Dry cure bacon first time!

[meatloaf]

Hi,

I want to make dry cure bacon, but I want to make sure I get all my steps right because it is my first time!
I am a bit confused… I have nitricure which is 6.25 nitrite. On my package it specifically states that for bacon you use 1.8g/kg…..why does everywhere else use 2.5?

So according to my package … this is my recipe per 1kg:

1000g pork belly
1.8g nitricure
13.2 salt
Eyeball Pepper

Put on rack with drip tray in fridge for 10-14 days (How many days is best?)
Rinse? Do you rinse dry cure, or only if you leave it in a ziplock?
If I rinse it, should i leave it overnight in fridge to develop a pellicle?
Smoke in MEC with no power, just a pellet tube for 6 hours.
Put in fridge overnight, then slice and freeze.

What do you guys think?
Do you guys have any other flavours you would add? I was going to try some rosemary.

Thank you!!

 

[voyager 663rd]

came across this one for dry curing 1kg belly

How to Cure Bacon - Taste of Artisan

There is no secret recipe for the best home-cured bacon. It's all about the meat. Go buy the best, the freshest pork belly, sprinkle some salt and seasonings on it, vacuum seal and refrigerate. Two-three weeks later, you will have the best bacon you've ever had. Bacon curing methods There are...

tasteofartisan.com

 

[SmokinEdge]

Hi,

I want to make dry cure bacon, but I want to make sure I get all my steps right because it is my first time!
I am a bit confused… I have nitricure which is 6.25 nitrite. On my package it specifically states that for bacon you use 1.8g/kg…..why does everywhere else use 2.5?

So according to my package … this is my recipe per 1kg:

1000g pork belly
1.8g nitricure
13.2 salt
Eyeball Pepper

Put on rack with drip tray in fridge for 10-14 days (How many days is best?)
Rinse? Do you rinse dry cure, or only if you leave it in a ziplock?
If I rinse it, should i leave it overnight in fridge to develop a pellicle?
Smoke in MEC with no power, just a pellet tube for 6 hours.
Put in fridge overnight, then slice and freeze.

What do you guys think?
Do you guys have any other flavours you would add? I was going to try some rosemary.

Thank you!!

The reason that they list for bacon 1.8g/Kg instead of 2.5g/Kg is because of USDA REGULATIONS.
Whole muscle cure meats can actually go in at 3g/Kg but bacon because it’s fried needs to be lower at 120ppm nitrite which is the reason for the reduction in application. Normally we apply 2.5g/Kg which will net 156ppm nitrite and is a standard cure ratio but if observing lower nitrite numbers then you apply less. We really don’t follow that rule because we fall under “dry cured “ which is 2.5g/Kg to 3gKg cure #1

Otherwise your recipe looks great and you should carry on as you are. Also no rinse required after cure. 10 days is minimum for flavor but 12-14 days is my preference. It won’t get more salty with time so 21 days is ok too. Fridge temps just need to be at or below 40F in the 30’s is best practice.

 

[Florida Chris]

I keyed in on this part. I don't have enough experience so I'll defer to Guru SmokinEdge for the answer.

Shouldn't dry brine be bagged rather than naked on a rack?? Either Zip Lock or vac sealed?

Put on rack with drip tray in fridge for 10-14 days

 

[SmokinEdge]

Shouldn't dry brine be bagged rather than naked on a rack?? Either Zip Lock or vac sealed?

Nope, not necessarily

https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/true-dry-cured-bacon.325639/

 

[saskelec]

Made a batch of dry brine bacon following SmokinEdge recipe. Let it dry brine for 21 days. Turned out awesome. One problem is the meat reacted with the racks. what type of racks do you guys use? I used the rack from my Cookshack smoker and the meat reacted with the rack and is green where they touched and about a 1/2" deep in places. is there somewhere to purchase plastic rack or some non reactive racks?

 

[DougE]

Shouldn't dry brine be bagged rather than naked on a rack?? Either Zip Lock or vac sealed?

Nope. It can also be done on an open rack in the fridge. I usually bag mine, but the open rack way is said to concentrate flavors more because the cured slab(s) lose more moisture during the curing process.

There is nothing wrong with either method. It's more a matter of personal preference.

 

[SmokinEdge]

Made a batch of dry brine bacon following SmokinEdge recipe. Let it dry brine for 21 days. Turned out awesome. One problem is the meat reacted with the racks. what type of racks do you guys use? I used the rack from my Cookshack smoker and the meat reacted with the rack and is green where they touched and about a 1/2" deep in places. is there somewhere to purchase plastic rack or some non reactive racks?

New coated racks work fine too, but once they have been banged around and ran through the dishwasher a few times they get chips in the coating and cause color spots on the meat, any coated rack is same even chrome plated. So I just use pure stainless steel racks with no issues. You could probably use those silicone mats that are perforated like used in dehydrating and lay it over your existing wire rack as well.

 

[meatloaf]

Followed recipe exactly. 12 days in fridge with temp around 30-40f the whole time.
Is this salt or mold? Looks like mold to me.
What do I do? Is it all garbage now?

 

[BigW.]

Followed recipe exactly. 12 days in fridge with temp around 30-40f the whole time.
Is this salt or mold? Looks like mold to me.
What do I do? Is it all garbage now?

Edit: I see the recipe above. I also see you went with the rosemary. Why does your fridge temp vary so much?

 

[Astralogics]

I'd post the recipe for others to look at.

Assuming he followed his recipe in the first post, it looks good.

Does it have an off smell? And how are you getting your fridge temps?

 

[SmokinEdge]

Followed recipe exactly. 12 days in fridge with temp around 30-40f the whole time.
Is this salt or mold? Looks like mold to me.
What do I do? Is it all garbage now?
View attachment 719136View attachment 719137

I’m guessing that is just one side of the bacon? Also guessing the rest of the slab doesn’t look like that?

The white mold is fine and can be wiped off with vinegar and a cloth. However it does look like a patch of black mold? Is that correct?

 

[meatloaf]

Edit: I see the recipe above. I also see you went with the rosemary. Why does your fridge temp vary so much?

it was 34f for most of the two weeks then I filled it with a bunch of stuff the last 2 days so the temp raised to 40f.

 

[meatloaf]

Assuming he followed his recipe in the first post, it looks good.

Does it have an off smell? And how are you getting your fridge temps?

it doesnt have any smell. does black mold smell? i put everything in one of the drawers in the fridge and I keep a digital thermometer in there with them.

 

[meatloaf]

I’m guessing that is just one side of the bacon? Also guessing the rest of the slab doesn’t look like that?

The white mold is fine and can be wiped off with vinegar and a cloth. However it does look like a patch of black mold? Is that correct?

yeah like it is kind of grey looking.

 

[meatloaf]

Ok so I put it in the smoker with the rest of the bellies this morning because another person told me it was just partially uncured.......but now that I took it out and cut it, it is definitely cured on the inside. .....if it was black mold would it still be black after cooking?

I should have scraped it off to check and kept everything in that bag separate...... anyway I am assuming it was a grey mold.... Is that a precursor to black mold? Should I just toss it? .......the rest of the bellies smoked in the same chamber should be fine?

 

[SmokinEdge]

Did you wipe off the mold with a vinegar first before smoking? Worst case you may just need to trim anything that looks wrong, but everything else should be fine.

 

[meatloaf]

Did you wipe off the mold with a vinegar first before smoking? Worst case you may just need to trim anything that looks wrong, but everything else should be fine.

nope i did not. i wasnt thinking and just threw it in the smoker..... so you dont think that it is black mold? And i should be able to just trim the outside and eat it after cooking?

 

[SmokinEdge]

nope i did not. i wasnt thinking and just threw it in the smoker..... so you dont think that it is black mold? And i should be able to just trim the outside and eat it after cooking?

It’s whole muscle not sausage, so yes like I mentioned earlier, trim anything that doesn’t look right. You really don’t need to waste a lot. Just the surface 1/4” or so usually.

You must have some funk growing in your fridge. Under refrigeration we rarely see this in this time frame with cure meats. But just clean it up and enjoy. Next time vinegar wipe off any mold.

 

[Astralogics]

it doesnt have any smell. does black mold smell? i put everything in one of the drawers in the fridge and I keep a digital thermometer in there with them.

Sorry, I forgot to respond. I'm sure you wouldn't take an actual whiff of it lol, but I guess you could describe it as earthy or musty.


Anyway, I'd trust Eric on this. White, surface mold is common when doing a true dry cure, but as he said, it's rare for this to happen under properly held fridge temps. Could there be some condensation in those drawers?

Perhaps someone like indaswamp could offer you better insight?