I have 12 pounds of pork bellies curing, which should be ready to smoke come Sunday. It's been awhile since I have made bacon, and I put together my cure based on my notes from the first time. I had written down the "basic cure" from Ruhlman's book (my notes say page 39). Of course I recently let a friend use the book, and don't have it back.
My notes had amounts for salt, sugar and cure #1, and my note said it was for 6 lbs of belly (now I think that was referring to how much I cured that first time). So since I was doing 12 lbs this time, I doubled it. That means I have 4 oz of cure #1 (pink salt) in the batch of cure.
Honestly, it seemed like a lot at the time. I have been reading more bacon posts lately, and started to rethink what I did, and looked a bit more online.
I found a post on Ruhlman's blog that has the same cure mix. The batch that he has with 2 oz cure #1 he says he uses an amount of cure (salt, sugar, cure#1) that equals 5 percent of the weight of the belly. For the 12 lbs of belly that would be 9.8 oz. out of a batch of 28 oz of cure, of which 2 oz is cure#1.
Hope I have made this too confusing....bottom line, I have 12 lbs of belly curing in a mix that contains 4 oz of cure #1 (pink salt). Now I am concerned that is to much. Should I soak it real good and go forth, or just pitch all that beautiful belly? I don't want to serve my family anything that is not safe or healthy.
Any thoughts?
Thanks!
My notes had amounts for salt, sugar and cure #1, and my note said it was for 6 lbs of belly (now I think that was referring to how much I cured that first time). So since I was doing 12 lbs this time, I doubled it. That means I have 4 oz of cure #1 (pink salt) in the batch of cure.
Honestly, it seemed like a lot at the time. I have been reading more bacon posts lately, and started to rethink what I did, and looked a bit more online.
I found a post on Ruhlman's blog that has the same cure mix. The batch that he has with 2 oz cure #1 he says he uses an amount of cure (salt, sugar, cure#1) that equals 5 percent of the weight of the belly. For the 12 lbs of belly that would be 9.8 oz. out of a batch of 28 oz of cure, of which 2 oz is cure#1.
Hope I have made this too confusing....bottom line, I have 12 lbs of belly curing in a mix that contains 4 oz of cure #1 (pink salt). Now I am concerned that is to much. Should I soak it real good and go forth, or just pitch all that beautiful belly? I don't want to serve my family anything that is not safe or healthy.
Any thoughts?
Thanks!