Cold vs. Hot Smoked bacon?

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Cold Smoking
Cold smoking at 52-71° F (12-22° C), from 1-14 days, applying thin smoke with occasional breaks in between, is one of the oldest preservation methods. We cannot produce cold smoke if the outside temperature is 90° F (32° C), unless we can cool it down, which is what some industrial smokers do. Cold smoking is a drying process whose purpose is to remove moisture thus preserving a product.
You will find that different sources provide different temperatures for cold smoking. In European countries where most of the cold smoking is done, the upper temperature is accepted as 86° F (30° C). The majority of Russian, Polish and German meat technology books call for 71° F (22° C), some books ask for 77° F (25° C). Fish starts to cook at 85° F (29.4° C) and if you want to make delicious cold smoked salmon that is smoked for a long time, obviously you can not exceed 86° F (30° C). Cold smoking assures us of total smoke penetration inside of the meat. The loss of moisture also is uniform in all areas and the total weight loss falls within 5-20% depending largely on the smoking time. Cold smoking is not a continuous process, it is stopped (no smoke) a few times to allow fresh air into the smoker.
In XVIII century brick built smokehouses a fire was started every morning. It smoldered as long as it could and if it stopped, it would be restarted again the following morning.
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Cold smoked meats prevent or slow down the spoilage of fats, which increases their shelf life. The product is drier and saltier with a more pronounced smoky flavor and very long shelf life. The color varies from yellow to dark brown on the surface and dark red inside. Cold smoked products are not submitted to the cooking process. If you want to cold smoke your meats, bear in mind that with the exception of people living in areas with a cold climate like Alaska, it will have to be done in the winter months just as it was done 500 years ago.
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Cold smoking at its best. Smoking continues through the night. Photos courtesy Waldemar Kozik.
Using dry wood is of utmost importance when cold smoking. It is recommended to keep wood chips in a well defined single pile as they will have less contact with air, thus will smoke better without creating unnecessary flames and heat. By following these rules we achieve 75-85% humidity, creating the best conditions for moisture removal. Once the moisture content drops low enough, the salt present in the meat will further inhibit the development of bacteria and the products can hang in the air for months losing more moisture as time goes by.
Lox (smoked salmon) is smoked with cold smoke for an extended period of time. Applying hotter smoke (over 84° F, 28° C) will just cook the fish, the flavor will change and we will not be able to slice it so thin anymore. Cold smoking is a slow process and the hams, which lend themselves perfectly to this type of smoking, can be smoked from 2 to even 6 weeks. During smoking they will slowly be acquiring a golden color along with a smoky flavor.
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Cold smoking allows us total smoke penetration inside of the meat. Very little hardening of the outside surface of the meat or casing occurs and smoke penetrates the meat easily.
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Hot smoking dries out the surface of the meat creating a barrier for smoke penetration.
 
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When planning on cold smoking, do NOT use a wet brine/cure.. It will impart too much water, into the meat,that will allow for bacterial growth...
Dry "rub" cure using salt, sugar and cure#1...
Place on wire racks in the fridge for 14 days to start the dehydrating process...

Bacon 5-2020 001 - Copy.JPG

Cold smoke for several days 55-70F...

Bacon 8-30 002 (2).JPG


Bacon3 2 11-7 - Copy.JPG


then I put the meat back in the refer for ~5 days for the flavors to bloom...


The meat MUST be at outdoor ambient temperature, or above, to eliminate the possibility of forming condensate on the meat when in the smoker.. I do not fridge the meat between smokes... I only cold smoke bacon in the fall thru spring...

I smoke with pellet dust in a maze using the Mail Box mod...


Pellet Dust 3.JPG



Mailbox mod hooked up.jpg
 
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Cold smoke guy here too!
Why cook it twice?
Besides dry cured, cold smoked bacon has the best texture & flavor IMHO!
Al
 
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When planning on cold smoking, do NOT use a wet brine/cure.. It will impart too much water, into the meat,that will allow for bacterial growth...
Dry "rub" cure using salt, sugar and cure#1...
Place on wire racks in the fridge for 14 days to start the dehydrating process...

View attachment 494478
Cold smoke for several days 55-70F...

View attachment 494479

View attachment 494480

then I put the meat back in the refer for ~5 days for the flavors to bloom...


The meat MUST be at outdoor ambient temperature, or above, to eliminate the possibility of forming condensate on the meat when in the smoker.. I do not fridge the meat between smokes... I only cold smoke bacon in the fall thru spring...

I smoke with pellet dust in a maze using the Mail Box mod...


View attachment 494481


View attachment 494482
Could you give me the measurements of the dry rub for bacon? Looked around and couldn’t find. Thanks in advance!
 
As an eastern european, I am sticking to our centuries old traditions of smoking, and smoking bacon in particular.
I actually was surprised by american bacon upon my arrival here. It looked nice but wasn't cooked the way I use to eat it.

Well long story short, I wet cure my bacon and hot smoke it at 180F until internal 150F.
canadian.jpeg


bacon.jpeg


I am smoking that way ribs and chickens as well.
IMG_8962.jpg
 
As an eastern european, I am sticking to our centuries old traditions of smoking, and smoking bacon in particular.
I actually was surprised by american bacon upon my arrival here. It looked nice but wasn't cooked the way I use to eat it.

Well long story short, I wet cure my bacon and hot smoke it at 180F until internal 150F.
View attachment 513270

View attachment 513271

I am smoking that way ribs and chickens as well.
View attachment 513272


All Looks Great !!!
I love making Spare Ribs Like that (Cured & Smoked).
We call it "Bacon-on-A-Stick". Yum!

Bear
 
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