# Uncured pork belly smoking question



## Cookin_Grillin_Smokin (Mar 30, 2021)

Hey everyone! So I have decided I want to make my first attempt at smoking a pork belly for bacon. I am sensitive to salt, and even the uncured bacon at the store has a lot of salt to me.

Can I smoke a pork belly without curing it? I am planning on adding some salt, but just a minimal amount. I want to taste the meat and smoke more than the salt. I am planning on hot smoking it, then possibly freezing the rest and cooking it when needed. I only eat bacon once or twice a month so it would last me a while.

Your thoughts and tips are greatly appreciated. Thank you!


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## Brokenhandle (Mar 30, 2021)

Without curing the belly it's not gonna have the same taste as bacon.  Also without cure you'll need to get it from 40 to 140 degrees in 4 hours...doesn't leave much time for achieving much smoke flavor. 

Ryan


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## smokerjim (Mar 30, 2021)

As ryan said it won't taste like bacon without the cure. Check out pops low salt brine.


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## 617Smoker (Mar 30, 2021)

I don't know what would happen if you used curing salt, which has salt of course plus nitrite, but no added salt to the cure. It would lower the salt but maybe still give you the bacon flavor you're looking for. I wouldn't do this without first knowing whether meat could safely cure without the added salt -- i don't know the answer to that. My understanding of "uncured" bacon is that it doesn't have artificial nitrite added, but will in fact be cured by natural nitrites extracted from celery or some other food. And, of course, cured with the addition of salt.


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## SmokinEdge (Mar 30, 2021)

617Smoker said:


> My understanding of "uncured" bacon is that it doesn't have artificial nitrite added, but will in fact be cured by natural nitrites extracted from celery or some other food. And, of course, cured with the addition of salt.


These contain Nitrates, not nitrites. Not a good idea in bacon.


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## thirdeye (Mar 30, 2021)

Cookin_Grillin_Smokin said:


> Hey everyone! So I have decided I want to make my first attempt at smoking a pork belly for bacon. I am sensitive to salt, and even the uncured bacon at the store has a lot of salt to me.
> 
> Can I smoke a pork belly without curing it? I am planning on adding some salt, but just a minimal amount. I want to taste the meat and smoke more than the salt. I am planning on hot smoking it, then possibly freezing the rest and cooking it when needed. I only eat bacon once or twice a month so it would last me a while.
> 
> Your thoughts and tips are greatly appreciated. Thank you!





617Smoker said:


> I don't know what would happen if you used curing salt, which has salt of course plus nitrite, but no added salt to the cure. It would lower the salt but maybe still give you the bacon flavor you're looking for. I wouldn't do this without first knowing whether meat could safely cure without the added salt -- i don't know the answer to that. My understanding of "uncured" bacon is that it doesn't have artificial nitrite added, but will in fact be cured by natural nitrites extracted from celery or some other food. And, of course, cured with the addition of salt.



Yes, curing bacon is possible with Cure #1 only, it would be easier in a wet curing brine for even distribution.  A dry cure is not out of the question, but it would be incredibly difficult to spread the tiny amount of Cure #1 needed.  The downside is I'm afraid the flavor would suffer.  *How about using Cure #1 with a greatly reduced salt and sugar?*  Check out this Greg Blonder article, because he does just that. 



			dry brined quick pastrami recipe
		


I tried this and for me it was a total gong.  The pastrami was fully cured, and had the right color but the flavor was not there for me, and normally I use somewhat low salt and sugar percentages when I cure meats.


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## SmokinEdge (Mar 30, 2021)

Low Sodium Bacon Recipe
					

I'm looking for a dry cure brine recipe for low salt content.




					www.smokingmeatforums.com


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## rexster314 (Mar 30, 2021)

SmokinEdge said:


> Low Sodium Bacon Recipe
> 
> 
> I'm looking for a dry cure brine recipe for low salt content.
> ...


This has been around forever, but I use it every month. Use it to adjust salt and sugar the way you prefer your bacon. Don't change the value for the cure however. 
www.diggingdogfarm.com/page2.html


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## SmokinEdge (Mar 30, 2021)

rexster314 said:


> This has been around forever, but I use it every month. Use it to adjust salt and sugar the way you prefer your bacon. Don't change the value for the cure however.
> www.diggingdogfarm.com/page2.html


Yup. Nifty little calculator. Trouble is, when playing with low salt, it doesn’t tell you what is safe and what is not. Do you know?


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## thirdeye (Mar 30, 2021)

rexster314 said:


> This has been around forever, but I use it every month. Use it to adjust salt and sugar the way you prefer your bacon. Don't change the value for the cure however.
> www.diggingdogfarm.com/page2.html


I think the cell that has the 6.25% is locked, you can't change it.


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## olaf (Mar 30, 2021)

Just an observation but store bought bacon seems to me to be just under 2% salt 2% sugar I like to keep my salt at 1.85% it tastes pretty close to what you'd buy, at 1.6% it seems a little low on salt. I'm just throwing that out as a reference for you to consider. I have read a number of posts on here where people have gone to 1% salt. When I've cut the salt I've also cut the sugar, because the taste balanced out better.


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## Fueling Around (Mar 30, 2021)

I will not eat meats labeled "uncured".
Search 

 daveomak.fs
 and you will find an article fighting to correctly identify these meat products as processed with (quasi) natural NITRATES and not nitrites. 
Good reply 

 SmokinEdge


As Ryan 

 Brokenhandle
  and others pointed out it will not be bacon.  It will be smoked pork belly or as I've known  it since my youth, side pork.

A lot of people love their pork belly burnt ends. 
I do not due to the added sugars.

Pops tried a cure using only #1 a few months before he passed.
I didn't see a results post and searching doesn't work for me.



SmokinEdge said:


> Yup. Nifty little calculator. Trouble is, when playing with low salt, it doesn’t tell you what is safe and what is not. Do you know?


I don't know the answer.


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## daveomak (Mar 31, 2021)

Morning...   Store bought has approx. 2-3% salt...  + nitrite at approx. 115 Ppm....
Please add cure#1 to the pork belly, to prevent botulism poisoning, when you smoke it... 
Cure#1 has salt, as sodium chloride, combined to sodium nitrite...   To get the nitrite,  to protect folks from botulism, add  cure#1 at 0.18%  (0.0018 X weight of the meat)....   That will give you protection from botulism without over salting the bacon...  The pork belly will have ~ 0.19% salt which is a lot better than the 2-3% from the store...  90% less than the store bought stuff...
To get some flavor in the belly, add whatever you like...  Black pepper, Garlic powder, Onion powder etc...


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## chef jimmyj (Mar 31, 2021)

Thanks Dave, you beat me to the answer.*  Just a reminder...40° to 140°F in 4 Hours...ONLY applies to Ground, Injected, BRT and heavily Punctured Meat, that has not been Cured with Nitrite...JJ*


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## Cookin_Grillin_Smokin (Apr 1, 2021)

Thank you everyone for your input. I didn’t realize there was so much technical information I needed to know to keep it safe to eat.
I purchased some cure #1 from Amazon and will use the low sodium recipe 

 SmokinEdge
 posted.
When I put the pork belly in the bag for a week to cure, would it make sense to use a vacuum seal bag? Or do I need some air in the bag to help the cure?


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## smokerjim (Apr 1, 2021)

You'll be fine either way, I would just flip it a couple times during the curing process. Not sure if it's absolutely necessary but most of us do it.


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## thirdeye (Apr 1, 2021)

Cookin_Grillin_Smokin said:


> Thank you everyone for your input. I didn’t realize there was so much technical information I needed to know to keep it safe to eat.
> I purchased some cure #1 from Amazon and will use the low sodium recipe
> 
> SmokinEdge
> ...



I used vacuum bags for curing for a few years but I never pulled a full vacuum.  I wanted the meat to be relaxed, and the bag liquid to be able to flow without any restriction.  I later switched to zipper Freezer Bags (which I also use for sous vide) and have not had any issues.


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## Brokenhandle (Apr 1, 2021)

Ziploc bags here also 

Ryan


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## SmokinEdge (Apr 1, 2021)

Yup ziploc type bags are perfect.


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## Cookin_Grillin_Smokin (Apr 1, 2021)

Okay, so I got my curing salt today. I used the low sodium recipe, but I am using 2.5 lbs of pork belly which is slightly over 1 kg of meat which it states in the recipe. The meat weighed in at 1.13 kg

I adjusted up to 4g of curing salt instead of 3, and adjusted the salt to 20g instead of 19.2  
Here is the recipe for reference: https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/low-sodium-bacon-recipe.284429/

Does this seem okay? You guys have me worried about safety now so I’m paranoid lol.
Thanks again for all the insight!


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## daveomak (Apr 2, 2021)

daveomak said:


> add cure#1 at 0.18% (0.0018 X weight of the meat)


 Morning....   1.13 kg = 1130 grams X 0.0018 =  2.03 grams of cure#1....


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## thirdeye (Apr 2, 2021)

Cookin_Grillin_Smokin said:


> Okay, so I got my curing salt today. I used the low sodium recipe, but I am using 2.5 lbs of pork belly which is slightly over 1 kg of meat which it states in the recipe. The meat weighed in at 1.13 kg
> 
> I adjusted up to 4g of curing salt instead of 3, and adjusted the salt to 20g instead of 19.2
> Here is the recipe for reference: https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/low-sodium-bacon-recipe.284429/
> ...





daveomak said:


> To get the nitrite, to protect folks from botulism, add cure#1 at 0.18% (0.0018 X weight of the meat)
> 
> Morning....   1.13 kg = 1130 grams X 0.0018 =  *2.03 grams of cure#1....*



If you aren't quite wrapping your head around one way to calculate an answer, you are not alone.  The good news is, there is usually another formula you can use. 

A percentage of anything is easy to work with when you are using kilograms.  For example, Dave suggested * 0.18% of Cure #1*.  This equates to 1.8 grams per 1000 grams (kilogram).  You measured your *meat weight at 1.13 kilograms.* To solve:

1.13 kg  *X*  1.8 g/kg =  *2.03 g  of Cure #1 is needed*.


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## olaf (Apr 2, 2021)

Cookin_Grillin_Smokin said:


> Okay, so I got my curing salt today. I used the low sodium recipe, but I am using 2.5 lbs of pork belly which is slightly over 1 kg of meat which it states in the recipe. The meat weighed in at 1.13 kg
> 
> I adjusted up to 4g of curing salt instead of 3, and adjusted the salt to 20g instead of 19.2
> Here is the recipe for reference: https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/low-sodium-bacon-recipe.284429/
> ...


You need to cut that salt in half your at 2%


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## daveomak (Apr 2, 2021)

Cookin_Grillin_Smokin said:


> Okay, so I got my curing salt today. I used the low sodium recipe, but I am using 2.5 lbs of pork belly which is slightly over 1 kg of meat which it states in the recipe. The meat weighed in at 1.13 kg
> 
> I adjusted up to 4g of curing salt instead of 3, and adjusted the salt to 20g instead of 19.2
> Here is the recipe for reference: https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/low-sodium-bacon-recipe.284429/
> ...



NO !!!!  It's not OK... Do the math...  read my other posts...


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## Fueling Around (Apr 2, 2021)

Cookin_Grillin_Smokin said:


> Okay, so I got my curing salt today. I used the low sodium recipe, but I am using 2.5 lbs of pork belly which is slightly over 1 kg of meat which it states in the recipe. The meat weighed in at 1.13 kg
> 
> I adjusted up to 4g of curing salt instead of 3, and adjusted the salt to 20g instead of 19.2
> Here is the recipe for reference: https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/low-sodium-bacon-recipe.284429/
> ...


NO! 
Did you start last night?  The pink salt (nitrite) and the regular salt is excessive. 
That salt level is higher than my  preference and way higher than you should attempt in your restricted diet.

Going from high to low is easier to recover than low to high.

A dry brine should be 11 grams of salt for 1% which I consider a minimal brine.

Start over with 2 grams of pink salt and 11 grams of salt


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## Cookin_Grillin_Smokin (Apr 3, 2021)

Man am I glad you guys have the knowledge and expertise to help me out.
When I was rubbing the pork it seemed like it wasn’t enough of a brine. I guess I am used to rubbing my meats in a thick layer of rub before I smoke it.

I started the brine on Thursday night (I’m reading this Saturday night in California)
Is it too late to rise it off and start over with the updated, 2 grams of pink salt and 11 grams of kosher salt? Still seems like not enough foe 2.5 lbs of meat... this is new to me so what do I know lol

thank you again forall your help!


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## olaf (Apr 4, 2021)

Cookin_Grillin_Smokin said:


> Man am I glad you guys have the knowledge and expertise to help me out.
> When I was rubbing the pork it seemed like it wasn’t enough of a brine. I guess I am used to rubbing my meats in a thick layer of rub before I smoke it.
> 
> I started the brine on Thursday night (I’m reading this Saturday night in California)
> ...


Your not out much money that amount of cure is high but you'll be ok for a few slices of bacon. My only guess is to rinse everything off now sprinke on some brown sugar and it should cure just fine. Personally I would just toss it and start over following a recipe then adjust the recipe according to your own tastes.


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## daveomak (Apr 4, 2021)

It will be OK....  Nitrite dissipates over time and with heat above ~130 ish....
I bake my pork belly...  slice it and bake on a with rack on a sheet pan...  I bake at 325-350 until it gets the crispness I'm looking for.....
Double pan to try and keep from burning up all that bacon fat...   I save it for cooking..








I've been known to brush maple syrup on the rashers just before it gets done to make a delicious snack bacon strip...


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## Cookin_Grillin_Smokin (Apr 4, 2021)

olaf said:


> Your not out much money that amount of cure is high but you'll be ok for a few slices of bacon. My only guess is to rinse everything off now sprinke on some brown sugar and it should cure just fine. Personally I would just toss it and start over following a recipe then adjust the recipe according to your own tastes.


As long as it is safe to eat I don’t mind keeping it and seeing how it goes. Safety is my biggest concern. I can always give it to my neighbors if it isn’t too salty :)


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## olaf (Apr 4, 2021)

Cookin_Grillin_Smokin said:


> As long as it is safe to eat I don’t mind keeping it and seeing how it goes. Safety is my biggest concern. I can always give it to my neighbors if it isn’t too salty :)


That's why I think you should rinse it off now, half the salt and most of the cure is in the belly now then just leave it in the fridge the rest of the week to allow the cure to do its thing. Whatever dave omak says is right, you can learn a lot by reading his posts


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## Cookin_Grillin_Smokin (Apr 10, 2021)

for some reason I could t get this thread to open all week until this morning.
My bacon has been in the fridge for a full week and I wasn’t able to rise and lower the curing salt content.

following the low salt recipe posted earlier in this thread, it says to take it out, soak it, then put in the fridge overnight.
It has been curing for a week now, is it safe to say I can do this step and smoke it tomorrow morning? My main concern it is safe to eat without getting sick. Do I need to let it cure more for safety reasons?


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