First Fattie, Bacon wrap undercooked?

arron · Apr 22, 2009

i just smoked my first fattie, It's a breakfast fattie wrapped in a bacon weave. It was on the cooker for about 2 hours and 50 min, cooker temp ranged from 235-250 the whole time. I cooked it until internal temp was 165. The outside looked very dark, but the bacon was not crisp. Should it be?

bigbaldbbq · Apr 22, 2009

Just a question how did you get it to 165 internal with a smoker temp of 135 to 150?

arron · Apr 22, 2009

im sorry i meant 235-250

bigbaldbbq · Apr 22, 2009

Ok I was wondering. As for the bacon being crisp, I'm not sure if it should be or not. When ever I do fatties they are never around long enough for me to even pay attention if the bacon is crisp. My guess would be it depends on the thickness of the bacon that you are using.

arron · Apr 22, 2009

well i was using thick cut bacon, i probably should have used a little thinner cut, but the fattie tasted awesome, i just was a little weary about eating the bacon. the sausage was cooked perfectly though. Maybe i just expected it to be crispier like pan fried or sumthin.

grothe · Apr 22, 2009

Using thinner cut bacon should solve the problem

rivet · Apr 22, 2009

When I make a fattie using thick cut bacon, only parts of it get crispy, others are chewy. It's all cooked though, I wouldn't worry about it, unless you have to have crispy bacon.

smokingscooby · Apr 22, 2009

I have the same problem, well not for me, the wife does not like soft bacon. I use a propane torch at the end to crisp up the bacon. It makes it more edible for her, the rest of the family really doesnt care.They don't last long .

arron · Apr 22, 2009

Thanks "Rivet", Good to know it's all done, i just wasn't sure if bacon could be chewy and cooked all the way. Sure does taste good though.

bbq engineer · Apr 22, 2009

Hi Arron,

If you don't have a good thermometer, get one. You should always cook to a temperature. Don't go by looks, it can be deceiving with smoked meats. Mrs. Engineer got me a Thermoworks Thermapen http://www.thermoworks.com/products/...tpen_home.html

I love it because it is really fast, accurate, and has a small diameter probe. The advantage of this is that juice (and flavor) doesn't pour out of a gigantic probe mark every time you test the temp. If you check the temps, you will know it is done, and safe to eat.

Happy smokes!

the dude abides · Apr 22, 2009

Congrats on your first fatty!!!
Most of the time my bacon isn't crisp either. I usually peel if off as I don't like soggy bacon. However, cooking at a higher temp (300-325) will help crisp up the bacon.
See my last post
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/for...ad.php?t=75932
where I got my bacon done to the point where I enjoyed it.

Congratulations again. Glad it was a success.

goodwyne · Apr 22, 2009

He's got one good thermometer 'cause I gave it to him. I'm afraid he's gonna pass me in short order when it comes to smoking meat!

Ron

arron · Apr 22, 2009

Thanks Alot "The Dude Abides" I'll tell you what though, that one of yours sure does look good, i posted pics of mine in the spingtime fatty throwdown sticky, ah heck, i'll post it here to.

fire it up · Apr 22, 2009

Congrats on your first fattie Arron! Hope you loved it.
I have done many a fattie in my time smoking and whenever I wrap it in bacon I try not to overlap any parts because it is that much harder to crisp up when the 2 pieces overlap each other. Many, many times the bacon is fine on the outside but not "crisp" all the way through, if it is a bit too much I just take it off, but like Rivet said, it is fine to eat.
Once I threw the fattie under the broiler for a few minutes and that made the bacon crispy but it sure didn't look so pretty after that. If you're confident that your fattie will hold if you toss it around a bit then smoke it up and you could either crisp under the broiler or even on a grill. Thinner bacon definitely helps.
You could even omit the bacon if you wanted, I have done many without bacon and they turned out every bit as good.

btircuit · Apr 22, 2009

I did my first fatties this weekend and I also used thick sliced bacon and got the same results. Awesome flavor but soft bacon. I will definitely use thin from now on.

coffee_junkie · Apr 22, 2009

IMO the bacon will never get "crisp" as it would in a frying pan, no matter what thickness of bacon you use or how hot the smoker is. Have you ever baked bacon? It is always just a little limp.

jerseyhunter · Apr 22, 2009

The bacon on my ABT's get crisp, I believe the fat and moisture in the fattie is preventing the bacon from really getting crisp. You could try to take it to 170* with thin cut bacon. I use Oscar Meyer, I find the store brand and cheaper bacon takes longer to crisp up even in a frying pan.

roadrunr · Apr 27, 2009

i know myself, and at least a few other folks on here, partially cook the bacon first. I do it for fatties, and my abt's.

First Fattie, Bacon wrap undercooked?

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