# How much Tenderquick to use?



## shortend (Mar 23, 2011)

I'm about to cure some pork belly for bacon. I plan to use tenderquick and brown sugar as per Bearcarvers technique, flipping and massaging in ziplocks for 9 days. Then rinsing, doing fry test, and soaking in icewater, changing every hour or so as needed, until I get the salt level to my liking. Drying uncovered on a rack in the fridge overnight, then cold smoking using a 2 to 1 Hickory and Cherry mix with my AMNS for 7-9 hours, until I get what I think is a "good color".

Here's my main question. Just how important is it to be absolutely accurate with the amount of Tenderquick to use? I have a Salter 6300 kitchen scale. It measures in ounces( I'm assuming Avoirdupois) and kilograms. I have 2 pieces of pork belly to cure. One is 1 lb 7 7/8 oz. (.675 kg) and the other is 1 lb 8 7/8 oz. (.708 kg). Will it be accurate enough to use 3/4 oz. of tenderquick on each one since they're both pretty close to 1 1/2 lbs., or do I need to get right down to the nitty gritty with the tenderquick and go .014 kg (1/2 oz.) per .454 kg (1 lb)?

Thanks,

Shortend


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## mballi3011 (Mar 23, 2011)

Well I'm not looking at the bag of tender quick but I think it's 1 TBS per pound of meat. Now you don't have to be exact to the grain but close is really good enough. You have to be very careful thou but cure can hurt you so be careful and watch what you do with it.


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## daveomak (Mar 23, 2011)

I'm no expert but, considering nitrates and nitrites are considered a poison to the likes of us that like smoked foods, and the reason it is in foods is to keep us from dying from other stuff, I would use what the manufacturer recommends.

Someone who knows more than me has spent a lot of time figuring this stuff out.


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## dirtworldmike (Mar 23, 2011)

PM Bearcarver,  He knows all.


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## eman (Mar 23, 2011)

The cure recipe for TQ is 1 tbs tq and one tsp brown sugar per lb of meat . i use 1 tbsp TQ and the same ammount of brown sugar.

 If you use 1.5 tbsp of tq for each of these pieces of belly You will be fine . you can add black pepper, onion pepper, garlic powder etc if you so desire.


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## chefrob (Mar 23, 2011)

eman said:


> The cure recipe for TQ is 1 tbs tq and one tsp brown sugar per lb of meat . i use 1 tbsp TQ and the same ammount of brown sugar.
> 
> If you use 1.5 tbsp of tq for each of these pieces of belly You will be fine . you can add black pepper, onion pepper, garlic powder etc if you so desire.


what he said...........


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