First, for all the 'mericans on the forums, Canadians do not call Canadian bacon Canadian Bacon. We call it Back Bacon.
I was going to visit my brother, niece and their families in Edmonton. Apparently, they are fond of my bacon. There is no accounting for tastes.
The local supermarket had a great deal on a whole pork loin so they were getting back bacon this time. I do love them but I am cheap.
I cut the bacon into 3 piece that would fit in a vacuum bag.
I weighed one piece and used my formula for making a dry cure. For each kilogram of meat, I add:
I put the meat on a plate and rubbed the dry cure over the piece of pork. I put the pork in a vacuum bag and made sure I got all the rub that fell onto the plate into the bag.
I sealed the bag but did not do a vacuum seal. I wanted to be able to massage the pork as it cured.
I repeated the process with the other two pieces of pork and put them in the fridge. I let them cure for 10 days, turning the bags and massaging daily.
I took the pork out of the bags and rinsed them well under cold running water. I soaked them in cold water for 40 minutes, changing the water once.
I dried the pieces with paper towel and put them, uncovered in the fridge overnight to dry and develop a nice pellicle.
I left one piece plain. I rubbed one down with Cajun spices and the last with coarse ground pepper. Not too much as my relatives aren't into very spicy.
I put the pork in my Weber Genesis grill but did not turn it on. I put hickory pellets in my A-Maze-N tube smoker and lit it up. I cold smoked the bacon for just under six hours when the tube smoker ran out.
I wrapped the bacon in plastic wrap and put it in the fridge overnight.
The next day, I fired my pellet smoker up to 180 F.
I put the bacon on and smoked the bacon to an internal temperature of 140 F.
I wrapped them and put them in the fridge overnight.
I sliced the bacon up.
Of course you have to try a few slices to make sure it is worthy of your relatives!
The Verdict.
This is the way I like my back bacon. It isn't too salty and has a nice sweet hit. The Cajun adds just a touch of heat at the back of your tongue and the Pepper was just enough to kick up the flavour a bit.
Disco
I was going to visit my brother, niece and their families in Edmonton. Apparently, they are fond of my bacon. There is no accounting for tastes.
The local supermarket had a great deal on a whole pork loin so they were getting back bacon this time. I do love them but I am cheap.
I cut the bacon into 3 piece that would fit in a vacuum bag.
I weighed one piece and used my formula for making a dry cure. For each kilogram of meat, I add:
- 3 grams (2 ml) Prague Powder #1
- 40 ml brown sugar
- 15 ml kosher salt
- 0.05 ounce (1/5 teaspoon) Prague Powder #1
- 4 teaspoons brown sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
I put the meat on a plate and rubbed the dry cure over the piece of pork. I put the pork in a vacuum bag and made sure I got all the rub that fell onto the plate into the bag.
I sealed the bag but did not do a vacuum seal. I wanted to be able to massage the pork as it cured.
I repeated the process with the other two pieces of pork and put them in the fridge. I let them cure for 10 days, turning the bags and massaging daily.
I took the pork out of the bags and rinsed them well under cold running water. I soaked them in cold water for 40 minutes, changing the water once.
I dried the pieces with paper towel and put them, uncovered in the fridge overnight to dry and develop a nice pellicle.
I left one piece plain. I rubbed one down with Cajun spices and the last with coarse ground pepper. Not too much as my relatives aren't into very spicy.
I put the pork in my Weber Genesis grill but did not turn it on. I put hickory pellets in my A-Maze-N tube smoker and lit it up. I cold smoked the bacon for just under six hours when the tube smoker ran out.
I wrapped the bacon in plastic wrap and put it in the fridge overnight.
The next day, I fired my pellet smoker up to 180 F.
I put the bacon on and smoked the bacon to an internal temperature of 140 F.
I wrapped them and put them in the fridge overnight.
I sliced the bacon up.
Of course you have to try a few slices to make sure it is worthy of your relatives!
The Verdict.
This is the way I like my back bacon. It isn't too salty and has a nice sweet hit. The Cajun adds just a touch of heat at the back of your tongue and the Pepper was just enough to kick up the flavour a bit.
Disco
