# Jack Daniels Bacon



## philyar (Aug 4, 2013)

First time trying this, I call it Jack Daniels Bacon.

I used the Basic Bacon recipe from the Culinary Institute of America, Garde Manger Text Book, around $65 but well worth it.
Using honey instead of the white sugar. 













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__ philyar
__ Aug 4, 2013






For 10 lbs of pork belly

4 oz salt
2.8 oz sugar, or 3.2 fl oz honey, or 3.2 fl oz real maple syrup
0.8 oz TCM, which is equal to 2 tsp 

Weigh the pork bellies, and adjust recipe as necessary.
Mix cure ingredients.
Rub cure on both sides of belly.
Cure under refrigeration for 7 to 10 days, overhauling every other day.
Rinse, and pat dry, air dry for 18 hours, till tacky.
Hot smoke at 185 to reach an internal temperature of 150, approx 3-4 hours. 


For the JD bacon, I used honey in place of the sugar, added 2 fl oz of JD in the cure, and I always cure 1/2 a slab of belly, usually around 5 lbs.
Take the recipe divide it by 10, then you have what you need per pound of meat.
After I smoke my bacon, I let it cool down on a rack for a bit, then put in the fridge (do not want to raise the temp of everything in my fridge) overnight, then I put it into the freezer for 1 month before slicing.  I have found out that this really mellows out the smoke and salt, I do not know why, it just does.

TCM is tinted curing mix, or pink cure, or Prague powder # 1, it is 94% salt, and 6% sodium nitrite, it is tinted pink with FD&C#3 to make it easily identifiable.  
2 oz of TCM is enough to kill a person, this is why most people use Morton's Tenderquick, or the brown sugar cure, Which is a pre mixed amount of salt and TCM to use per lb of meat, I do not, because I like to be in controll of the amount of salt in my meat, not Morton's.













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__ philyar
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__ philyar
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__ philyar
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__ philyar
__ Aug 4, 2013


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## gotarace (Aug 4, 2013)

Fantastic color on that bacon...is the Jack Daniels flavor very noticeable in the bacon or is it a light side note? Thanks for sharing!!!


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## philyar (Aug 4, 2013)

Thank you, the bourbon  flavor is noticeable, if you are looking for it. I would like to try a test to see if someone can taste it, if I didn't tell them it was there.  The bag of wood chips, says it is 100% JD oak aging barrels, when you open the bag, you smell bourbon, as if you were boiling a entire bottle of JD on the stove. MI paid $5 for the bag of chips at Menards, I have seen the JD chips at Cabellas for much more.


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