Our second attempt was a maple cure...wanted to try a sweet maply bacon....
Trimmed up ready for cure.
The cure ingredients.
Cure rubbed into slab.
Waited 8 days and slabs are rinsed, soaked, and hanging in the smoker waiting for smoke.
We did a cold smoke for approximately 30 hours. The temps outside never got above freezing and I worried about them actually freezing! I waited for the bacons to get a good color change. I smoked over maple for a nice light, sweet smoke.
Out of the smoker.
Just off the slicer, went with a thicker slice this time.
Finally got the sealer working and got the bacon sealed up...
The bacon had a nice sweet flavor to it, for me, not salty enough. For my samplings, people who weren't big salt fans loved this bacon, to me, it was more pork tasting than bacon tasting to me. Also, I went a little too think on the bacon. You had to cook this long and low so it wouldn't burn the edges before the bacon was done. Actually the easiest way to cook this was in the oven under the broiler.
Overall, very happy with the bacon, just could have been a little more salty and a little thinner.
Trimmed up ready for cure.
The cure ingredients.
Cure rubbed into slab.
Waited 8 days and slabs are rinsed, soaked, and hanging in the smoker waiting for smoke.
We did a cold smoke for approximately 30 hours. The temps outside never got above freezing and I worried about them actually freezing! I waited for the bacons to get a good color change. I smoked over maple for a nice light, sweet smoke.
Out of the smoker.
Just off the slicer, went with a thicker slice this time.
Finally got the sealer working and got the bacon sealed up...
The bacon had a nice sweet flavor to it, for me, not salty enough. For my samplings, people who weren't big salt fans loved this bacon, to me, it was more pork tasting than bacon tasting to me. Also, I went a little too think on the bacon. You had to cook this long and low so it wouldn't burn the edges before the bacon was done. Actually the easiest way to cook this was in the oven under the broiler.
Overall, very happy with the bacon, just could have been a little more salty and a little thinner.
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