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Message
Made Bacon for the First Time
Posted on 9/1/20 at 12:56 pm
Posted on 9/1/20 at 12:56 pm
I have been wanting to try my hand at making bacon and finally went for it. I watched a video from "Cowboy Kent Rollins" on YouTube and used that as a kick off point
Ingredients
3 to 4 pound uncured pork belly skin off
? cup kosher salt
¼ cup apple sauce
2 cups packed light brown sugar
½ cup maple syrup
4 tablespoons coarse ground black pepper
2 tablespoons Red River Ranch Mesquite seasoning *see substitution
¼ cup warm water
I didn't use the maple syrup because I'm not a huge fan of it on meats.
Going in the fridge
After 4 days (flipped after 2)
>
Rinsed and ready for the smoker
Smoked.
It got to temp way faster than I would have liked (1-1.5 hours)
>
>
Let it cool in the fridge over night then sliced
Frying it up
Conclusion: it's very good but I feel like I do need to add some pepper to it. Successful either way
Ingredients
3 to 4 pound uncured pork belly skin off
? cup kosher salt
¼ cup apple sauce
2 cups packed light brown sugar
½ cup maple syrup
4 tablespoons coarse ground black pepper
2 tablespoons Red River Ranch Mesquite seasoning *see substitution
¼ cup warm water
I didn't use the maple syrup because I'm not a huge fan of it on meats.
Going in the fridge
After 4 days (flipped after 2)
> Rinsed and ready for the smoker
Smoked.
It got to temp way faster than I would have liked (1-1.5 hours)
> > Let it cool in the fridge over night then sliced
Frying it up
Conclusion: it's very good but I feel like I do need to add some pepper to it. Successful either way
8
Posted on 9/1/20 at 1:01 pm to mylsuhat
Looks like a good first run!
For the smoking side, I always try and dry it out on a rack in the fridge for 24 hours to form a pellicle if I have time. Then, when smoking I start out as low as I can get my smoker, usually somewhere around 140-160 then keep it at the temp for 4-6 hours and bump it up at the end to finish if the i.t. is below 145.
With salt, I like to do it by percentages of the weight of the belly. I've found that 2-2.25% salt by weight is about perfect for my tastes. I switched to dry brining by percent of weight because it was the most predictable and easiest to replicate once I found where I liked the flavor.
If you want it more peppery, I would add some coarse ground pepper to the belly after it is brined and before it goes on the smoker
For the smoking side, I always try and dry it out on a rack in the fridge for 24 hours to form a pellicle if I have time. Then, when smoking I start out as low as I can get my smoker, usually somewhere around 140-160 then keep it at the temp for 4-6 hours and bump it up at the end to finish if the i.t. is below 145.
With salt, I like to do it by percentages of the weight of the belly. I've found that 2-2.25% salt by weight is about perfect for my tastes. I switched to dry brining by percent of weight because it was the most predictable and easiest to replicate once I found where I liked the flavor.
If you want it more peppery, I would add some coarse ground pepper to the belly after it is brined and before it goes on the smoker
Posted on 9/1/20 at 1:32 pm to mylsuhat
Nice job man
Posted on 9/1/20 at 1:46 pm to mylsuhat
Would eat, looks good.
Just curious, why put a seasoning with artificial smoke flavor (the red river mesquite) when you're putting it on the smoker?
Just curious, why put a seasoning with artificial smoke flavor (the red river mesquite) when you're putting it on the smoker?
Posted on 9/1/20 at 1:47 pm to kclandcruiser
quote:Mind sharing your dry brine?
I switched to dry brining by percent of weight because it was the most predictable and easiest to replicate once I found where I liked the flavor.
Posted on 9/1/20 at 1:55 pm to mylsuhat
my mouth was watering reading your post 
Posted on 9/1/20 at 1:56 pm to Loup
quote:I subbed Red River Smoke for Emril's Southwest Seasoning mix. Similar flavors with chili, garlic, salt, pepper, smoked paprika.
Just curious, why put a seasoning with artificial smoke flavor (the red river mesquite) when you're putting it on the smoker?
Posted on 9/1/20 at 3:06 pm to mylsuhat
Sitting at my desk looking at this picture, I swear I smelled bacon frying
Posted on 9/1/20 at 4:18 pm to The Nino
The basic recipe I go with is:
Salt: 2-2.5%
Curing salt: 0.25%
Brown Sugar: 1.25%
Then, I typically add (1) 1/4t of pickling spice and 1/4t of black peppercorns per pound of belly.
From there, add any other flavorings you want. This is a good base where you can experiment from there with adding heat/garlic/fennugreek/anything really
Bacon Curing Tutorial
This is an excellent link if you want in an in-depth tutorial on all things curing bacon
Salt: 2-2.5%
Curing salt: 0.25%
Brown Sugar: 1.25%
Then, I typically add (1) 1/4t of pickling spice and 1/4t of black peppercorns per pound of belly.
From there, add any other flavorings you want. This is a good base where you can experiment from there with adding heat/garlic/fennugreek/anything really
Bacon Curing Tutorial
This is an excellent link if you want in an in-depth tutorial on all things curing bacon
This post was edited on 9/1/20 at 4:19 pm
Posted on 9/1/20 at 4:35 pm to kclandcruiser
[quote]If you want it more peppery, I would add some coarse ground pepper to the belly after it is brined and before it goes on the smoker
This.
I cold smoke all my bacon (smoke time at least 24 hrs. sometimes 30 hrs.+) Because of this I use cure#1. Bacon gets a great color and flavor. Only bad thing is I have to do it the cooler months...so I do a bunch.
Your bacon looks good. You'll never buy bacon again. Welcome to he club.
This.
I cold smoke all my bacon (smoke time at least 24 hrs. sometimes 30 hrs.+) Because of this I use cure#1. Bacon gets a great color and flavor. Only bad thing is I have to do it the cooler months...so I do a bunch.
Your bacon looks good. You'll never buy bacon again. Welcome to he club.
Posted on 9/1/20 at 4:35 pm to mylsuhat
Nice I made some for the first time a few weeks ago and it turned out excellent. I use the dry brine below. I'm not a huge salt fan, so I use prague powder. I have about 5.5 lbs in the fridge now to smoke this weekend. Better than any store bought bacon for sure.
Per 3lbs:
3 Tbs Kosher Salt
1/3 cup white sugar
2 Tbs pepper
2 tsp Paprika
1 tsp prague powder #1
I put it in a vacuum bag and seal it, then flip everyday for a week or so. Let it dry out, then cover in coarse black pepper.
I made some for the first time a few weeks ago and it turned out excellent. I use the dry brine below. I'm not a huge salt fan, so I use prague powder. I have about 5.5 lbs in the fridge now to smoke this weekend. Better than any store bought bacon for sure. Per 3lbs:
3 Tbs Kosher Salt
1/3 cup white sugar
2 Tbs pepper
2 tsp Paprika
1 tsp prague powder #1
I put it in a vacuum bag and seal it, then flip everyday for a week or so. Let it dry out, then cover in coarse black pepper.
Posted on 9/1/20 at 8:30 pm to mylsuhat
That looks great! Think it would work with wild hog or too lean? Shot a hog recently and made some fresh Italian sausage which was great. Looking for other things to do with them. Like most people, we have plenty of hogs!
Posted on 9/1/20 at 9:26 pm to hunt66
I am really wanting to try this and have all of the ingredients, it's just so hot outside I think I'd have a hard time keeping my smoker at a low enough temp where I want it.
Posted on 9/2/20 at 6:41 am to ruger35
My mistake was using soaked chips in my electric smoker. I had to keep the temp higher to get them to smoke well but then it was at temp too soon
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