1st time Pork Belly

jcb · Newbie Joined: 25 May 2010 Posts: 97

I am thinking of making my own bacon for the very first time. I am sure i will have a ton of questions as I go.
So 1st question: When i am done cuing the belly, can i smoke in a reverse flow smoker?
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Yeah Baby BBQ!

Harry Nutczak · Posted: Thu Sep 08 16 11:02 am Post subject:

absolutely,

You should be confident in measuring your cure mix, too little will let the meat spoil,. too much can be toxic.

My basic cure is 1.4 grams of Cure #1 per each pound of meat, along with .75-TBS of both salt & sugar.

You can add spices or seasonings as wanted from there, just do not add more salt or it may be inedible,

Rinse well before smoking, and let it air dry too
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Just remember that the toes you may step on during your climb to the top will also be attached to the a$$es you'll be forced to kiss on your way back down!

jcb · Newbie Joined: 25 May 2010 Posts: 97

Thank-you!!!
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Yeah Baby BBQ!

ComradeQ · Posted: Sun Sep 18 16 1:01 am Post subject:

Harry is the man on this forum when it comes to bacon! Much of what I learned early on came from him.

I have since tweaked my process a little bit to adjust for my tastes. I found using tbsp and tsp to measure would add too much variance with my salt level. After looking into it I discovered that, depending on the brand, salts vary immensely by weight and 1tbsp of one brand may be as much as 1.5-2tbsp of another for the same amount of salt (depending on crystal size and structure). I now weigh my salt every time and generally aim for 2% salt for my bacon tastes and use a longer cure time for salt equalization. This ensures the salt will permeate correctly to safely cure the meat without having the issue of excess salt that forces you to rinse and soak your cured bacon.

I have also made sure to follow the rule of 0.25% cure number 1 as it gives me much more accuracy and brings my nitrite levels to 156 PPM ... a level agreed to be safe. I see no need to bring nitrite levels higher, expecially when we dont need to and doing so increases the risk of nitrites not being broken down and nitrosamines being produced when cooked.

Harry's cure works out to 193 PPM which is still within the allowable limits of 200 PPM.