- Jun 27, 2011
- 97
- 11
I am closer to a rookie than an expert, so I may not know what I'm talking about. I know what I've observed.
I've done bacon with Pop's wet cure, dry with TQ and dry with cure #1.
The bacon in the wet cure doesn't seem to take on the smoke nearly as well as the dry-cured. Bacon from the wet cure and bacon from the dry cure smoked at the same time do not taste the same. The dry cured has a much smokier flavor to me.
The bacon in the wet cure also seems to shrink/wrinkle more when it's fried. Not a much as store-bought, but certainly more than the dry cure. I haven't tried baking the wet cured bacon.
Can anyone confirm the same observations? Or offer pointers on using the wet cure to address what I've seen?
Lastly, does it make a difference when the belly is seasoned? For the life of me, I can't taste the difference of anything I've tried outside of the cracked black pepper. I tried using Tony
Charchere's Criole Seasoning just because it seemed like a good idea at the time. Our oldest daughter thinks it is "the bomb" and prefers it over any other seasoning combinations I've tried. I have put the seasoning just prior to letting it develop the pellicle. I've put it on with the dry cures. Maybe I don't use enough? Thinking about it, when you slice bacon, the seasoned edge is so small in comparison with the wide face of it, so maybe the porkiness overwhelms the seasoning? Any ideas on this?
Thanks.
I've done bacon with Pop's wet cure, dry with TQ and dry with cure #1.
The bacon in the wet cure doesn't seem to take on the smoke nearly as well as the dry-cured. Bacon from the wet cure and bacon from the dry cure smoked at the same time do not taste the same. The dry cured has a much smokier flavor to me.
The bacon in the wet cure also seems to shrink/wrinkle more when it's fried. Not a much as store-bought, but certainly more than the dry cure. I haven't tried baking the wet cured bacon.
Can anyone confirm the same observations? Or offer pointers on using the wet cure to address what I've seen?
Lastly, does it make a difference when the belly is seasoned? For the life of me, I can't taste the difference of anything I've tried outside of the cracked black pepper. I tried using Tony
Charchere's Criole Seasoning just because it seemed like a good idea at the time. Our oldest daughter thinks it is "the bomb" and prefers it over any other seasoning combinations I've tried. I have put the seasoning just prior to letting it develop the pellicle. I've put it on with the dry cures. Maybe I don't use enough? Thinking about it, when you slice bacon, the seasoned edge is so small in comparison with the wide face of it, so maybe the porkiness overwhelms the seasoning? Any ideas on this?
Thanks.
