Bacon fan needs basics

berninga87 said:

So I've been reading a lot about different practices on makin' bacon! Have to admit, I'm a die hard bacon fan, and a cautious cook, (after the servsafe classes I cant help it!). I've been reading about cures and brines and cold smokes and all, but I haven't been able to find everything in one spot, so I have some questions.

1st concern is safety, regardless of extra flavoring, what do I need to do to ensure the bacon I'm making is safe for me, my family and the friends I will be giving it to? I've heard dry curing is preferred but I'm open to opinions. dry cure or brine are both acceptable methods.  I prefer the dry cure but it is personal preference.  Use the correct amount of cure (most important) for the proper amount of time.  keep refrigerated, use good sanitary procedure as you  know from your classes.

2nd, I'm pretty sure I want to cold smoke the bacon once cured. I just chose this because I'd rather only really fully cook the meat once in my frying pan than once in the smoker then again in the pan(I'd feel like I'm re-heating?). As far as temp goes for cold smoke, is there an ideal temp? It's going to be cooling down here in WI pretty soon, and the cold thing wont be a problem, but what is an optimum temp if there is one, and how long?...weight of meat unsure as of now, a time per lb or general rule of thumb will be fine!  As long as you are above freezing and below about 110.  At the higher temps the fat renders out of the bacon and makes a greasy mess.  I would say ideal is somewhere in the mid 50s to 60s but living in Louisiana, well you know.   I know people that will go 7 to 10 days in cold smoke, I like at least 36 hours,  Smoke to color, I prefer a deep mahogany (dark brown, red)  Use the wood you have available, I have pecan so that is what I use but oak, hickory, fruit woods are all good! 

3rd, Flavor! I've seen some great looking recipes but again, any opinion or input welcome.   I think the three most important flavors are smoke, sugar and salt.  You can do a basic cure with little salt and then after curing do a heavy sugar and additional salt rub, allow the bacon to rest a couple of days with the additional salt and sugar.  After curing the bacon is pretty stable as long as you keep it refrigerated.

Also, just for clarity, I'm using a Brinkmann SnP or ECB. Never tried a cold smoke, although before the mods I thought it would be easier than trying to hold 225 in this beast! I think with the area I have in the cooking chamber I should have plenty of room for the meat and smoke generator, unless it would still be a good idea to keep the smoke generator in the firebox(again, opinions/input please!)  Can't answer that I have a smokehouse with separate firebox.  Two important things, keep the temperature down and allow a bit of room between the bellies to get good smoke penetration.  Also make sure your belles are dry with the pellicle formed before trying to smoke

As far as the meat goes, when I go to the butcher I'm planning on asking for pork belly(and hopefully not getting the same looks I got when asking the guy at the hardware store for expanded metal for a charcoal basket..haha), is there anything I should look for in the cut?   Depending on how much you can fit into your smoker you are better served asking them to order a case (35 lbs) for you.  If you are looking at less then 10 lbs or so you want a good combination of meat and fat.  The thicker the better, rindless if want but I smoke with the rind on,  just reduce the amount of cure you use (rind doesn't absorb cure) and extend your smoke time.

I've been tossing around the idea of ordering the AMNS, heard a lot of good reviews on it, otherwise going with the soldering iron & tin can method.

Finally, I'm not one to assume anything when learning something new, so dumb it up for me as much as you can! and I'll make from it what I want in the future. Sorry for so many questions at once( I have about 1M more!), but this seems like a great place to learn, and I want to know as much as I can, one meat at a time! 

Promise to post Qview when bacon is complete!  Ask away we love to answer questions and talk about this hobby!  I can send you to the Wiki I did for dry cured bacon if you are interested

Click to expand...

berninga87 said:

haha, I knew that was coming! I've looked at their site a few times using Todd's link, and it truly does sound like a great product after all the great reviews it receives here. I'm just being me trying to save a buck. I'll probably have one ordered in the next week or two. Thanks Bear!

Click to expand...

Rich- said:

I suggest that you forget the soldering iron thing and get the A-Maze-N-Pellet smoker that has already been suggested.

I got mine about a month ago and would not trade it for a truck load of cans and soldering irons.

Fill it with pellets, light it, put it in your smoker and forget it.

I use mine in an upright Brinkman smoker I bought at Home DePot, I don't light the burner, I just get my pellet smoker going, set it in and on a 60 degree day, the pellets bring the chamber temp up to approx 113 degrees, IMO a perfect temp for cold smoking Bacon.

Rich

Click to expand...

berninga87 said:

Looks like it's gonna be an AMNPS. Is that preferred over the AMNS? The only differences I see are the smoke time and that the AMNPS can run on sawdust or pellets. However, 11 hours of worry free/babysitting free smoke sounds very nice. I did some test runs on the soldering iron and it ran for a good 6 hours no problem, just had to refill the can every couple hours, but I can always use a backup for my car wiring jobs. When I do get the AMNPS I know it comes with pellets, 2lbs I think, and when that runs out I'll probably buy more, but in case I get the itch to smoke something during that in between/ran out of pellets time, can I use sawdust I have at home? I have a woodshop and home and the means(saws) to make different types and thicknesses of sawdust and collect it. If I have some scrap laying around(raw scrap, no stain/varnish/glue/chemicals) can I just hack that up and use it in the AMNPS? Either way, I can't wait to make some bacon. When that time rolls around I'll be posting pics and asking a lot more questions. I plan on using a brine cure the first time around, and would like to make something like the "Diablo Powder" that JIRodriguez posted about and sprinkle some in the brine. I'm a spicy food nut, and the thought of some spicy, smokey, peppery B piled on some LT is making my mouth water!

Click to expand...