MORTONS TQ

richard weaver · Mar 21, 2012

CAN ANYONE HELP ME ? I KNOW I NEED HELP I CURED CANADAN BACON FRESH PORK LOIN WITH MORTON TQ FOR 10 DAYS 4# PORK LOIN 4 TABLE SPOONS TQ ANDPUT IN ELEC SMOKER AT 135DGS VENT OPEN FOR 1 HR THEN INCREASED TEMP TO 165 DGSUNTILL INTER TEMP WAS 165 DGS AND WAS NOT SALTY TO START WITH AFTER SMOKE HEAVY FOR 3AND HALF HRS DISCUNTINUD ADDING MORE WOOD TO SMOKER TOOK OUT OF SMOKER AND COLLED 2 HRS ANDPUT IN REFG OVER NIGHT SLICED IN AM AND FRYED AND WAS TO SALTY . AM I USING TO MUCH SMOKE? LIKE I SAID I NEED HELP THANKS DICK

eman · Mar 21, 2012

The smoke has nothing top do w/ salt content. You used TQ which has a high salt content,

Every thing i have ever used TQ to cure needed at least an hour or two of cold water soak

to remove some of the salt before smoking.

puddy · Mar 21, 2012

You need to do a fry test prior to smoking to figure out where you are at with salt. You probably needed to soak in fresh water for a few hours if it was as salty as you said it was. Your post seems a bit hard to read as it is all CAPS among other spelling and spacing errors.

diggingdogfarm · Mar 21, 2012

TQ when used correctly should only provide 2.5% salt in this case.
Do you have a gram scale?
Try weighing everything next time.
Use 14 grams of TQ to 1 lb. (454 grams) of loin.
If the meat lost substantial weight during cooking/smoking that will certainly up the final salt concentration, loins can easily do that.
After curing, do a fry test. Soak in fresh water if needed.
Smoke for 3 hours at at 130 degrees then up the temp to 165-170 until the internal temperature reaches 154 degrees, then shower the meat with cold water.

HTH

Edited to correct a typo.

alelover · Mar 22, 2012

I always soak my CB for at least 2 hours with water changes in between.

scarbelly · Mar 22, 2012

alelover said:
I always soak my CB for at least 2 hours with water changes in between.

X2

luv2q · Mar 22, 2012

alelover said:
I always soak my CB for at least 2 hours with water changes in between.

I change the water out every 30 minutes and soak for a total of 2 hours, as well.

pgeobc · Mar 24, 2012

One must remember that Morton's Salt Company has formulated some of the recipes so that meat can be preserved to the extent that it requires no refrigeration. That is an old-fashioned way of doing things, but it works. I think that you should have soaked your meat for some lenght of time, as suggested above, before smoking. That way, when the meat lost moisture in the smokehouse, the salt would not have concentrated to the extent that it did.

There is nothing that prevents you from simmering your meat in a little water to remove some salt before you fry it. That was practiced often in years past and works well enough and it will save your bacon.

badbob · Mar 24, 2012

I've never had to soak it (I like it salty) but I always do the test fry!

cman55 · May 7, 2013

I'm using Morton TQ for the first time to dry cure bacon. I used the recipie on the TQ bag itself which was 1 tbsp to 1lb meat. I vacuum sealed the bags and they are now in the fridge. How long do I let the bacon stay in the cure? I've seen varying lengths and I really don't want to ruin the bacon.

Second question is, once the curing process is finished and the excess salt rinsed/soaked out, do the standard cold smoke methods apply?

Thanks in advance!

mr t 59874 · May 7, 2013

Cman55 said:
I'm using Morton TQ for the first time to dry cure bacon. I used the recipie on the TQ bag itself which was 1 tbsp to 1lb meat. I vacuum sealed the bags and they are now in the fridge. How long do I let the bacon stay in the cure? I've seen varying lengths and I really don't want to ruin the bacon.

Second question is, once the curing process is finished and the excess salt rinsed/soaked out, do the standard cold smoke methods apply?

Thanks in advance!

Cure 7 days per inch of thickness at the thickest point, this is according to Morton[emoji]174[/emoji]. Turn daily. I put mine in zip bags.

I also don't rinse mine and cold smoke for 72 hours using hickory pellets in a AMNPS keeping the temperature below 75°. When cooking, keep the temperature at a maximum of, 325°, this will keep the nitrates and nitrites from going through a chemical change, a oven set at 325° for 30 minutes works well for us, the best is 225° for two hours. Many are actually cooking it in the smoker then recooking prior to being served which would greatly concentrate the salt making the bacon very salty requiring a soak.

Tom

Tom

cman55 · May 8, 2013

Thanks for the response Tom. I'm thinking by this time next week, I'm gonna soak these babies just to be careful about the salt content. I'll do a test fry as well just to see where everything stands after 7days. I'm hoping this gives an improved taste over "wet brining". One last question. does the pellicle form fairly quickly AFTER dry curing?

mr t 59874 · May 8, 2013

Whoa Cman, Sounds like you want to put the cart before the horse. First you want to cure the bacon for the correct amount of time before doing anything else, this is very important. Second if you feel it will have to be soaked (which I doubt if cold smoked) do it after the test fry, not before.

After the curing period, I do a quick cold water rinse, pat dry with paper towels then hang in cooler for 48 hours to form the pellicle.

Note: If you decide to hot smoke use DDF's cooking instructions in post # 4. The bacon will be ready to eat (RTE) so if you reheat all that will be necessary will be to warm it. If you fry as mentioned above it will tend to be salty do to the salt concentration.

Tom

pgeobc · May 8, 2013

Mr T. has it right, but let me add a little.

When I have made bacon with MTQ. I left it the stated 1 week per 1" of thickness. It does no harm to take it out and rinse off the excess when that time is up. One must, however let it dry in the frig until a pellicle is formed, else it will not take smoke nearly as well.

The amount of time that you smoke is a highly personal matter. You could apply smoke for as little as 4 hours, or as long as you can tolerate the heavy flavor. Three, six-hour sessions, with rests overnight will give a very nice, heave smoke.

The business about nitrosamines is overrated, as they are not stable for long periods of time. When doing lab work using nitrosamines for analytical work, it is necessary to keep the samples iced and work quickly, lest they decompose. Just do not overdo the cooking temp. I like to cook my bacon on a rack in a sheet pan in the oven. The bacon comes out nice and flat and tastes really good.

Bearcarver · May 8, 2013

I agree with most that was already said, however I was taught to dry cure for 1 day for every half inch, at the thickest part, plus at least 2 more days for safety. I usually add between 1 and 3 more days, depending on which day I would rather smoke it. In other words, if it was 2" thick, I would cure it for between 7 and 9 days, and mine have always been cured to the center. The 7 days per inch would call for 14 days for the same pieces.

I always rinse & soak for a half hour, just to remove the surface salt.

I also always do a salt-fry test, after I soak it for 30 minutes, and I have never had to soak any longer. I would say smoking it to a 165 internal temp would make it salty-----Even the USDA now says 145 internal temp, and whole Pork is done & safe to eat. Why go higher than 150???

Also like was said above, if you smoke it to 145 IT or above, don't fry it to prepare-----Just warm it up a bit. The more you cook it, the more it will taste salty.

Just my 2 Piasters,

Bear

cman55 · May 8, 2013

Thanks Everyone! You guys certainly are the source of knowledge when it comes to home curing and smoking. I am going to wait until next Tuesday which will be 7 days as the thickness pretty much averages 1 inch at the thickest point. I cut my 10# belly into thirds just in case I want to experiment with smoke times, pellicle formation, etc. I just might stash one of the three sections, try it Bear's way and go 2 weeks and 48hrs in the fridge for the pellicle as per Mr. T. Nice thing about cutting the belly into smaller pieces is that I don't have a seperate fridge yet and have to share space with other foods.

My main concern is the salt content as I don't want to invite high BP because I love to cure and smoke my own bacon. Pop's brine worked well but I always thought the bacon came w/o enough salt.

When you guys soak/rinse, do you use cold water or warm? I was wondering if salt is more soluble in warm water and would rinse off easier than in cold..

mr t 59874 · May 8, 2013

Cman55 said:
When you guys soak/rinse, do you use cold water or warm? I was wondering if salt is more soluble in warm water and would rinse off easier than in cold..

Cman, I use cold water as all I want to do is rinse the surface brine and some of the ground peppercorns off. I am not trying to dissolve the salt that took two weeks to apply.

Tom

cman55 · May 8, 2013

Check.. Got it.. Thanks again Tom. I'll let ya know how it turns out.

cman55 · May 15, 2013

Well, the bacon came out pretty good with just enough salt. I soaked the three slabs for 30mins, did a test fry and determined that there was enough salt still in the bacon. Smoked the slabs for 12hrs at 110* with a mix of hickory and apple woods.

Here's a pic fresh out of the smoker:

IMAG0049_zpsd6cbccee.jpg

cman55
May 15, 2013

Bearcarver · May 15, 2013

Looks real good from here, Cman!!!

Bear

MORTONS TQ

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