# Complete virgin to curing meat, in this case it is going to be belly bacon.............NEED help with a dry cure recipe PLEASE!!!



## forktender (May 9, 2020)

Can one of you please point me to a good step by step recipe? I want to try the cold smoke version and have cure #1 at the ready.
I looked through a bunch and can't seem to find a beginners step by step recipe for dummies.

Thanks a bunch.
Dan


*HELP!!!!!! *


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## smokin peachey (May 9, 2020)

All you need to do is weigh your belly and enter the weight into this calculator http://diggingdogfarm.com/page2.html
Add the belly and proper amounts into a zip lock bag and massage and turn daily for 2 weeks then smoke it


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## smokin peachey (May 9, 2020)

You could also mix up a batch of pops brine and cute then it that.


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## fivetricks (May 9, 2020)

Good posts above :-)

One will make a more commercial style bacon and the other will result in a more "country" style bacon


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## forktender (May 9, 2020)

I love the country style bacon, and I'm hoping that it reminds me of the bacon my Gramp's used to have hanging in his cold smokehouse and  root cellar.  I remember he used celery juice in his cure in place of cure #1. And I remember it had brown sugar, and maple syrup and heavy on the coarse black pepper.
Gramp's has been gone for many, many years and of course nobody saved his recipe, most likely he didn't follow a recipe. Gramp's was 100% Sicilian and cooked and made wine and brandy for the whole family, and we have/had a HUGE family.

I'm basically looking for a dry cure, cold smoke recipe to follow that include the sugar and spices, seeing that I'm a complete virgin  too curing. I'm not very good at following recipes because I learned to cook from my Nonna, Mother and Aunts and Uncles, cooking was done by taste, feel and smell even baking was done by eye balling and feel, yeah I know it sounds crazy but that's how we roll.

I know that I'm going to have to follow a recipe for safety but to be 100% honest with you my math skills flatout suck I'm extremely dyslexic, so I have pretty much shied away from curing meat.
The only recipes I actually follow to a tee are my pizza and bread dough, so I know there is hope for me I just have to get past my fear of screwing up an awesome chunk of meat that I know I could turn into some amazing BBQ, as you can see I'm a bit nervous/worried about screwing up.........LOL!!!

So any help you can offer would be much appreciated.

Spices that I have on hand.......I'm trying to use what I have here at home.
I have cure #1.
Brown and white table sugar.
Sea, Kosher, and table salt.
Maple syrup.
Black and white pepper.
Onion powder.
Garlic powder.
Smoked paprika.
Turmeric.
Fresh garlic.
Dried/ dehydrated diced garlic,  parsley, oregano, basil, thyme, California and chipotle chili powder from last years garden.

You know your typical Dego pantry!!!


Thank you very much.
Dan


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## forktender (May 9, 2020)

Whoever moved this thread I haven't slept yet and I'm exhausted I couldn't seem to find this forum page even though I knew it was here somewhere.

Thank you.
Dan


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## smokin peachey (May 9, 2020)

You are over thinking this.  All you need is cure1, salt and sugar. Enter the gram weight into this calculator and it will tell you the amounts. Do you have a gram scale? If you are looking for someone to tell you exact amounts to use we need the weight of the meat.
I have also cured bacon with celery juice powder but let’s not go there yet. Stop in chat and a few guys there can walk you through this. Chat is a great place to find help. Lotta good guys there.


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## fivetricks (May 9, 2020)

Yes, follow the calculator for your salt sugar and cure amounts. after you take it out of the dry cure it's pretty much up to you. There's no specific recipe for bacon. Personally I just take the courses ground pepper I can grind and just hammer that puppy let it set in and stick and smoke it from there. others like to put on maple syrup or maple sugar or other things like that, just a personal preference I suppose. but once you get the salt sugar and cure in there's really no recipe to follow. Season it to your heart's delight and see how you like it. You won't ruin it


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## sawhorseray (May 9, 2020)

It's in the "Curing" section now Dan. I've been making maple bacon the same way for about 15 years now. Works for me every time, check it out and see if it's something that might work for you. RAY






						Applewood Smoked Maple Bacon (illustrated)
					

Last week I went to Costco and found they had pork belly. I dug thru them all and found the biggest, thickest one.   When I got it home I cut the belly in half, knew then I'd picked a winner.   Made a mix of 18grams Cure#1, 4.6 ounces canning salt, two ounces maple sugar, 1 cup pure 100% maple...




					www.smokingmeatforums.com


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## jcam222 (May 9, 2020)

Here’s a step by step by 

 disco
 I’ve heard great comments on, https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/bacon-step-by-step-video.282831/


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## tx smoker (May 9, 2020)

jcam222 said:


> Here’s a step by step by
> 
> disco
> 
> ...



The approach that 

 sawhorseray
  shared is extremely good advice. Like you, I was scared to death the first time I made bacon. Followed the step by step that Disco posted, noted above by Jeff, and it came out perfect. Curing bacon is super simple. Believe me, if I can do it, anybody can. Be prepared though, once you start, you'll be hoked for like. There's no going back to store bought.

Robert


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## tx smoker (May 9, 2020)

P.S. I'm still following Disco's method and it's perfect every time. My two go-to recipes are the maple & brown sugar and the pepper crusted. Oh so good!!

Robert


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## xray (May 9, 2020)

Dan, one of the things that intimidated me was the math.

My digital kitchen scale measures in pounds and ounces.

Once I had the weight of the meat in ounces...I used google to convert from ounces to grams.

Diggingdog farm calculator also has a converter. I double checked with that.

I bought a small pocket gram scale for measuring out the cure, sugar and salt.

But as others have said it really is simple. If a simpleton like me can do it so can you.


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## forktender (May 9, 2020)

Thank you all very much, I had a really rough night last night I was laid out of the floor with a horrible back flare up.....Stupid spine!!!

I haven't had the chance to check out the calculator yet, I will check it out tonight.
Thank you for the vote of confidence, I sometimes need that to kick start me because money is so tight that I'm always afraid of messing up a tasty piece of meat.

I do have a gram scale that I use for my bread and pizza dough making.
So from what I have read so far it seems like I have every thing that I need to get started.

It's hot here in CA this week in the mid 90's, so I will most likely get this slab of belly cured up some time next week when our temps are supposed to drop 15-20*.

I do have one quick question, I see that some people leave skin on and some people remove the skin.
Is that mainly for hang the bacon in the smoker? 

I plan on cold smoking the bacon on a rack in my drum smoker using dust and a maze and pellets and a tube as I tend to like Bacon really smokey. So I will remove the skin most likely unless there is another reason to leave it.

Thank you all VERY much.
Dan


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## smokin peachey (May 9, 2020)

Yes remove the skin if it is still on. Every belly I have ever bought hasn’t had skin on. Glad I could be of assistance. Keep it simple first time around. You won’t be disappointed.


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## forktender (May 9, 2020)

smokin peachey said:


> Yes remove the skin if it is still on. Every belly I have ever bought hasn’t had skin on. Glad I could be of assistance. Keep it simple first time around. You won’t be disappointed.


The belly I've bought out here in CA have had the skin on and I actually prefer it that way because I love making pork rids.

Thank you for the quick response.
Dan


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## smokin peachey (May 10, 2020)

forktender said:


> The belly I've bought out here in CA have had the skin on and I actually prefer it that way because I love making pork rids.
> 
> Thank you for the quick response.
> Dan


Sounds great. 
Cant wait to see you get the bacon started.


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## SmokinAl (May 10, 2020)

Here are a couple of things that will make it go easy.
First is the calculator to figure the amount of salt, sugar, & cure #1 to use. You will need a gram scale. http://diggingdogfarm.com/page2.html.
Then here is a couple of very detailed step by step for dry curing & cold smoking belly bacon.





						Got a belly from my Grandson, SO I MADE BACON , steps & q-view galore
					

My Grandson is a chef in a high end restaurant in Ft. Lauderdale. He came up for a visit & asked if he could bring anything. I said if you can get a nice thick pork belly that would be great.  He said no prob, Gramps!  Here is what he brought. It was already skinned & weighed 13 lbs.    Here is...




					www.smokingmeatforums.com
				







__





						BERKSHIRE HOG BELLY BACON
					

Well I have heard so much talk about Berkshire hogs that I wanted to try to get a belly for bacon. None to be had around here so I went online & ordered one from Tenderbelly.com. They are a great Company to deal with & the owner Shannon is a real stand up guy, kinda reminds me of Todd Johnson of...




					www.smokingmeatforums.com
				



Here is a great video on skinning a belly. I would suggest you skin it before curing.

It is a very simple process, but I know exactly how you feel. The first time is always a bit stressing. Good luck & I'm sure you will do just fine.
Al


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## daveomak (May 10, 2020)

Simplify your curing....  Weigh everything in grams....
meat weight X 0.25 = amount of cure you need... ( 0.0025)
meat weight X 1.5 to 2% = amount of salt (0.015 - 0.02)
meat weight X 1% = amount of sugar... (0.01)
Mix the ingredients thoroughly....  sprinkle over the meat as uniformly as you can...
Zip bag the meat and turn daily...   TIME = 1 day per 1/4" thickness + 2 days+....
For meats over 2" thick,  you will need to make a curing brine...  
use 1/2 the weight of the meat for the liquid...  
use the above numbers but...  add the weight of the water to the meat weight, to do the calculation...
Inject the curing brine into the meat..  use about 1/2 to 3/4 the curing brine for the injection...  inject an uniformly as you can.....   
I prefer the syringes you get with 






They are better than some of the others I have tried...  The flexible tip of the plunger does not swell and make them useless.....


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## Bearcarver (May 10, 2020)

forktender said:


> Can one of you please point me to a good step by step recipe? I want to try the cold smoke version and have cure #1 at the ready.
> I looked through a bunch and can't seem to find a beginners step by step recipe for dummies.
> 
> Thanks a bunch.
> ...




Or you can get some Tender Quick, and follow the Step by Step, below:
Bacon (Extra Smoky)

Bear


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## disco (May 10, 2020)

The Digging Dog calculator, Bearcarver's step by step and mine are all fine methods. Trust me, if you just stick to the steps, it will be great!


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## forktender (May 10, 2020)

Thank you all very much.

I've got a week of PORK planned, last night I couldn't sleep once again, so I marinated two pork butts with OJ LOTS of garlic 2 whole bulbs to be exact, and a tamale seasoning packet of spices that I get at the Mexican store all blended with 3/4 cup of Canola oil and pored and rubbed all over the butts.
I'll either smoke or braise them either tonight or tomorrow and make tamales either Tue or Wed.

If the restaurant supply has Tender Quick I'll pick up a bag this afternoon and start in on
"Bear's Famous Bacon" with in the next day or two

Thanks a bunch Bear for some reason I have a fear of destroying this chunk of belly/ it's a nice thick one that I picked out at Costco the other day. ( Mainly because I know how awesome it is BBQ'd)

To have it all laid out step by step like you guys have done for me is a HUGE confidence booster for me.
Normally I don't worry about messing up because I can normally get things pretty close to what I expect out such a nice chunk of meat but this whole cure thing being so new too me has me a little flustered. LOL.


I'll make sure to take pictures as it goes too share with everyone that has helped me and for people that are worried about curing their own bacon.

Thanks again.
Dan


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## forktender (May 10, 2020)

Do you think if I added a 1/4 cup of good maple syrup to each individual bag of bacon cure that it would be ok?
Look at me... I can't seem to leave well enough alone, once again I always have to put my twist on things.
I can't help it, I was raised to cook to taste and I absolutely love Maple smoke bacon.

Thanks a bunch.
Dan


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## forktender (May 10, 2020)

While I've got you all here can you help me pick out a slicer that won't break the bank on Amazon?
I don't want to spend very much maybe $150 less would be better but I don't want absolute junk either.

My last slicer was a cheap'O that I bought at the flea market for $15 I mainly bought it for slicing Abalone back when we used to be able to dive for them here in the Republic of Californistan and when we moved I tossed it into the dumpster. (It was garbage).

Thank you very much.
Dan


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## Bearcarver (May 10, 2020)

forktender said:


> Do you think if I added a 1/4 cup of good maple syrup to each individual bag of bacon cure that it would be ok?
> Look at me... I can't seem to leave well enough alone, once again I always have to put my twist on things.
> I can't help it, I was raised to cook to taste and I absolutely love Maple smoke bacon.
> 
> ...




I'm not sure, but I think Disco might have had some success with getting Maple flavor in some Bacon. Check with him.
I tried numerous times, by putting real Maple Syrup in the bags with my TQ.
I even bought a container of Maple Sugar & tried that.
And since I didn't want my Bacon all sticky by putting Syrup on it after curing, before smoking, I just said "The Heck with it!"

Bear


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## tx smoker (May 10, 2020)

forktender said:


> Do you think if I added a 1/4 cup of good maple syrup to each individual bag of bacon cure that it would be ok?



You absolutely CAN do this. From day one, I've made bacon Disco style and one flavor is maple and brown sugar. I rub the bellies with maple syrup, add the cure and rub it in, then rub brown sugar on top of all that (both sides). Once the cure time is finished, rinse the bellies in cool water and pat dry with paper towels. Then rub a bit more maple syrup and brown sugar on them, sit in fridge overnight, and smoke. You are unlimited in the flavors you can add to the bacon. Done many different profiles and all have been great. One of my favorites was Cajun. The only caveat is that you get the correct amount of cure on the meat. Outside of that, just go for it!!

Robert


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## tx smoker (May 10, 2020)

Oops....you don't need a quarter cup per side. Just a couple tablespoons is plenty.

Robert


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## forktender (May 11, 2020)

I picked up a bag of T.Q. this afternoon while I was in the store I ran into a guy that runs one of our local butcher shops, they have awesome bacon and sausage. I asked him for a few tips on how they get their maple flavor into their bacon and sausage, and he pointed to the spice section and said maple extract and a little extra brown sugar during the curing process. I figured since this is my first attempt that I'm going to stick with the original recipe, I'll try adding the maple on my second batch if I feel the need to change things up.

Thanks guys.
Dan


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## forktender (May 20, 2020)

With 

 Bearcarver
 as my bacon mentor and answering my many questions last night I cured up 14lbs of bacon. I figured that I'd save the pictures for when the bacon comes out of the cure IE: that means I got lazy and didn't take before pictures. LOL
I'll make sure to take some when they come out of the cure and before and after the smoker.

Thanks a bunch to everyone that has posted up and offered to help me, I really appreciate that.
By the way so far it was much easier than I expected, it might have taken me 40 minutes total because i was double and triple checking my Tender Quick measurements. The brown sugar  measurements I used a teaspoon and a half per pound and I also added 1/2 teaspoon coarse black pepper to each 3 to 3 1/2 pound  chunk, that one was on me John adds his pepper after the bacon comes out of the bag. We keep strange hours in our house because my wife works nights and I got bored and decided to go for it, so I winged the pepper thing before John was able to answer my question about adding it before or after it is cured, oop's. 

Thanks again.
Dan


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## tx smoker (May 20, 2020)

forktender said:


> I also added 1/2 teaspoon coarse black pepper to each 3 to 3 1/2 pound chunk, that one was on me John adds his pepper after the bacon comes out of the bag.



Dan...glad it all came out for you....so far anyway. Based on how careful you were I have all the faith that it'll be perfect. I took a different route and used a different mentor and was continually being assured that it was very easy but you did well going with John's tutelage. It's still kind of intimidating the first time. It'll be a cakewalk from now on though.

Insofar as the pepper goes, one of the two flavors of bacon I make is a pepper crusted. I coat the entire slab after the cure is applied then into the fridge to cure. After curing time I rinse the slabs off, then add another massive coating of pepper then let sit a day or two in the fridge uncovered before smoking it. You'll be fine the way you went about your process....but things will not be fine going forward. Like so many other people, you're going to be addicted from the very first bite and you'll never want store bought bacon again. You'll also never want to order breakfast at a restaurant with bacon or a BLT that you don't make yourself. There is no cure for the addiction and no 12-step program. You're a dedicated bacon maker for life, I can just about promise you that.

Robert


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## forktender (May 20, 2020)

tx smoker said:


> Dan...glad it all came out for you....so far anyway. Based on how careful you were I have all the faith that it'll be perfect. I took a different route and used a different mentor and was continually being assured that it was very easy but you did well going with John's tutelage. It's still kind of intimidating the first time. It'll be a cakewalk from now on though.
> 
> Insofar as the pepper goes, one of the two flavors of bacon I make is a pepper crusted. I coat the entire slab after the cure is applied then into the fridge to cure. After curing time I rinse the slabs off, then add another massive coating of pepper then let sit a day or two in the fridge uncovered before smoking it. You'll be fine the way you went about your process....but things will not be fine going forward. Like so many other people, you're going to be addicted from the very first bite and you'll never want store bought bacon again. You'll also never want to order breakfast at a restaurant with bacon or a BLT that you don't make yourself. There is no cure for the addiction and no 12-step program. You're a dedicated bacon maker for life, I can just about promise you that.
> 
> Robert



Oh good, so I didn't totally choke....lol

I almost didn't plant a garden this year because my back has been acting up horribly.
At the last minute I decided to plant 3 tom's an eggplant. 4 peppers and 6 basil , oregano, thyme and rosemary. Much smaller than my normal garden but at least I will have some fresh tom's for BLT's.


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## forktender (May 28, 2020)

Thursday will be day 7 of my T.Q. bacon cure I got four 3-4 lb chunks curing. At day 2 of the cure I decided to add 2 oz of pure maple syrup to two of the slabs so I can do a taste test between the two. I plan on pulling them out of the brine bags Sunday morning which will be day 10 of the cure. Then I plan on rinsing them well and putting them back in the refer uncovered for a day or two depending on how well the pellicle  has formed.
Then I'll load them into my barrel with blend of hickory and apple wood pellets in the Amazin Smoke tube. I'll burn the whole tube then back into the refer overnight then add a little heat and another smoke tube full of the same hickory/apple blend then back into the refer once again. Depending on how it looks it may of may not be done, if it needs more color I will run another tube in the cold smoker.

I am very excited about this bacon, I already have more bellies waiting for 2.0 bacon attempt. Next time I will do half in Pop's brine and half with the T.Q. again to see which one the little lady and I prefer. My family will benefit from my bacon testing. LOL They already use me as their own personal grill master, not that I think that I am a master of the grill but all that counts is they do, and they keep my beer fridge stocked. LOL

Once again, thank you all very much the curing part of making bacon was so much easier than I expected.

I'll make sure to post up some before the smoke and after the smoke pic's.
Dan


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## forktender (May 31, 2020)

Bear's assisted Tender Quick bacon. You can't tell which had maple syrup and which didn't.
And all the pepper washed off..
Im hoping the flavors shine through after it's smoked.

Depending on what I have going on is going to regulate how many days it sits in the refer drying out a bit.


So far so good!!!

Thank you all for your help I really appreciate it a bunch.
Dan







	

		
			
		

		
	
k.


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## forktender (Jun 1, 2020)

Bacon is in the UDS smoker/  cold smoker today.

I stuck the Maze full of hickory apple wood dust in the bottom of my drum and with all the vents open it's working well as a cold smoker.


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## forktender (Jun 1, 2020)

forktender said:


> Bacon is in the UDS smoker/  cold smoker today.
> 
> I stuck the Maze full of hickory apple wood dust in the bottom of my drum and with all the vents open it's working well as a cold smoker.
> 
> ...


6 hrs in the cold smoker, then back into the refer for round 2 tommorow. Getting close to BLT's


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## forktender (Jun 3, 2020)

Bear guidance bacon with a maple twist.
I added black pepper and 2 OZ of pure maple syrup to the cure.
Subtle but it was there.

All I can say is it is freak'in good stuff. The next batch I will round down instead of up on the T.Q. the thick hand cut slices were a but salty. Not bad, just a touch.

good stuff man, thank you.
Dan.


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## forktender (Jun 12, 2020)

Well I tried to fix my salty bacon by soaking it for 4-5 hrs nope still salty. Next time I will not round up on the T.Q.
and I'll cut back on the sugar because it burns super easily.
I will use this bacon in beans, soups and pasta. I have 6 lbs to use up, which won't be a problem.  I'm loving my new 10" Lem slicer although it only slices 7-3/4" which is kinda dumb for a 10" slicer.

here's the bacon sliced and ready to freeze.


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## chopsaw (Jun 12, 2020)

That looks fantastic . Nice work .


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## Bearcarver (Jun 12, 2020)

forktender said:


> Well I tried to fix my salty bacon by soaking it for 4-5 hrs nope still salty. Next time I will not round up on the T.Q.
> and I'll cut back on the sugar because it burns super easily.
> I will use this bacon in beans, soups and pasta. I have 6 lbs to use up, which won't be a problem.  I'm loving my new 10" Lem slicer although it only slices 7-3/4" which is kinda dumb for a 10" slicer.
> 
> ...




Yup---I never round "Up" with TQ---I Round Down.
If I'm using Cure #1, I will Round "Up", if at all.
Looks Great though!!

Bear


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## forktender (Jun 15, 2020)

Bearcarver said:


> Yup---I never round "Up" with TQ---I Round Down.
> If I'm using Cure #1, I will Round "Up", if at all.
> Looks Great though!!
> 
> Bear


Oh, it's good.......4 people have offered to take it all from me, I just don't like salty food.
A lot of store bought bacon is too salty for me but seeing this was my first slab I wanted to make sure I didn't kill anybody. LOL!!! I'm going to try the cure 1 next, that way I can control the saltiness a little better.
I'll also back of on the sugar as this slab seems to burn before the fat is rendered down as much as I like it to be. I find myself cooking it at a much lower temp that I normally do with store bought bacon.


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## forktender (Jun 15, 2020)

chopsaw said:


> That looks fantastic . Nice work .


I'm not 100% happy with it yet, it's still a work in progress.

Thank you.
Dan


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## chopsaw (Jun 15, 2020)

forktender said:


> Well I tried to fix my salty bacon by soaking it for 4-5 hrs nope still salty. Next time I will not round up on the T.Q.
> and I'll cut back on the sugar because it burns super easily.
> I will use this bacon in beans, soups and pasta.


Do you make any sausage ? I make the Nuremburg bratwurst that calls for 1 lb of smokey bacon . 
Adjust the salt in the recipe and use your bacon .


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## Bearcarver (Jun 15, 2020)

forktender said:


> I'm not 100% happy with it yet, it's still a work in progress.
> 
> Thank you.
> Dan




Try Pops Equilibrium Method, and reduce the Salt & Sugar like he does.
If you use the right amount of TQ per pound, without rounding it up, and it is still too salty for you, the only thing you can do is soak it after curing & testing, because cutting the amount of TQ is NOT an option.

Bear


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## forktender (Jun 15, 2020)

Thank you, Bear it's going to be a few weeks before my next batch and I'm for sure going to try a different method just to see which one I like best. I really appreciate your help.

Thank you.
Dan


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