# Tips on Maple Extract?



## mneeley490 (Jan 23, 2020)

I've been trying to get a good, noticeable maple flavor in my bacon for years. Tried using maple syrup or sugar in both liquid and dry brining.  No noticeable increase in maple flavor, and the syrup version just made it burn easier in the pan. 
So today I got some maple extract from Amazon in the mail. The only question is, how much do I use, or how much is too much? I've been reading old threads here, and I'm still not certain about quantities.  Don't want to waste it, as it isn't cheap.
I usually cut a 9+ lb belly into halves.  Used to wet-brine with Pop's recipe exclusively, but now I'm more into the dry brining. (Takes less fridge space.)
So for anyone who is practiced in the art of adding maple extract, about how much would you add to a chunk 4.5 lb. chunk of belly?


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## sawhorseray (Jan 24, 2020)

I make a maple-honey bacon that has a flavor that comes thru, you can check it out here and see what you think.






						Maple-Honey, again, but a little different.
					

The pork belly I skinned last week has spent enough time curing in the fridge.   11 lb pork belly, halved and squared 116 grams canning salt 16 grams sodium nitrite (Instacure #1, Pink Powder) ½ cup maple sugar ½ cup maple syrup (good stuff, Grade A) ½ cup pure honey Mix all the ingredients in a...




					www.smokingmeatforums.com
				




The sugars in the bacon will make it blacken easier when cooking. I've learned to avoid that by frying my bacon at a much lower temp than usual. Takes me a good twenty minutes to get it done, I slice my bacon pretty darned thick too, eight slices usually weigh in at 14.5 ounces to a pound. I also cook my bacon in a 400º oven occasionally, place it on a wire rack with a pan underneath, 16-18 minutes, doesn't curl up. RAY


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## Polka (Jan 24, 2020)

Do you use Maple to smoke with?  Would that not go a long ways toward your goal?


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## daveomak (Jan 24, 2020)

Check with Kevin....   I think he has used them all and prefers Watkins products...   It's been awhile since we talked about this so..........   and I think it was the imitation flavor that performed the best in bacon..


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## kit s (Jan 24, 2020)

mneeley490 said:


> I've been trying to get a good, noticeable maple flavor in my bacon for years. Tried using maple syrup or sugar in both liquid and dry brining.  No noticeable increase in maple flavor, and the syrup version just made it burn easier in the pan.
> So today I got some maple extract from Amazon in the mail. The only question is, how much do I use, or how much is too much? I've been reading old threads here, and I'm still not certain about quantities.  Don't want to waste it, as it isn't cheap.
> I usually cut a 9+ lb belly into halves.  Used to wet-brine with Pop's recipe exclusively, but now I'm more into the dry brining. (Takes less fridge space.)
> So for anyone who is practiced in the art of adding maple extract, about how much would you add to a chunk 4.5 lb. chunk of belly?


Never tried maple extract, but have used mapliene which is similar I would imagine. I used 10 parts of mapliene to 100 parts water (don't have to do much). Brushed on raw slab (meat areas ) and repeated every few hours until it was saturated, let sit for a day, patted dry and then put on my regular dry rub cure. Cured for 14 days and smoked. May increase mapleiene ratio to 15 to 100.


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## redneck5236 (Jan 24, 2020)

I make maple flavored meat sticks with extract ! You don't need much !


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## Polka (Jan 24, 2020)

Redneck5236 -- about how much do you use per pound / kilo, etc??


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## mneeley490 (Jan 26, 2020)

I was trying to keep away from imitation flavors, so this is what I have.






Mapleine is what my mother used to add to Karo syrup to make it taste like maple. I'm sure because it was cheaper at the time. She was all about _cheap._ You know, why spend $1 on orange juice when you can get a can of off-brand orange drink for 45 cents? I remember that I didn't care much for Mapleine. And I'd like to keep the flavor in the bacon as clean as possible. That's why I've been trying real maple syrup and sugar up til now.

My last batch, I used some bourbon barrel-aged, pure maple syrup and made a paste with the dry ingredients. Still not much maple flavor coming thru.


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## mneeley490 (Aug 27, 2020)

So.  
I made 4 slabs, each about 4-4.5 lbs apiece. Dry-ish brined, adding 1, 1.5, 2, and 2.5 teaspoons of extract which made it a dry-ish paste.  Smoked and froze a while back, but finally got them out of the freezer and sliced up. 
Verdict: Jeez, needs more extract.  On the 2.5 t., the maple flavor was just starting to come thru. Next time I will double it and see what happens. But it's not like anyone here is going to turn away from free bacon.


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## pc farmer (Aug 27, 2020)

Use maple sure in your dry cure then add more when you remove for the cure for the pellicle time.  Let it sit in the fridge for a few days before you smoke it.


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## mneeley490 (Aug 27, 2020)

pc farmer said:


> Use maple sure in your dry cure then add more when you remove for the cure for the pellicle time.  Let it sit in the fridge for a few days before you smoke it.


Way ahead of you. I always use maple sugar in my cures. Haven't tried adding more afterward, though. I once cured with maple syrup, and it made the bacon burn quickly. I would think adding more sugar would do the same.


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## pc farmer (Aug 27, 2020)

That was supposed to say maple sugar.  Sorry    I cook mine in the oven too.  Better results.


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