Double Smoked Berbere Back Bacon

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disco

Epic Pitmaster
Original poster
OTBS Member
SMF Premier Member
Oct 31, 2012
11,135
5,265
Canadian Rockies
Ok for all my American friends. You call back bacon Canadian bacon Us Canadians know better and call it by its proper name, back bacon.

I started experimenting with Berbere Spice a while ago and had this feeling that it would go well with the salty/sweet taste of back bacon. My brain is warped and just has to act on these ideas.

Here is the spice. Remember, in cooking, looks is important too so I got a fancy container and home made label for my spice mix.


I had a couple of small pork loin chunks in the freezer which were just perfect for experimenting with a new recipe.

I tried one putting the Berbere spice in the cure and the other by sprinkling the Berbere spice on just before smoking.

I mixed my cure mix. Here is my cure mix for 1 kilogram of pork:

3 grams Prague Powder #1

40 ml brown sugar

15 ml kosher salt

For the piece I added the  Berbere spice to the cure, I put 1 ml in the cure mix

For my metrically challenged friends, this is the mix for 1 pound of pork:

0.05 ounce of Prague Powder #1

4 teaspoons brown sugar

1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

If you are adding the Berbere spice to the cure, add 1/8 teaspoon

I weighed each piece and made up the cure mix for each one based on its weight.


I put the pork loin on a plate and rubbed it with the cure mixture.


Then I put the piece in a resealable bag and made sure any cure that didn't stick to the loin was scraped off the plate into the bag.


I repeated the process for the second piece but I did not put Berbere spice in the cure mix.

Both pieces went into the fridge. The thickest part was two inches thick. I cure for 4 days per inch plus 2 days for luck. For 10 days I left it in the fridge, turning and rubbing the cure in every day or so.

After 10 days, I took the loins out of the fridge and soaked them in cold water for an hour, changing the water twice.

I put the loins on a rack and dried them with paper towels.




I let them dry for a couple of hours, occasionally patting it with a paper towel. When the pork was dry and tacky, I sprinkled 2 ml (1/2 teaspoon) of berbere spice on the piece that had not been cured with it. You'll note that She Who Must Be Obeyed made me upgrade my spice container.


I fired up my Amazen Tube Smoker with hickory. I have used the pellet smoker for years but I find the tube smoker just takes less futzing. I put the pork and the smoker in my pellet smoker.


I cold smoked for 4 hours and took the bacon in and refrigerated it overnight.


The next day, I preheated my pellet green to 180 F. I smoked the bacon to an internal temperature of 140 F, about 3 hours.



I put it in the fridge overnight and then sliced it up.

Here is the one that was cured with the Berbere Spice.


Here is the one I dusted with Berbere before smoking.


I fried a couple of slices of each.


The Verdict

Wow! This is the best back bacon I have made by a long stretch. The Berbere spice gives just a warmth as opposed to heat. Even She Who Must Be Obeyed didn't find it too spicy. That being said, there is a complexity of taste that goes incredibly well with the nice smokiness and sweetness of back bacon. 

As for putting the spice in the cure versus putting it on before smoking, I preferred the spice in the cure. It gave a nice even heat that was just there. The bacon it was sprinkled on was terrific but had a harsher heat that comes on after a second. It still isn't overly hot but it does bite a bit more.

This will be made very often.

Disco
 
Great job Disco.

Now I gotta see if I can find that spice.
 
Looks like a must try smoke Disco, nice thread !
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Thanks, Brew.
 
Great looking bacon Disco, but that's only about enough for 1 meal.

I think you better get busy & make some more!

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  Al
 
 
Great looking bacon Disco, but that's only about enough for 1 meal.

I think you better get busy & make some more!

icon14.gif
  Al
Thanks, Al. As I was tasting it, I looked wistfully at the small amount I smoked so I guess you are right!
 
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