# TQ dangerous for macon bacon?



## phreak (Nov 22, 2009)

I swear I read once, probably on here, that there were warnings out about using TQ to cure bacon.  I think it was something about when you fry the bacon it gets to a temperature that causes the TQ to become a toxin or carcinogen or something???  Am I just imagining this or do I remember correctly.  I've been doing forum searches and googling this with no luck.  Honestly I hope I'm remembering wrong because I've got a bunch of TQ and it might actually eventually get cool enough where I live to cold smoke some bacon.


While searching for the answer I came across this
http://stason.org/TULARC/food/preser...n-at-home.html
Isn't this info completely BS???  Isn't it true that too much cure is quite dangerous???


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## pignit (Nov 22, 2009)

I think you heard wrong. Use it up... go for it. 1 Tablespoon per pound. Good stuff. Besides..... somethins gotta kill ya.... we aren't gettin out of this alive.


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## pineywoods (Nov 22, 2009)

If memory serves me its Instacure #2 your not suppose to fry and the wrong amount of cure can be dangerous


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## rivet (Nov 22, 2009)

I don't know if you read it here or not, however you are certainly not imagining anything. There have been horror stories and scare tactics and all kinds of creepy things in the news about the evils of eating food ever since I was a kid. If it wasn't the nitrates it was the nitrites, and if it wasn't that it was the carcinogens in the apple orchard sprays, then it was the frying of bologna, or the deadliness of caffeine....and on and on and on.

Oh, and let's not forget the horrors of red dye number 5 and the certain-death from saccharine. 

Well, 30 years later I work in the Food Industry dealing with Food Safety and believe me...let it go! People died by the thousands due to poor food preservation. Today we have excellent, wholesome foods for the millions and no one gets sick when we do things correctly, which is 99.9999997 percent of the time. 

SO...take a deep breath and relax, it is all okay. Eat what you want in moderation. You have a better chance of being struck by lighting than getting cancer or illness or whatever from too much cured meat!

Remember, the only REAL danger out there is LIFE. It will kill you. Everyone will die from it!


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## travcoman45 (Nov 22, 2009)

#2 is a long term cure fer like dry sausage an such.  

You wan't to use the correct amount of cure, measure carefully, cause to much is hazordous to yer health.  Used in the proper amounts is fairly safe, nothin is totally safe, but I plan on eatin as much cured stuff as I've always done!


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## beer-b-q (Nov 22, 2009)

I've heard that,  It is like cemeteries, people are just dying to get in them...


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## phreak (Nov 22, 2009)

thanks for the quick replies...There has been a lot of cancer in my family so I try to limit the amount of known carcinogens I ingest.


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## alx (Nov 22, 2009)

Follow the instructions.Lots of folk use a bit less to lower the salt.Look at the ingredients in T.Q. Probably the easiest of cures to use being pre-mixed etc....


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## phreak (Nov 22, 2009)

I've used TQ for making jerky, I have no problem eating cured meats, and I do lots of things in my everyday life that could get me killed.  But if there was another product I could/should use for curing bacon that would not turn into a carcinogen when fried I would rather use it.


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## gnubee (Nov 22, 2009)

I fretted and worried about the fat in shrimp will kill ya, then they discouvered omega 3 fatty acids and all was well. 
Chocolate was horrible for your health but now it is beneficial
Oranges were bad for you, now they prevent Heart disease
This is bad for you that is bad for you.

Then some Clown, a supposedly genius University professor/doctor of something or other announced that too much fresh air was not good for you. 

It was then I quit listening to them all.

No joke He actually announced that fresh air wasn't good for you. 

I guess our ancestors for millions of years were doing it all wrong and we should have evolved in sealed caves.


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## phreak (Nov 22, 2009)

Honestly guys leave your rants to yourselves.


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## desertlites (Nov 22, 2009)

I have never heard of what your talking about-I make ALOT of bacon useing prague#1 and will continue-I have heard to many salty stories useing TQ so I won't use it.sorry if I ranted!


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## got14u (Nov 22, 2009)

Rant on desert....I will just keep on keeping on....I'm sure to die some day...maybe from to much sweet-n-low...lol...na I don't use that chit


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## DanMcG (Nov 22, 2009)

Hasn't the use of nitrates in commercially cured meats been banned since the mid seventies?


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## bassman (Nov 22, 2009)

Don't forget a few years ago that BBQ'd meat was killing us all.


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## mballi3011 (Nov 22, 2009)

I hope it's all right cause I have used it serial times and have feed itto my family and they are all still here.


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## Bearcarver (Nov 22, 2009)

LOL, Kinda like the time Butch and Sundance were about to jump off the cliff into the river far below. The one said, "But I can't swim !"
The other one said, "Can't swim???---Heck, the fall will kill ya !"

Sorry to interupt here, but I had to remind you all of that one !

Bearcarver


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## nate_46 (Nov 22, 2009)

????????????

Just imagine that we are all sitting with a cup of coffee in our hand imparting wisdom to each other in a funny/joking manner. There is a lot of info within those rants. A bad rant anyway would be me ranting about the Nuggets losing to the clippers....
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





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Anyway, in my short time of curing meats I have learned that you need to use the correct amout of "cure", but the time can be extended. Its better to add a few days to the curing time rather than the meat being under-cured. Watch the temps though.


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## txbigred (Nov 22, 2009)

TQ does have #2 cure in it. Bacon cannot legally be made commercially with #2 cure in it. That being said, i just made some with TQ myself.............

Dave


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## okie joe (Nov 22, 2009)

Stop it folks,,,,,Cureing meat is not that hard.....and the misinformation is running rants or rampant,
Saltpetre...Potassium Nitrate is no longer used to cure meat ...was stoped it the 1970's.....

Morton tender quick has been used for Years and years,,,, Follow package directions....
1/2 Ounce (1 tablespoon ) of MTQ is used for each lb of Meat

Cooking any bacon to very hight Temp will cause nitrates in the cured meat to change in to what many have said will be a risk for cancer..... I havnt seen conclusive proof of this but ...
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





Cook bacon till done and dont Blast cook it till burnt....
Insta cure #1 is used to cure meat makes pork sholder ...Bacon 
and leg meat Ham... And I havent heard any Rants......You use less insta cure    4 0z will cure 100lb of meat.  sorry rant off.

Instacure #2 is used for dry cureing for fermented sasuages and has Nitrates and Nitrates think slow time released .


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## got14u (Nov 22, 2009)

I'm just gonna start smokin a extra pack of cigarettes so that I don't die from the cure in my sausage.
	

	
	
		
		



		
			






...lmao...sorry I couldn't resist my self


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## pignit (Nov 22, 2009)

Insta Cure (Prague Powder) #1 contains 6.25% nitrite per pound of salt. 
It MUST be used to cure all meats that will require smoking at low temperatures. It may be used to cure meats for fresh sausages (optional).

Insta Cure (Prague Powder) #2 contains 6.25% nitrite and 4.00% nitrate per pound of salt. It must be used with any products that do not require cooking, smoking or refrigeration and is mainly used for products that will be* air cured for long time* like: Country Ham, salami, peperoni, and other dry sausages.
Instacure1 is not interchangeable with Instacure 2 and vice versa.


Tenderquick contains .25% nitrite .25% nitrate per pound of salt. 

Each of these products are method specific and should be used according to product instructions. 

Here is a link to the website I got this info from.
http://www.wedlinydomowe.com/nitrates-intro.htm

"There was also a link that when nitrates were used to cure bacon and the latter one was fried until crispy, it helped to create nitrosamines. But the required temperatures had to be in 600 F range and meats are smoked and cooked well below 200 F so even this fact has no bearing on the use of nitrates in meats.
Those findings started a lot of unnecessary panic in the 1970s about harmful effects of nitrates in meat on our health. Millions of dollars were spent, a lot of research was done, many researchers had spent long sleepless nights seeking fame and glory but no evidence was found that when nitrates are used within established limits they can pose any danger to our health."

Full article. Nitrates safety concerns.
http://www.wedlinydomowe.com/nitrate...s-concerns.htm


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## okie joe (Nov 22, 2009)

Yea what Pig said....good job Pig and points.... 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	




Im going for a fresh Rum and Coke go easy on the Coke....Ya know how much sugar that Coke has in it....?


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## DanMcG (Nov 22, 2009)

Thanks for the links Dave, that's where I was headed when I started posting this morning but I couldn't find the backup references, so I thought i'd stur the pot looking for what you posted...points to you bud.


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## alx (Nov 22, 2009)

Make sure you put some T.Q. in the pot and stir well
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





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## phreak (Nov 23, 2009)

Thank you all for the info.


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