:


> I'm using MES30. And unfortunately it doesn't go any lower than 100


Don't worry about it---As long as you stay 130° Smoker Temp or below, you won't render any fat.

I figure my time in cure by how thick the Bacon is.

Here's one that explains everything you're asking:

*Bacon (Extra Smoky)*

Bear


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## slipaway (Feb 5, 2017)

Since there are only 2 posts that mention cure amounts prior to dirtsailor comments I can only presume you feel that my recipe will end up hurting someone and is somehow way off base.

My recipe is based on the one by Steven Raichlen and I will copy it here so that we can all tell him that he doesn't know what he is doing. This comes directly from his Barbeque Bible and you can see where I adjusted it for my own tastes (like increasing the curing time and changing some of the spices).
[h1]Made-from-Scratch Bacon[/h1][h3]Recipe by Steven Raichlen[/h3]
 4- to 5-pound pork belly, skinned

[h4]For the cure:[/h4]
1/3 cup kosher salt
3 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper or cracked black peppercorns
2 teaspoons pink curing salt, such as Prague Powder #1
1/3 cup brown sugar, granulated sugar, maple sugar, freeze-dried sugar cane juice (Sucanat), or a mixture of these sweeteners

steps

*Step 1:* Place the salt, pepper, and pink salt in a mixing bowl and mix well with your fingers. Mix in the sugar, breaking up any lumps in brown sugar with your fingers.

*Step 2:* Place the pork belly on a rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle half of the cure on top and rub it into the belly. Invert and sprinkle the remaining cure on the bottom and rub it in. Place the belly (plus any excess cure) in a large, sturdy, resealable plastic bag in a foil pan or roasting pan on the bottom shelf of your refrigerator.

*Step 3:* Cure the belly for 5 days, turning it over each day to redistribute the liquid that will accumulate.

*Step 4:* Drain the pork belly in a colander and rinse well with cold water. Blot it dry with paper towels. Place the belly on a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet in the refrigerator or in a cool place in front of a fan (the goal is to create good airflow) and let it dry until the surface feels papery and tacky, at least 4 hours, or as long as overnight.

*Step 5:* Set up your smoker following the manufacturer’s instructions and preheat it to 175 degrees F. Add hickory, apple, or cherry chips or chunks to the coals. Lay the pork belly directly on the grill grate. Smoke the pork belly until bronzed with wood smoke and firm, 2 to 3 hours. The internal temperature should reach 150 degrees F. (Insert an instant-read thermometer probe through the side of the bacon at one end.)

*Step 6:* Transfer the bacon to a wire rack over a baking sheet and let it cool to room temperature. Tightly wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, ideally overnight.

*Step 7:* Slice and cook (grill, panfry, or bake in the oven) and serve. You’ll rock the hood with this one.


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## dirtsailor2003 (Feb 5, 2017)

Slipaway said:


> Since there are only 2 posts that mention cure amounts prior to dirtsailor comments I can only presume you feel that my recipe will end up hurting someone and is somehow way off base.
> My recipe is based on the one by Steven Raichlen and I will copy it here so that we can all tell him that he doesn't know what he is doing. This comes directly from his Barbeque Bible and you can see where I adjusted it for my own tastes (like increasing the curing time and changing some of the spices).
> 
> [h1]Made-from-Scratch Bacon[/h1]
> ...





His recipe has been discussed here before, and it used twice the amount of cure required for a 5# hunk of meat. 

Many of his recipes have more cure than what is recommended by the USDA.


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## myownidaho (Feb 5, 2017)

dirtsailor2003 said:


> His recipe has been discussed here before, and it used twice the amount of cure required for a 5# hunk of meat.
> 
> Many of his recipes have more cure than what is recommended by the USDA.



My guess is he's bumping the amount of cure to protect himself legally. I think it's the same with recommending way too much Bactoferm. Nobody can come back and sue because they got sick.


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## myownidaho (Feb 5, 2017)

When it comes to how many days, the belly determines that. When it's firm to the touch is a good determinate. When I do bacon, it typically takes 8-10 days.


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## slipaway (Feb 6, 2017)

Does this mean I can just cut my curing salt in half and I will get the same results, or do I need to change other things also? Am very happy with the results I have been getting so please don't tell me to just go and use a different recipe.

Certainly do not want to hurt family, etc.  

P.S. I love chops.......................


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## myownidaho (Feb 6, 2017)

Slipaway said:


> Does this mean I can just cut my curing salt in half and I will get the same results, or do I need to change other things also? Am very happy with the results I have been getting so please don't tell me to just go and use a different recipe.
> 
> Certainly do not want to hurt family, etc.
> 
> P.S. I love chops.......................


Just adjust the cure and you're curing time. Everything else is to your personal preference.


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