Start all over again....

sniper7990 · Jan 14, 2015

Oh well, welcome to the world of trial and error

Right, not taking any chances with this

I have binned the first attempt at dry curing pork belly as not happy with the cure, not happy with the temperature and just not prepared to take any risks with myself, family of friends..

Time to dig deep in to my pockets for pennies LOL

Just ordered 200g Prague powder # 1 cure, should be here tomorrow.

Also just bought a fridge which will be dedicated to dry curing meats and fish (had good results with salmon in the past), so no more worrying about temperature control.

Cold smoker arrived this morning (one of those sawdust, spiral things that you put in a bbq with the lid down)

Bacon slicer should arrive tomorrow, bargain off of Amazon, should have been £140, got it in a sale for £40

So, all in all, should be able to have another go at the weekend

Just a couple of questions regarding the cure.

How much #1 cure should I mix in proportion to salt and sugar.

Im looking for a fairly sweet cure, so how much 'normal' salt should I mix with how much sugar and hoe much Prague powder #1 cure

I joined this forum less than 24hrs ago and already pestered the hell out of everyone LOL

ATB

Russ

dirtsailor2003 · Jan 14, 2015

The amount of cure depends on the process that you are going to be using. If you are going to do a dry cure, then you need to weigh the meat, and weigh the cure to get the correct amount. That is for whole muscle meats. I highly recommend using a good digital scale with a tare feature. For ground meats the rule of thumb is 1 level teaspoon per 5 pounds of meat. Here's a handy calculator to get you the appropriate amount of cure for whole muscle meats:

http://diggingdogfarm.com/page2.html

If you don't have access to a scale the following brine recipe works great and requires no weighing of meats:

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/110799/pops6927s-wet-curing-brine

As long as you keep the cure amount as listed you can adjust the sugar and salt content using Pop's brine to your liking. I typically only use 1/3-2/3 cups salt depending on what I am smoking. Note that it is best to add flavoring spices after the brine has been rinsed off. One of the exceptions to this is for making corned beef, then you'd want to add the pickling spice into the brine. As you can see this brine can be used to cure a bunch of different types of meat.

Here's a couple of my smokes using a few different methods:

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/131123/the-bacon-trifecta-thats-a-wrap

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/173259/fish-trifecta

kc5tpy · Jan 14, 2015

Hello Russ. Hopefully I can be of help next time. Starting again would have been my advice but I am new to curing so I was hoping a more knowledgeable member would help. Case is one of the members of the U.K. Group from the States. As you can see by his posts and points he knows his stuff. I knew the folks wouldn't let ya down. Don't you worry about "pestering" folks. We all had to start some where. I am just getting in to curing myself. I have asked plenty of questions. No matter how crazy the question sounds just throw it out there. Someone will help you out. I am here at least once a day, not like I have a life or anything; and I will help in any way I can. Many folks here like helping new folks get started and enjoy sharing their knowledge. I have previously read all the links Case gave you. Have a good read and use them as reference and you will be fine and SAFE! Is curing and cold smoking your thing or are you going in to hot smoking also? Smoking meat is not a British "thing" ( except for kippers and maybe salmon ) so curious how you got interested. Glad to have you with us. Keep Smokin!

Danny

osprey2 · Jan 14, 2015

have a look here http://www.localfoodheroes.co.uk/?p=cured-meat-calculators

Not my site but a wealth of knowledge

sniper7990 · Jan 14, 2015

i originayl loved BBqing with my uncle in his garden when I was a kid. Its something I bought in to my family when I got married. I fish and I hunt (all game, rabbits, deer etc etc). I started bbqing for my family, but have always been a fan of cooking, indoors and out. I loved slow cooking in the oven indoors and stumbled across the bbq pit boys website originally and started doing lots of slow and low on the bbq. Just done a 19lb Boston on the bbq for new years eve

kc5tpy · Jan 14, 2015

Hi Russ. BBQ Pit Boys are a BLAST! Funny as heck most times. My English wife asks what I am laughing about, says I sound exactly like the guy who says "gud".

If you haven't read I am from Texas. Been here for 15 yrs. now. You have peaked my interest here! HUNTING??? Rabbits, deer, I assume birds????? WHERE, WHEN AND HOW???? How do I start hunting in the U.K.?? I have left my guns in Tx. and am about to sell them because of U.K. laws but if I could start hunting again would brighten my world to no end! Any info would be appreciated! WOW! Hunting again would be GREAT!! Keep Smokin!

Danny

sniper7990 · Jan 15, 2015

first off, I suggest that you join a gun club, this is the easiest way to gat a firearm certificate (FAC) in the UK. That gets you a foot in the door so to speak. I used to run my own gun club years ago UK gun clubs have to impose a probationary period on all new members and once you have passed that you can then get your own FAC

I then applied for a condition on my FAC for purchasing deer stalking, ie paying to go on a stalk.

I also had permission to shoot on a local golf course that was plagued by rabbits.

I applied for another condition for vermin, which includes rabbits, and I used my 22lr for that

One word of warning, when you get permission to shoot over a piece of land from the owner, you have to inform the firearms licencing dept. of the force for your area and they will send an officer to grade the land to see what firearm calibre you can use on that land.

Once you have been shooting over land for a few years, you can request an open condition on your fac which means if granted, the police deem you qualified to shoot on any land without them having to proof it, as long as you have permission to shoot on it.

Shooting bird game.....just go for a shotgun licence....lot less complicated to get......you don need to be a member of a rifle club, just find a friendly farmer and state that you want the gun for vermin, game and clay shooting

Its a nightmare I know but if I can help I will

wade · Jan 15, 2015

KC5TPY said:
Hi Russ. BBQ Pit Boys are a BLAST! Funny as heck most times. My English wife asks what I am laughing about, says I sound exactly like the guy who says "gud".

I love the BBQ Pit Boys and even paid my $10 to print off one of their Pit Master certificates a few years ago - I think it was after consuming quite a bit of wine though... When you watch them it is great to see what you can do with just one blunt Rambo knife and a very long beard

kc5tpy · Jan 15, 2015

WOW!! Think I am too old to start that process now. My brother still steps out the back door and shoots a deer or wild hog at least twice a year. The Marine Corps just handed me a rifle and I was "qualified" to shoot at people ( thank God I never had to ). All that just to shoot at a rabbit? Maybe if I was a young man but not now. Well, guess the guns are going to my brother not that he needs more guns. Thanks for the advice Russ. Just to old to start all that now.

Keep Smokin!

Danny

wade · Jan 15, 2015

KC5TPY said:
I have left my guns in Tx. and am about to sell them because of U.K. laws but if I could start hunting again would brighten my world to no end!

You could try bringing them into the UK. If you did you probably wouldn't need to worry about board and lodging though for a very long time.

sniper7990 · Jan 16, 2015

Wade said:
You could try bringing them into the UK. If you did you probably wouldn't need to worry about board and lodging though for a very long time.

TBH, its quite easy to do that, join a club, get a certificate, list the rifles on it and just sort out customs. I know quite a few people who have don it.

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Start all over again....

sniper7990

Meat Mopper

dirtsailor2003

Epic Pitmaster

kc5tpy

Master of the Pit

osprey2

Meat Mopper

sniper7990

Meat Mopper

kc5tpy

Master of the Pit

sniper7990

Meat Mopper

wade

Master of the Pit

kc5tpy

Master of the Pit

wade

Master of the Pit

sniper7990

Meat Mopper

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