Curing time question

[Omnivore]

I've made bacon only once before and that was a couple years ago so I went through and pretty much read everyone's bacon posts to get reacquainted. I used the Digging Dog Farm calculator for my salt, sugar, and cure measurements on an 8 pound belly cut in half. One half is just salt, sugar and cure and the other half has is the same plus garlic powder, black pepper, sage, and marjoram. The halves are probably 1.75 inches in the thickest part (there is not much thick fat on them) and they've been curing for 8 days. A lot of folks mention that while the belly is cured by x amount of days (based on their preferred curing time calculation), they like to keep it curing for 12-14 days. So my question is, are the extra days of curing just to be absolutely sure that the belly is cured all the way through, or does the extra time curing do something to the overall flavor? Also, would cold or hot smoking affect whether or not the bacon should stay curing for 14 days even though it's technically cured by 8?

Thanks for any input. We have a ton of rain in the forecast with a couple dry days here and there which is why I'm thinking about getting the bacon smoked soon than later.

 

[DougE]

The extra time lows the flavors to even out in the meat. I go the full 14 days on my cures now and I think the flavor develops better with the extra time.

 

[BurntWeenie]

https://dl.icdst.org/pdfs/files/b51023298b966482b94c9a6867cae749.pdf

 

[thirdeye]

The additional time makes for a better flavor, a little deeper color and..... allows more time for the salt to condition the fat. Fat has no hemoglobin, so it doesn't actually benefit from the nitrite but the salt has an effect. The fat on 14 day bacon is better than on 7 day bacon.

 

[SmokinEdge]

I've made bacon only once before and that was a couple years ago so I went through and pretty much read everyone's bacon posts to get reacquainted. I used the Digging Dog Farm calculator for my salt, sugar, and cure measurements on an 8 pound belly cut in half. One half is just salt, sugar and cure and the other half has is the same plus garlic powder, black pepper, sage, and marjoram. The halves are probably 1.75 inches in the thickest part (there is not much thick fat on them) and they've been curing for 8 days. A lot of folks mention that while the belly is cured by x amount of days (based on their preferred curing time calculation), they like to keep it curing for 12-14 days. So my question is, are the extra days of curing just to be absolutely sure that the belly is cured all the way through, or does the extra time curing do something to the overall flavor? Also, would cold or hot smoking affect whether or not the bacon should stay curing for 14 days even though it's technically cured by 8?

Thanks for any input. We have a ton of rain in the forecast with a couple dry days here and there which is why I'm thinking about getting the bacon smoked soon than later.

Meat contains about 75% water fat contains 10% water. Salt and nitrite penetration follows the moisture during osmosis. Pork belly is sometimes call “streaky bacon” because of the layers of meat and fat. Those fat layers slow down the penetration rate of salt and nitrite slightly. So in my view the standard 1/4” per day plus 2 days is minimum. I try to make my whole process last 14 days. This includes pelicule formation and 10 hours of smoke plus a rest after the smoke then slice. This way I can do all the hands on work on the weekends plus this gives a little extra time for flavor development. You can rush any curing process, but it won’t be as flavorful. Curing is a craft of patients. Good things take time.

 

[Omnivore]

The extra time lows the flavors to even out in the meat. I go the full 14 days on my cures now and I think the flavor develops better with the extra time.

Thank you, Doug!

The additional time makes for a better flavor, a little deeper color and..... allows more time for the salt to condition the fat. Fat has no hemoglobin, so it doesn't actually benefit from the nitrite but the salt has an effect. The fat on 14 day bacon is better than on 7 day bacon.
View attachment 525983

Thank you, that's super helpful - I've never read about that.

Meat contains about 75% water fat contains 10% water. Salt and nitrite penetration follows the moisture during osmosis. Pork belly is sometimes call “streaky bacon” because of the layers of meat and fat. Those fat layers slow down the penetration rate of salt and nitrite slightly. So in my view the standard 1/4” per day plus 2 days is minimum. I try to make my whole process last 14 days. This includes pelicule formation and 10 hours of smoke plus a rest after the smoke then slice. This way I can do all the hands on work on the weekends plus this gives a little extra time for flavor development. You can rush any curing process, but it won’t be as flavorful. Curing is a craft of patients. Good things take time.

Thank you for the explanation! I'm looking forward to getting this smoked but will put the full time in :)

 

[tx smoker]

I remember your last bacon Mariko and how beautifully you sliced it...by hand no less.

The general rule of thumb is 1 day of curing time per half inch of meat. It's always a good (and safe) idea to give a couple extra days though. No question, the longer you let it cure the better the flavors will develop in the meat. There's no set rule of 12 days or 14 days. I typically let mine go 10 days minimum and longer if necessary if I don't have time to smoke it. The plan for me is to get it in the cure on a Tuesday and smoke a week and a half later on a weekend. Hot smoke or cold smoke is great. Either works well and I have done both. Most times I'm running it in the smoker at 165 or so till the fat cap turns a nice wheat color, which is usually around 8 hours on the Rec Tec running low temp / extreme smoke. Some of the most gorgeous bacon I've ever seen was cold smoked though. I believe it was done for 8 or 10 hours the first day, in the fridge overnight uncovered, and that much more time the next day. If hot smoking you need to run really low temps though or the fat will start to melt and it gets gooey and slimy.

Best of luck and keep us posted!!

Robert

 

[Omnivore]

I remember your last bacon Mariko and how beautifully you sliced it...by hand no less.

The general rule of thumb is 1 day of curing time per half inch of meat. It's always a good (and safe) idea to give a couple extra days though. No question, the longer you let it cure the better the flavors will develop in the meat. There's no set rule of 12 days or 14 days. I typically let mine go 10 days minimum and longer if necessary if I don't have time to smoke it. The plan for me is to get it in the cure on a Tuesday and smoke a week and a half later on a weekend. Hot smoke or cold smoke is great. Either works well and I have done both. Most times I'm running it in the smoker at 165 or so till the fat cap turns a nice wheat color, which is usually around 8 hours on the Rec Tec running low temp / extreme smoke. Some of the most gorgeous bacon I've ever seen was cold smoked though. I believe it was done for 8 or 10 hours the first day, in the fridge overnight uncovered, and that much more time the next day. If hot smoking you need to run really low temps though or the fat will start to melt and it gets gooey and slimy.

Best of luck and keep us posted!!

Robert

Thank you, Robert! I might do one piece cold smoked and the other one hot. Just have to see how the weather plays out. I'm still dragging my heels on finding an inexpensive slicer that can do bacon. I better get my big knife sharpened!