1st time making bacon , not sure if it cured.

[will work 4 bbq]

Hey guys, it has been a while since i've been on this forum. Like the title says it's my first time making bacon and i'm not quite sure if it properly cured.
There was no fluid at all in the bag after 10 days of "curing". It also wasn't very firm or as pink as i thought it would be.
It is a 2 1/3 lb belly , i added approximately .75 tsp of cure #1 and like 3-4 tbsp of salt plus brown sugar and other spices.
Today i did the fry taste and it tasted good but not quite like bacon, It wasn't too salty. Should i just feed it to my dogs and try again or go ahead and cold smoke it?
Thank you guys any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[will work 4 bbq]

Sorry, i totally posted this in the wrong section. Been a long day

 

[TomKnollRFV]

All I can think of is it wasn't allowed to cure long enough? IIRC the rule of thumb is for each half inch the meat is thick, is 2 days, and then you add 3.

I'm pretty sure it's safe to eat, but you might want to wait for one of the experts to chime in. <I mean you did try some and didn't get ill, I'm pretty sure that's a good sign>

 

[SmokinAl]

Most of us use this calculator to determine the proper amount of cure, salt & sugar.
http://diggingdogfarm.com/page2.html
It makes it very simple to get the proper amounts if you have a gram scale.
I plugged in your 2 1/3 lb. belly & got, 2.64 grams cure #1, 18.65 grams salt, & 10.56 grams sugar.
Most of us also let our bacon cure for 14 days. You also need to check the temp of your fridge & make sure it's around 35-38 degrees. If it is in the bottom of your beer fridge it may be too cold to cure properly.
Al

 

[Bearcarver]

Got any pictures?
As for the juices in the bags, it usually accumulates during the curing, but it could all be reabsorbed by the time it's done curing. So no juice in the bag at the end doesn't mean much.

As for the color, you can't tell much from the outside, but if you cut right through it, the center should be Pink to red all the way through, with no Brown or Gray in the center.

Bear

 

[will work 4 bbq]

Thank you guys for the reply and info. Next time i will use that calculator.
Most articles and videos i saw said 7-10 days of curing. I will definitely let it cure longer next time. I didn't check the fridge but it was fairly cold in there as it did have my beer in it, unfortunately it has been unplugged so i can't check. Now the question is should i cold smoke or hot smoke? Thanx again

 

[Bearcarver]

Thank you guys for the reply and info. Next time i will use that calculator.
Most articles and videos i saw said 7-10 days of curing. I will definitely let it cure longer next time. I didn't check the fridge but it was fairly cold in there as it did have my beer in it, unfortunately it has been unplugged so i can't check. Now the question is should i cold smoke or hot smoke? Thanx again

Thickness matters.
10 days is long enough, as long as the Belly thickness is no thicker than 2".
I get my best results by Smoking between 100° and 130°.
Link:
Bacon (Extra Smoky)


Bear

 

[daveomak]

I prefer cold smoked below 70F... then cook it when you are ready....

 

[will work 4 bbq]

Hello Bear, unfortunately i didn't take any pics. But there is no gray or brown in the middle. It's pink just not as pink as I imagined. Maybe im just tripping out since it is my first try at it.

 

[Bearcarver]

Hello Bear, unfortunately i didn't take any pics. But there is no gray or brown in the middle. It's pink just not as pink as I imagined. Maybe im just tripping out since it is my first try at it.

Yeah---Could be Newby Blues, but As long as your belly was no thicker than 2", and as long as your fridge was no colder than 35° (I use 37°), and as long as you applied the right amount of cure, you should be good.

However if you're worried about it, since it's such a small piece, just hot smoke it (225°), so it gets to 140° Internal Temp in less than 4 hours. Then you would be safe even if you never cured it.
Some people Hot Smoke all the time, and don't have a problem---Pops does it & I'd follow him any time.

Bear

 

[will work 4 bbq]

It's definitely not thicker than 2 inches and i don't think it was colder than 35 in the fridge. Ok i will cold smoke and hope for the best. Thank you guys again

 

[Bearcarver]

Hey guys, it has been a while since i've been on this forum. Like the title says it's my first time making bacon and i'm not quite sure if it properly cured.
There was no fluid at all in the bag after 10 days of "curing". It also wasn't very firm or as pink as i thought it would be.
It is a 2 1/3 lb belly , i added approximately .75 tsp of cure #1 and like 3-4 tbsp of salt plus brown sugar and other spices.
Today i did the fry taste and it tasted good but not quite like bacon, It wasn't too salty. Should i just feed it to my dogs and try again or go ahead and cold smoke it?
Thank you guys any help is greatly appreciated.

Another thing I find strange:
If you would have used Tender Quick on that 2 1/3 lb belly, it would get about 2.3 TBS of TQ.
Some people say TQ is too Salty, yet you used 3-4 TBS of Salt, which is more Salt, yet you said it wasn't too Salty.

Bear

 

[73saint]

Also, it’s not going to taste like bacon if you haven’t smoked it yet. As long as it’s pink in the middle, id finish the process.

 

[TomKnollRFV]

Another thing I find strange:
If you would have used Tender Quick on that 2 1/3 lb belly, it would get about 2.3 TBS of TQ.
Some people say TQ is too Salty, yet you used 3-4 TBS of Salt, which is more Salt, yet you said it wasn't too Salty.

Bear

Really? That is odd; I just don't use it as much because I combine alternative sweeteners in and I know TQ already has sugar, so I would think injecting with maple syrup+TQ would be to much sugar. I got some buckboard curing right now I didn't use brown sugar with because I used maple syrup..

 

[will work 4 bbq]

6hr smoke with apple pellets, then back in the fridge for a day to rest. I do have to say, I dun outdone myself. Best bacon i've ever had. But now i think i need a meat slicer because there is going to be alot more to come. I am hooked,

 

[TomKnollRFV]

View attachment 373350 View attachment 373351 View attachment 373352 View attachment 373353 View attachment 373350 View attachment 373351 View attachment 373352 View attachment 373353 6hr smoke with apple pellets, then back in the fridge for a day to rest. I do have to say, I dun outdone myself. Best bacon i've ever had. But now i think i need a meat slicer because there is going to be alot more to come. I am hooked,

I totally hear you on the meat slicer...I saw a cheap one on amazon ..


I actually wanted one years back for dealing with bread machine made bread. Since it tends to have a harder outer crust etc, you tend to cut thicker slices..now that I'm into curing my own kinds of bacon..well.

 

[tallbm]

View attachment 373350 View attachment 373351 View attachment 373352 View attachment 373353 View attachment 373350 View attachment 373351 View attachment 373352 View attachment 373353 6hr smoke with apple pellets, then back in the fridge for a day to rest. I do have to say, I dun outdone myself. Best bacon i've ever had. But now i think i need a meat slicer because there is going to be alot more to come. I am hooked,

Congrats on the success!
Yep a slicer is in the future for you for sure. To save you the hassle I highly recommend the Chef's Choice 615. It is AWESOME. It does the job well and cleans up super easily.
Many say to buy the non-serrated blade to get super thin slices with it so you may want to do that as well. With bacon, I'm sure you could get away with the regular blade it comes with but it never hurts to be prepared and have both blades :)

Keep it up and best of luck!

 

[chopsaw]

Looks real good . Nice job on the first try . I bought my slicer just for this reason , but use it for all kinds of things . I have two extra fridges that I use to cure with . I have a therm in both of them. Just saying, ,,

 

[TomKnollRFV]

Looks real good . Nice job on the first try . I bought my slicer just for this reason , but use it for all kinds of things . I have two extra fridges that I use to cure with . I have a therm in both of them. Just saying, ,,

Chop are you saying my 4.5cu ft mini fridge won't cut it for this new obsession some of us are discovering!? ;)

 

[will work 4 bbq]

I have two extra fridges that I use to cure with . I have a therm in both of them. Just saying, ,,

Yea looks like my beer is going to have to share space in th fridge now. Cuz im already making preparations for some maple bacon next.