Second attempt at curing bacon

[Pit pixie]

Ok so I am going to pick up my belly pork for my second attempt at curing bacon.
These are the flavors I have but I am unsure what to use I like the sweetness in bacon, but don't know where to start

 

[BigW.]

I'd do a very basic bacon to start. If you want to increase the sugar %, go for it. I believe this calculator was suggested in your other thread. It works.

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[Brokenhandle]

I agree with B BigW. Start with cure 1, salt and sugar...get that down then move onto more seasonings if you want. Possibly cut one belly in half or get 2, you could try different amounts of salt and sugar as long as you don't go below 1.5 % salt. That way you can get your salt and sweetness levels you prefer.

Ryan

 

[SmokinEdge]

I agree with a good base run. To me the first thing is to nail down salt so that no soaking is required. Then once that is established you can play with sugar, in many forms and combinations, until you are happy. I will caution that the higher the sugar the more burning you will have when pan frying. There needs to be a balance there.
I like a more savor flavor with a mild back hint of sugar or sweet, so I use 1.5% salt, .25% cure #1 and .75% sugar In a dry rub.

I would suggest that you cut up your belly pieces and play with sugars. Make one piece with 1.5% salt, .25% cure#1 and 1% sugar. The other the same but increase sugar to 2%. This will give you a base line to experience Of sugar sweetness.

 

[DRKsmoking]

Above have you covered,
I just attached myself to so how it comes out with what you decide , because it is bacon .

David

 

[Pit pixie]

On the Web site mentioned for the measurements, why does the cure measurement not change or allow you to change it?

 

[DRKsmoking]

Without looking it up right now, it will only change when you change the weight of your meat. It has to stay constant with the weight of your meat for safety

Edit
Sorry I said this wrong it should always be .25% the amount you actually add to the mix changes not the %, hope I did not confuse you.

David

 

[Pit pixie]

Oh ok thank you.

 

[SmokinEdge]

On the Web site mentioned for the measurements, why does the cure measurement not change or allow you to change it?

Curing nitrite can be applied in a range of Parts Per Million. 200ppm being the upper maximum. However bacon because it’s fried, typically, has different limits. When a cure solution is pumped into belly, like commercial bacon is made, the maximum in going nitrite is 120ppm. When dry curing with a rub, the maximum in going nitrite is 156ppm.

When we apply cure #1 at .25% to meat weight we are applying 156ppm nitrite. This is the safe level and is within the guidelines of the USDA for dry rub curing.

 

[BobP325]

Ok so I am going to pick up my belly pork for my second attempt at curing bacon.
These are the flavors I have but I am unsure what to use I like the sweetness in bacon, but don't know where to start
View attachment 641934

I've done this 2x, as recently as 2 weeks ago and the results were excellent.
3lbs Raw Pork Belly (skin Removed)
4 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
4 ½ teaspoons ground black pepper
3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
½ cup of maple syrup
¾ cup distilled water and lastly
½ teaspoon of Prague Powder #1

THE METHOD: In a mixing bowl (or directly into ziplock bag) add kosher salt, ground black pepper, dark brown sugar, maple syrup, distilled water and lastly ½ teaspoon of Prague Powder #1. Once everything has been well mixed pour it into a 1 gallon zip lock bag then add the pork belly.
Once everything is in the bag squeeze out the air as much as possible while coating the pork belly all over. Lastly, place the bag into a tray just in case there are any leaks in the bag and place it in the fridge for 3 to 5 days. I prefer 7 days.
Because the belly will release liquid as it sits in its brine, it will be important to flip the bag ever day that it’s in the fridge to help redistribute the juices and spices.
After 4 days in the fridge and a few flips this pork belly is fully cured and ready to prep for the smoke.
The next step is to rinse off the surface to remove any large deposits of salt. Dab it dry (you can sprinkle additional pepper onto the top for pepper bacon) and refrigerate uncovered, on a grill, overnight to develop a “pellicle”.
With that our pork belly is ready to be smoked set up for cooking at 225F. My preference is corn cob granules and cherry chips for smoking. Attach a digital thermometer into the thickest part of the pork belly so that you monitor the temp as it cooks.
Close the lid/door until the smoker has reached 225F then place the pork belly onto the grill rack in the middle position. Begin smoking at 225F. Smoke until the bacon internal temperature of 150F, about 2+ hours.

Remove the bacon and place it in the fridge for 2 hours or longer to cool for help with slicing. It's ready to fry up for the feast or properly store.

 

[DougE]

The 6.25% is just telling you that the calculator is based on curing salt containing 6.25% sodium nitrite. (Cure#1, Prague powder#1, Instacure#1, etc.)

The 156ppm is calculating the cure at 0.25% which is a good number as it allows a little wiggle room either direction without worrying about not having enough cure, or having an unsafe level of cure.

 

[indaswamp]

FYI, the ball park of nitrite for control of botulism is 80-140ppm....according to Fidel Toldra-one of the upmost authorities on the meat science of dry cured meats.

 

[Pit pixie]

View attachment 641974

The 6.25% is just telling you that the calculator is based on curing salt containing 6.25% sodium nitrite. (Cure#1, Prague powder#1, Instacure#1, etc.)

The 156ppm is calculating the cure at 0.25% which is a good number as it allows a little wiggle room either direction without worrying about not having enough cure, or having an unsafe level of cure.

I didnt understand the ppm at all so thank you for explaining this to me and the cure % is what was worrying g as it didn't change either but now I understand why.
Thank you so much.
I have not started it yet, I was going to do this tomorrow I am going to split my meat down as I have 2.226kg so I am going to do two different ones.
One at 1.5 % salt and 2% sugar a d not sure what to do the second one at, any suggestions?

 

[DougE]

I do mine at :
0.25% cure#1
1.5% salt
0.75% sugar

Another thing to be aware of with the diggingdog calc is that it's giving you total salt (cure#1+additional salt). If you were to enter 1.5% as your salt value, you will end up with 1.25% salt +0.25% cure#1=1.5% total salt. To get the same salt percentage I use, you would enter 1.75% as the salt value to get my 1.5% salt+0.25% cure. I just do my calculations myself since it only takes a couple minutes.

Some buckboard bacon I smoked yesterday.

 

[indaswamp]

One at 1.5 % salt and 2% sugar a d not sure what to do the second one at, any suggestions?

I would suggest 1% sugar. I would also suggest passing the sugar through a coffee grinder so that it is very fine.

 

[Brokenhandle]

I would suggest 1% sugar. I would also suggest passing the sugar through a coffee grinder so that it is very fine.

What does that do? Haven't heard that before. Help penetrate more?

Ryan

 

[indaswamp]

What does that do? Haven't heard that before. Help penetrate more?

Ryan

More even distribution, dissolves faster....

 

[mneeley490]

There is another way to safely cure bacon, that is by using a wet brine. This is the one I recommend to all newbies to start with, until they feel comfortable enough to dry cure. This also has the advantage of being super easy and foolproof. It was presented here by Pops, a dear, recently departed senior member of the forums.
I used it for the first few years I made bacon, and this fool couldn't make it fail.
(Note: this recipe calls for 1 cup of non-iodized table salt, per gallon of water. I find that a little too salty for my tastes, so I used a little over 1/2 cup.)

Pop's Brine

 

[zwiller]

Pop's low salt is perfect for those new to curing. HIGHLY recommended. Keeps the math out until you want to learn more. Taste is old school like the small country producers here and a little on the sweet side.

 

[tbern]

thanks for bringing up "pops" method, appreciate it!!