Got any tips on making bacon out of pork belly?
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Bacon can be dry or wet cured. About 90% of the time I wet brine pork bellies. Dry cure takes up less refrigerator space.
Brining solution and curing: Here is my basic wet brine for bacon. (Thanks, Pops6927) Skinless Pork bellies can be purchased at Sam’s Club or your local butcher.
Per one gallon of solution
* one-gallon cold distilled water
* ¾ cup sea salt
* ¾ cup white sugar
* ¾ cup brown sugar
*1 tablespoon (one ounce) No. 1 pink curing salt, also called Prague #1 powder (NOT pink Himalayan table salt)
Mix well until sugar and salt are dissolve.
Place pork bellies in a five-gallon food grade bucket, submerge and cover with brine solution. Weight down with a plate or plastic bag filled with water. I typically use two gallons of solution per five-gallon bucket.
Cure pork bellies for 13-15 days in refrigerator.
Discard brine and rinse pork thoroughly. Pat dry, place on wire rack and return to refrigerator for 1 or 2 days to help form a pellicle and dry the meat out.
Cold Smoking:Remove from refrigerator.
Dry meat with a fan for an even better pellicle. This can also be done in a smoker at pit temp of 90-100 degrees.
Once meat surface is dry, you can proceed with smoking pork bellies. Do not add smoke until the surface is dry. Wet surface will yield a bitter acidic taste profile.
I’ve used everything from a homemade venturi smoker generator (pain in the backside), SmokeHouse Products Big chief electric smoker, curb find master built 30” electric smoker MES30, 22” WSM & 22” Kettle with 4” homemade charcoal basket. What I’ve found that works the best for cold smoking is A-Maze-N with premium pellets. Do not use charcoal flavored pellets.
Place meat in smoker along with A-Maze-N and smoke for 6-8 hours. You are not cooking the meat, just cold smoking. I like the outdoor air temp in the 40-50 degree range.
Resting and Slicing:Let bacon rest on wire racks in the refrigerator for one to three days before slicing. Just be forewarned that your refrigerator and everything it in will smell like a smokehouse. I have a second refrigerator in the garage so it’s not an issue. Several large boxes of baking soda work well to help reduce the smoke smell.
Freeze bacon for 30-45 minutes before slicing, this makes it much easier to slice.
If you don’t have a deli-meat slicer, a sharp brisket knife works the best. I used a brisket knife for years before I purchased a deli meat-slicer.
This is how I make bacon and it works for me. Once you make your own bacon, you’ll never buy commercial bacon again.