How does one get crispy bacon

[albinva]

I have cured and smoked pork belly in an effort to make bacon on 2 separate occasions. The flavor has been fine both times but when I cook it, I cannot get a crispy finish. I like the chew when I eat it plain, but not so much when I make a BLT. One bite pulls the whole strip into my mouth :).

Any suggestions?

Al

 

[atomicsmoke]

Is the bacon dry or wet cured? Cold or hot smoked?

 

[albinva]

I cure with sugar, salt and pink salt rubbed into slab. Place in bag and in the frig for a week, turning over each day. I do not get much liquid from this process. After removing from frig, I rinse very well and place on pellet grill at temps from 130 to 180, with some peak temps at 200. I watch closely to keep temps at 160 to 180.

Thanks

 

[Bearcarver]

I cure with sugar, salt and pink salt rubbed into slab. Place in bag and in the frig for a week, turning over each day. I do not get much liquid from this process. After removing from frig, I rinse very well and place on pellet grill at temps from 130 to 180, with some peak temps at 200. I watch closely to keep temps at 160 to 180.

Thanks

Try Smoking between 100° and 130°.
Smoking above 140° will usually Render some fat.
Also Slice thinner.
Bacon (Extra Smoky)

Bear

 

[idahopz]

I always bake my bacon on parchment paper on a cookie sheet - the even temperatures in the oven always results in even crisping.

 

[atomicsmoke]

Or try cold smoking it.

 

[PerazziMx14]

Make cold smoked jowl bacon. The texture is very brittle and crumbly when chewed. It is perfect for in sandwiched as it shears nicely when you bite through the sandwich.

For the record I only cold smoke so I do not know how the texture would be if hot smoked.

 

[albinva]

Try Smoking between 100° and 130°.
Smoking above 140° will usually Render some fat.
Also Slice thinner.
Bacon (Extra Smoky)

Bear

Thanks for the temp range. One more question. Do you take internal temp of slab to a certain temp or smoke at 130 for a certain amount of time? I took my previous slabs to 150 internal.

I do not have a cold smoke generator. What is the best method for cold smoking and how long is the process?

Thanks all for the comments.

Al

 

[PerazziMx14]

Look at the Amazing pellet tray or tube. They are well...Amazing. Great smoke for long durations. My tray will produce nice smoke for 10 to 12 hours using 1/2 lb of pellets.

I cold smoke in 10 hour sessions then rest in fridge. I do a minimum of 4 sessions and have done 7. So 40 hours of smoke is the minimum and there is no maximum.

 

[SmokinAl]

I cold smoke mine for 10-12 hours & that's plenty of smoke flavor for me.
2 week cure, 4 day uncovered in fridge on drying rack, 10-12 hour cold smoke, smoker temp under 90 degrees.
Then 4 more days uncovered on drying rack in fridge. Then 2-3 hours in the freezer & slice it up on a meat slicer.
Al

 

[atomicsmoke]

Amzn gadgets are the tool of choice for cold smokes around here.

As for smoke times...you can see large differences even on this thread. Only you know what you like. One man's "smoky taste" is another man's "ashtray taste". You have to experiment.

 

[PerazziMx14]

Amzn gadgets are the tool of choice for cold smokes around here.

As for smoke times...you can see large differences even on this thread. Only you know what you like. One man's "smoky taste" is another man's "ashtray taste". You have to experiment.

Its also dependent on woods used. Some like apple have a mild taste profile while others like mesquite and hickory are much more pronounced.

 

[atomicsmoke]

Its also dependent on woods used. Some like apple have a mild taste profile while others like mesquite and hickory are much more pronounced.

Correct.

 

[gmc2003]

I have cured and smoked pork belly in an effort to make bacon on 2 separate occasions. The flavor has been fine both times but when I cook it, I cannot get a crispy finish. I like the chew when I eat it plain, but not so much when I make a BLT. One bite pulls the whole strip into my mouth :).

Any suggestions?

Al

Weather permitting I like to cook my bacon(store bought) on my Weber Kettle. I use an indirect setup with a catch pan under the bacon. Comes out great every time.

Chris

 

[piker]

I dry cure a pork belly in the frig for 7 to 10 days and then into my o.b.s until I have an I.t. Of 135f. It is a nice brown colour after about 4 to 6. HRs. That is all the smoke I like. I leave in the frig overnight and then slice and freeze. It has always turned out great as my friends will attest to. I have probably done about 125 bellies over the years and still cannot get ahead. I have never had a problem in getting it crispy. Piker

 

[bob-whie]

I have cured and smoked pork belly in an effort to make bacon on 2 separate occasions. The flavor has been fine both times but when I cook it, I cannot get a crispy finish. I like the chew when I eat it plain, but not so much when I make a BLT. One bite pulls the whole strip into my mouth :).
Any suggestions? Al

Marketplace bacon generally will fry up crispy, even the thick cut.
What's the common denominator in store bought bacon -- it's all wet injected tumble cured with water added. This is not an attack on dry curing, but an attempt to explore the possibility that the inclusion of water may be a factor regarding crispness, since dry curing tends to draw moisture out of the meat block -- although frankly I have no evidence to make any conclusion.

Just finished 32 pounds of wet tumble cured bacon. The bacon is great looking, but does have a "chew" no matter how it's cooked, whether skillet fried, oven baked or fried in a commercial clamshell fryer.
This 32 pounds came from one three year old animal, it would be reasonable to attribute the chew to the age of the hog, but....
looking forward to the discussion.

 

[indaswamp]

How do you "wet tumble" cure bacon at home?

 

[atomicsmoke]

Marketplace bacon generally will fry up crispy, even the thick cut.
What's the common denominator in store bought bacon -- it's all wet injected tumble cured with water added. This is not an attack on dry curing, but an attempt to explore the possibility that the inclusion of water may be a factor regarding crispness, since dry curing tends to draw moisture out of the meat block -- although frankly I have no evidence to make any conclusion.

Just finished 32 pounds of wet tumble cured bacon. The bacon is great looking, but does have a "chew" no matter how it's cooked, whether skillet fried, oven baked or fried in a commercial clamshell fryer.
This 32 pounds came from one three year old animal, it would be reasonable to attribute the chew to the age of the hog, but....
looking forward to the discussion.

32lbs of bacon from one pig? Must have been a monster

 

[bob-whie]

How do you "wet tumble" cure bacon at home?

Hollymatic HVT 100 tumbler like this one.
Pickup up at auction ridiculously cheap.

 

[bob-whie]

32lbs of bacon from one pig? Must have been a monster

She was a unbred gilt running with the sows that somehow got missed during culling, probably near 500# live weight.
280# sausage minus the bacon and spareribs. Our hogs are on the meaty side, there was just enough fat to make the sausage right, any less and it would been dry..