# Here's my bacon



## rexster314 (Sep 18, 2014)

About 40 pounds of bellies yesterday













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__ rexster314
__ Sep 18, 2014


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## pc farmer (Sep 18, 2014)

Looks great.

More info on the curing or smoking?


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## rexster314 (Sep 18, 2014)

c farmer said:


> Looks great.
> 
> More info on the curing or smoking?


Well, nothing special about the curing process, Cure #1, brown sugar and salt, rubbed in, put into individual zip loc bags for 8 days, then smoked in two Bradleys, one using an AMZNTS for around 7 hours or until they have a nice mahogany color to them. Sliced up on my $150 dollar 30 year old Hobart slicer, vacuum sealed.













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__ rexster314
__ Sep 18, 2014


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## dirtsailor2003 (Sep 18, 2014)

Nice load of Bacon!!!


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## jarjarchef (Sep 19, 2014)

Looks great!


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## wes w (Sep 19, 2014)

Love home smoked bacon!   Yours looks awesome


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## knifebld (Sep 19, 2014)

Impressive, would love to smoke some bacon one day. Just gotta get me one of them $150 Hobart slicers...something tells me I will be waiting for quite some time! LOL ;)


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## themule69 (Sep 19, 2014)

Looks very good. It is hard to beat any bacon.

Happy smoken.

David


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## dandl93 (Sep 19, 2014)

knifebld said:


> Impressive, would love to smoke some bacon one day. Just gotta get me one of them $150 Hobart slicers...something tells me I will be waiting for quite some time! LOL ;)


Dont wait on the slicer I just finished my first 12lbs of Bacon cutting with a knife like we did on the ranch.I will buy a slicer some day when I find one but until then I am eating some great Bacon.I will post some qview in a few days.

Rexster314  great looking Bacon


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## knifebld (Sep 19, 2014)

dandl93 said:


> Dont wait on the slicer I just finished my first 12lbs of Bacon cutting with a knife like we did on the ranch.I will buy a slicer some day when I find one but until then I am eating some great Bacon.I will post some qview in a few days.
> 
> Rexster314  great looking Bacon


Looking forward to that QView...might just be what I need to give me the kick in the butt! LOL


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## rexster314 (Sep 19, 2014)

No, don't wait, when I first started I got a 14" granton blade slicing knife. Take your time and you'll wind up with some great looking bacon


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## driedstick (Sep 19, 2014)

Dang it that looks like some great bacon, Nice job. 

A full smoker is a happy smoker

DS


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## wazzuqer (Sep 19, 2014)

Great lo looking stuff, I got one to do in a couple weeks ...


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## b-one (Sep 19, 2014)

Looks great but why did you have to vacuum seal it? I'm pretty sure I could eat it all before it went bad:). Mmmmmn bacon!!!


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## gatorbait711 (Sep 19, 2014)

Looks good!


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## rexster314 (Sep 19, 2014)

People that I smoke it for want it sealed


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## foamheart (Sep 19, 2014)

Bacon looks great, can't wait till it finially cools off here so I can start in again.

Nice lookin Bacon.

And yes, I am envious of your slicer also.


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## mfreel (Sep 22, 2014)

Now DATS some good lookin' bacon!!!!!

Besides having a top notch Hobart slicer, how'd you get it to slice so nice?  It looks pretty thick.  Did you partially freeze it before slicing?


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## mark66 (Sep 22, 2014)

Great looking bacon. Your slicer makes everything easy. I know I have one just like it!


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## mark66 (Sep 22, 2014)

With that slicer you can slice is so thin that you could see through it. Long story but I got mine FREE!


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## rexster314 (Sep 22, 2014)

I did a full top round couple weeks ago into pastrami. I sliced that stuff almost paper thin, every piece a masterpiece!


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## oregon smoker (Sep 23, 2014)

great looking bacon!! 

seems like a simple cure your using, what are the ratios of product (mix) you use?

also I have one of those older Hobarts I finaly wresteled away from my butcher buddy when he retired/down sized. course it could have been he was tired of listing to the whining for so many years, down side to it is it is so heavy ....
	

	
	
		
		



		
			






  

Tom


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## rob sicc (Sep 25, 2014)

40 pounds!  Nice.  I did 11 pounds the other day and it is amazing how fast people hear about it and ask for samples.  lol

Nothing like home cured bacon.

Very nice work.


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## rexster314 (Sep 25, 2014)

Rob Sicc said:


> 40 pounds!  Nice.  I did 11 pounds the other day and it is amazing how fast people hear about it and ask for samples.  lol
> 
> Nothing like home cured bacon.
> 
> Very nice work.


That was actually 1/3 of the bacon I did.


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## rexster314 (Sep 25, 2014)

Oregon Smoker said:


> great looking bacon!!
> 
> seems like a simple cure your using, what are the ratios of product (mix) you use?
> 
> ...


I use this calculator. It hasn't let me down. And it's customizable in the ratios of cure, sugar and salt

http://www.diggingdogfarm.com/page2.html


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## daveomak (Sep 26, 2014)

rexster314 said:


> I use this calculator. It hasn't let me down. And it's customizable in the ratios of cure, sugar and salt
> 
> http://www.diggingdogfarm.com/page2.html




Rex, evening.....  For others knowledge.....    change the PPM to 108 skin on -120 skin off,  when making bacon....   Dave


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## rob sicc (Sep 26, 2014)

rexster314 said:


> That was actually 1/3 of the bacon I did.


120 lbs? Nice.  Do you make it for the entire neighborhood,  do you sell it, or do you really like BACON!  LOL  I gonna guess you really like bacon.  lol

Very nice work.


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## rexster314 (Sep 26, 2014)

I have a small amount of dedicated friends that buy the bacon because its 1000% better than store bought. I'll make it about twice a month. It all began with me giving them small amounts and they wanted their own cause it was so good.


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## foamheart (Sep 26, 2014)

Rob Sicc said:


> 120 lbs? Nice.  Do you make it for the entire neighborhood,  do you sell it, or do you really like BACON!  LOL  I gonna guess you really like bacon.  lol
> 
> Very nice work.


120 lbs. won't get ya thru till next winter! Smoked 7 sides last year and ran out last June! This time I am going to find a way to disquise the smoke! LOL


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## rexster314 (Sep 26, 2014)

I've been doing 100-120 pounds about every 2 1/2 weeks since middle of August, plus about 15 pounds of Canadian bacon and 15 pounds of pastrami every month


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## rob sicc (Sep 29, 2014)

rexster314 said:


> I've been doing 100-120 pounds about every 2 1/2 weeks since middle of August, plus about 15 pounds of Canadian bacon and 15 pounds of pastrami every month


how much do you charge per pound of your bacon?  I could definitely see myself doing it for friends but I have to charge them a little something so the wife doesn't kill me?


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## rexster314 (Sep 29, 2014)

Rob Sicc said:


> how much do you charge per pound of your bacon?  I could definitely see myself doing it for friends but I have to charge them a little something so the wife doesn't kill me?


I get the pork bellies at RD. I sell one whole belly (about 10 lbs total) for $55.00 sliced. Currently the prices at RD are $2.39/lb so I'm making some money on the deal


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## wes w (Sep 29, 2014)

Them is some cheap bellies!     Not real sure your making any money by the time you figure in your curing supplies, time and cold smoking for 10hrs or more.  I personally wouldn't think about selling bacon for less then 8-10 dollars a lb.   At that price you still aren't "making" any money.     Bellies here are up to 3.00lb.   Kinda sucks because I can't afford to buy any


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## rexster314 (Sep 29, 2014)

Wes W said:


> Them is some cheap bellies!     Not real sure your making any money by the time you figure in your curing supplies, time and cold smoking for 10hrs or more.  I personally wouldn't think about selling bacon for less then 8-10 dollars a lb.   At that price you still aren't "making" any money.     Bellies here are up to 3.00lb.   Kinda sucks because I can't afford to buy any


Cure #1 is cheap on Amazon, I buy brown sugar and salt by the 25lb bag at Costco, I use 2 Amazen smokers in my Bradleys, cutting costs down for Bradley pucks, and I'm retired so my time is cheap, especially when the only real labor involved is trimming, applying cure, then slicing and bagging the bacon, I don't count the time spent waiting on the cure to work its wonders, so I'm satisfied that my profit is about 40-45% or better. For me it's something to do. When it's not fun anymore or orders dry up, I won't be crying


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## gibsorz (Sep 29, 2014)

I have to go down to the states to get my bellies because they are 5.50 a LB when bought by the case skin in west coast canada. When I calculated everything out, spices/cure for basic bacon were about 50 cents a pound, my cold smoking is about 10 cents an hour. A vac bag for it in a chamber sealer would be 7 cents a pound (at VSU). My only problem is I don't have a slicer able to slice bacon. If you add in electricity at 1$ a pound (probably high, it is less than a dollar a day for me). I make the bacon for around 4.50 if I get it in the state...if I buy the belly in canada it is about 7.40 a pound to make. I could sell it for as much as 13-15$ / 500g if I were trying to do it as a business. Just selling it to friends, I charge 8 bucks. So on average 2 dollars over cost, which is really a good deal for such quality bacon. The cheapest you can find true dry cured, no smoke bacon is $10 at my butcher per pound on sale.


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## rexster314 (Sep 30, 2014)

Here's some results so far.













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__ rexster314
__ Sep 30, 2014


















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__ rexster314
__ Sep 30, 2014
__ 1


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## rob sicc (Sep 30, 2014)

rexster314 said:


> I get the pork bellies at RD. I sell one whole belly (about 10 lbs total) for $55.00 sliced. Currently the prices at RD are $2.39/lb so I'm making some money on the deal


$2.39 for belly is awesome. The cheapest I found it is slightly under $4.00.  I bet if you buy 120lb's you get a better price.  I would surely pay $55 for 10 lbs.  very fair.

Again, nice thread and veiw


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## bluto (Oct 8, 2014)

Well done sir, #359 on my to do list.


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## rexster314 (Oct 8, 2014)

Trip to RD today for more bellies. They've been out for several days now, putting my schedule behind accordingly. Anyways, another 120 lbs in the reefer along with 14 pounds of eye of round pastrami. 6 days or so on the beef and 8 on the bellies. They were $2.26/lb case weight, $2.39/ lb less than 29 lbs.


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