# Max levels of cure for bacon



## oleksandr (May 18, 2012)

I was reading a USDA's PROCESSING INSPECTORS' CALCULATIONS HANDBOOK http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OPPDE/rdad/FSISDirectives/7620-3.pdf  and comparing it to the sticky message here. I have found some discrepancies. According to the USDA the max ppm for immersion cured bacon is 120 ppm, not 200 as the sticky note says. For the dry cured method the max ppm is 200. 

Also there is a mistake in text when 200ppm /1000000 = 0.0002. The result is correct, but the it should be 1000 000 (a million) not 100 000 as it is in the text.

EDIT: Also, the weight gain of 10% mentioned is rather too high for the home wet curing. It is applicable in commercial curing methods where pickle solution is pumped into meat at certain rate like 10%. During home wet curing process the weight gain is about 3-4%. So, the amount of cure 121 g per 1 gallon of water should bring the level of nitrite in meat to 56-75 ppm.

I just wet cured pork loin and checked the weight before and after the cure. The weight gain was about 10%. The other sources talking about 3-4% weight gain. go figure.


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## chefrob (May 18, 2012)

yanno......i ain't too good at numbers and such so when i use cure #1 i just go with 1 gram per # in a dry cure .............if ya do that you will be just fine


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## oleksandr (May 18, 2012)

For dry cure it is OK. It is about 140 ppm. For bacon is it 120 ppm min and 200 ppm max. For the wet cure it is 120 ppm max. I was pointing the the sticky article has too much cure for wet curing.


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## mneeley490 (May 20, 2012)

I was wondering about that, too. For wet curing, the sticky says to use 121 grams of pink salt per gallon of water. That converts to 4.26 oz, or 8-1/2 tablespoons. That seems like an awful lot.


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## daveomak (May 21, 2012)

Oleksandr and mneeley490, morning....

I agree....  121 grams/ gallon  = 1200 Ppm Nitrite....   I also agree with the % pumped solution and what homeowners, us folks, can accomplish pumping our own stuff....    I have seen the needle injectors used in processing plants.....  At home, that can't be duplicated....  Also, the assumption that water and nitrite are absorbed, at the same rate, in the meat is misleading.... There is difference between adsorption, absorption and equilibrium..... 

I have read the FSIS calculations handbook (I don't know how many times), and the handbook is designed for meat processing plants.....  That being said, it is dificult to interpret for the small home meat processor....

Dave


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## alblancher (May 21, 2012)

There is a lot of miss information on the web and maybe even on this site concerning wet cures for bacon.  The inspectors handbook and Marianski both say to use brine/cure with 1200 ppm and inject to 10% weight gain of the green bacon.  This will put 120 ppm in the bacon.  Allow it to stay damp for 3 days (not submerged) to allow the nitrite to do it's thing.   This seems the most reasonable way to do brine/cures for bacon.

The most commonly discussed method is to make a brine/cure, dump it on the green bacon and wait 10 days.  The most common question is how much cure do I put in the brine. * IF you assume bacon can come to equilibrium in a brine/cure *then the only way to determine how much cure you need in the brine is to know the weight of the bacon and brine.  

The following is a post I made in the Moderator forum and it is still under discussion  Following comments in Red are directed to this post

When using a brine you need to mix the amount of cure in the brine to allow for the amount of liquid the bacon will pick up.  When curing small pieces of meat (snouts, ears, tails ) with lots of brine you can assume that a brine mixed at 120 ppm will provide enough nitrite to properly cure the meat.  When using larger pieces of meat you need to look at how much of the brine is absorbed by the meat.  Assume you have a 10% pickup of the brine then when using a 120 ppm brine you are only picking up 12  ppm in the meat.  In the handbook I understood the concept as to mix the brine to 1200 ppm and with a 10 % pickup the bacon receives 120 ppm of nitrite.  This is especially true when doing an injection cure.   The handbook is not clear on this concept and when I did further research in Marianski and other sources it seems to confirm the 1200 ppm brine concept.

I am not recommending that you make a  1200 ppm sodium nitrite brine.

I believe this is a better method if you believe bacon can come to equilibrium with the brine/cure in 3 days

Look at it this way.  Assume you can cure 20 lbs of bacon in 1 gallon of brine mixed at 120 ppm.  for simplicity assume 1 gallon of brine/cure weights 10 lbs.  More then likely it's closer to 8 lbs.    So now you are trying to get 30 lbs of brine/crure and meat to come to equilibrium with an original 120 ppm.   At equilibrium you would have 40 ppm (120/3) cure in the meat.  This process may take a fairly long time and Sodium Nitrite is not stable in liquids for long periods.     That's the logic behind it.     Using that reasoning the brine should be fixed to an initial minimum concentration of 360 ppm.

To me the easiest and safest way to do a brine/cure is to make a 1200 ppm brine and physically inject the bacon with enough brine to provide a 10% weight gain.  The meat is allowed to stay damp in cure mix (not submerged) for 3 days.  3 days is generally considered the amount of time it takes for Sodium Nitrite to have a curative action.   Commercial operations use accelerants and the cureative time is considerably less.

I need to refresh my memory on the minimum and maximum amounts of cure required when doing a brine.  I always do dry cure and I am much more familiar with that process.

If you are comfortable doing brine/cures then I suggest you consider the weight of your bacon when mixing the brines.  Unless you are willing to make very large amounts of brine/cure in relation to the amount of bacon you are curing. 

As previously said I need to look at the min and max concentrations of nitrite.  I know concentrations as low as 40 ppm are acceptable for some products if all you are looking for is a color change but since we normally slow/cold smoke bacon for long periods of time I think 40 ppm is dangerous.   I highly suggest a min of 120 ppm and that  you consider both the weight of the water and the weight of the meat when making curative brines.   Remember simple flavor brines do not require Sodium nitrite but they provide no significant curative action.


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## alblancher (May 21, 2012)

Good points Dave, thank you for your comments.  There is a big question as to how much nitrite is available to be absorbed over time.  There is also the question as to how well nitrite moves into the bacon while in solution.   The lack of clear, definitive information about brine/cures for bacon is a concern to me.  Hopefully someone can find a link or reproduce a bulletin that address the questions we have.  It would be nice to see a "How To" article from one of the authoritive agencies on this topic.


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## diggingdogfarm (May 21, 2012)

I've done a lot of research on this and I've come to the conclusion that the limits are set to account for the fact that it's impossible to determine exactly how much nitrate/nitrite is absorbed into a given piece of meat  without  lab testing  because there are so many variables, one piece of meat may absorb better than others, etc.etc.etc. 
There's no sense over thinking it, just stay within the recommended limits.

I use a method of brining that eliminates most of the guess work.


~Martin


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## alblancher (May 21, 2012)

I made a statment in the previous post    If the brine and meat can come to an equilibrium in 3 days.  This was a mistake.  I do not know how long it will take to come to equilibrium.  I do know that sodium nitrite is not stable in solution, the reason we do not use it in long term cures.  So I have no idea how much sodium nitrite is available for pickup over the curing period.

Thanks Solaryellow for pointing this out.


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## alblancher (May 21, 2012)

Diggy,  that one of the many reasons why I use dry cures.


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## diggingdogfarm (May 21, 2012)

I too prefer to dry cure when applicable, or combination cure, pumping/dry cure, and finally a combination, pumping/immersion.
I almost never just immerse.


~Martin


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## oleksandr (May 21, 2012)

Some interesting info here

http://www.wedlinydomowe.com/sausage-making/curing/nitrates

more down the end, about how the amount of nitrite is reduced with soaking, smoking and baking. It is also useful to read the other pages about making brine and curing.


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## oleksandr (May 26, 2012)

I just wet cured pork loin and checked the weight before and after the cure. The weight gain was about 10%. The other sources are talking about 3-4% weight gain. go figure.


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## diggingdogfarm (May 26, 2012)

That's no surprise considering the high percentage of lean meat in loin.




~Martin


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