I have the smoker to do this but lack some knowledge. Reading these posts has some good info but you seem to be experts here. What is Blooming the meat? Where can I get more info on the process?
Thanks\
Pete
[USA] Makin' Bacon
OK , I would love to do this
Whether the weather be fine
Or whether the weather be not
Whether the weather be cold
Or whether the weather be hot
We'll BBQ in all the weather
Whatever the weather
Whether we like it or not. - Old saying
Or whether the weather be not
Whether the weather be cold
Or whether the weather be hot
We'll BBQ in all the weather
Whatever the weather
Whether we like it or not. - Old saying
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Chuckwagon
- Veteran
- Posts: 4494
- Joined: Tue Apr 06, 2010 04:51
- Location: Rocky Mountains
Hi Pete,
You asked:
You also wrote:
We're just plain, ordinary folks, helpin' other folks!
Then you asked:
If you buy just one book for sausage making, be sure to get, "Home Production Of Quality Meats And Sausages"... by Stan and Adam Marianski. You can find it at Bookmagic.com
Good luck Pete. And write in any time you have a question. There are no silly questions here!
Please try my recipe for honey-rubbed bacon too.
You cannot find it in any store and once you make it, you`ll never go back to the store-bought variety again. You`ll also save a ton of money if you buy bacon regularly at the supermarket. The markup on this stuff is incredible. My homemade, honey-rubbed, ranch-style, hickory-smoked recipe is called, "Bad Bob`s Bacon" and here`s a link to click on: http://wedlinydomowe.pl/en/viewtopic.ph ... c&start=15
Best Wishes,
Chuckwagon
You asked:
"Blooming" is simply allowing the meat to become colored. If you heat it slowly, it will develop a "pellicle" or light skin. The heat will increase the oxidation rate and gradually color the meat with a nice dark red color. If you just allow a meat product to dry, it will eventually become darker in color with a pellicle. When it is heated and smoked - wow, it's magic! In very short time the meat will develop a deep mahogany hue. We say that it has "bloomed". It is partially due to smoke deposit on the casing in conjunction with some oxidation.What is Blooming the meat?
You also wrote:
Uh... Pete.... What is an expert?you seem to be experts here
We're just plain, ordinary folks, helpin' other folks! Then you asked:
Start by clicking on this link: http://www.wedlinydomowe.com/hams-other-meats/dryWhere can I get more info on the process?
If you buy just one book for sausage making, be sure to get, "Home Production Of Quality Meats And Sausages"... by Stan and Adam Marianski. You can find it at Bookmagic.com
Good luck Pete. And write in any time you have a question. There are no silly questions here!
Please try my recipe for honey-rubbed bacon too.
You cannot find it in any store and once you make it, you`ll never go back to the store-bought variety again. You`ll also save a ton of money if you buy bacon regularly at the supermarket. The markup on this stuff is incredible. My homemade, honey-rubbed, ranch-style, hickory-smoked recipe is called, "Bad Bob`s Bacon" and here`s a link to click on: http://wedlinydomowe.pl/en/viewtopic.ph ... c&start=15Best Wishes,
Chuckwagon
Last edited by Chuckwagon on Sat Feb 04, 2012 00:06, edited 1 time in total.
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it probably needs more time on the grill! 
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steelchef
- Passionate
- Posts: 282
- Joined: Mon Nov 15, 2010 02:06
- Location: Fort St John, British Columbia
Re: OK , I would love to do this
Hey petesque! Chuckwagon is being modest. There are only a couple of "experts" on this panel and he is clearly the 'head expert,' as defined:petesque wrote:you seem to be experts here.
World English Dictionary
expert
n., v. ˈex spurt; adj. [n., v. ex-spurt; adj. ex-spurt, ex-spurt] -noun
1.
Ex; a "has been."
2.
Spurt; a "drip under pressure."
Everything in excess! To enjoy the flavor of life, take big bites. Moderation is for monks.
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Chuckwagon
- Veteran
- Posts: 4494
- Joined: Tue Apr 06, 2010 04:51
- Location: Rocky Mountains
Two quick bacon questions...one on honey rubbin' and the other on overhaulin'...
Reading Chuckwagon's Sons of Bees bacon it's recommended to flip the bellies every two days and if an insufficient brine has developed to add up to 2 qts of water. My problem is that I've got three half-bellies in the same tub so that two bellies will be partially submergued and one will be above the brine. Rotating them top bottom while flipping means that they'll spend 2/3 of the recommended time in the brine. I'm concerned about over brining rather than under brining.
Second question, I initially decided to go the straight and narrow with the bellies and they're only soaking in salt, sugar and cure but now I'm thinking I want one of the bellies to be maple glazed. During the post-cure/pre-smoke hangtime for pellicle formation do you think I can brush on some warmed honey for a light glazing? I'm thinking about adding a little bourbon to the mix so it'll be apple-hickory-honey-bourbon bacon. I noticed someone else did it post smoking. Thoughts?
Reading Chuckwagon's Sons of Bees bacon it's recommended to flip the bellies every two days and if an insufficient brine has developed to add up to 2 qts of water. My problem is that I've got three half-bellies in the same tub so that two bellies will be partially submergued and one will be above the brine. Rotating them top bottom while flipping means that they'll spend 2/3 of the recommended time in the brine. I'm concerned about over brining rather than under brining.
Second question, I initially decided to go the straight and narrow with the bellies and they're only soaking in salt, sugar and cure but now I'm thinking I want one of the bellies to be maple glazed. During the post-cure/pre-smoke hangtime for pellicle formation do you think I can brush on some warmed honey for a light glazing? I'm thinking about adding a little bourbon to the mix so it'll be apple-hickory-honey-bourbon bacon. I noticed someone else did it post smoking. Thoughts?
So I did my overhaul tonight and the pancetta has given off very little liquid (essentially nil):
The bacon has about 1/2" of liquid. I rotated the bellies counter-clockwise and flipped them. I can add the 2 qts as prescribed by some recipes but it won't get me up to the upper belly. Should I move belly #3 it into it's own container and if so do I need to add additional cure? Also, some recipes say to re-but the bellies but there's no added salt for the most part as I used the dredge method, not sure if there should be more salt/sugar/cure.....
The bacon has about 1/2" of liquid. I rotated the bellies counter-clockwise and flipped them. I can add the 2 qts as prescribed by some recipes but it won't get me up to the upper belly. Should I move belly #3 it into it's own container and if so do I need to add additional cure? Also, some recipes say to re-but the bellies but there's no added salt for the most part as I used the dredge method, not sure if there should be more salt/sugar/cure.....
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Chuckwagon
- Veteran
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- Joined: Tue Apr 06, 2010 04:51
- Location: Rocky Mountains
Hi Jer,
First of all, it looks fine. Yes, as you have very little exudate go ahead and place each slab in its own lug and keep them covered. Sometimes there is a terrific amount of liquid extracted and other times, it seems like very little is removed. (I think I could have put out a forest fire with all the liquid I got out of my last ham.) It is very important to have "some" exudates and it should not be removed. It does not have to be completely submerged because osmosis will take up the liquid with salt and cure in it. If there is very little, then add a little water to help disperse the cure and salt. The salt is actually traveling in AND out of the cells in the meat. Some is deposited along the cell walls and will remain there.
Jer, if you`d like, you could temporarily place all three slabs into one container and add two quarts of water to them, rinsing them. After fifteen minutes, rotate the bottom slab to the top. Do this once more in another fifteen minutes and the solution should be pretty much equalized. Next put the slabs into their own lugs and divide the liquid equally poured over them. Don`t be tempted to modify the time or the amount of cure and salt. They will turn out just fine, believe me.
As far as the "glaze" goes, it certainly may be done but it is a messy, sticky, process that leaves everything around you being sticky... your glasses, your telephone, your refrigerator handle, and worse of all... possibly your mustache!
Most often, the honey residue is rinsed off at the end of curing so that the meat may be handled - long after much of it has been absorbed into the meat.
Okay pal, keep us aware of your progress and let us know how you`re doing.
Best Wishes,
Chuckwagon
First of all, it looks fine. Yes, as you have very little exudate go ahead and place each slab in its own lug and keep them covered. Sometimes there is a terrific amount of liquid extracted and other times, it seems like very little is removed. (I think I could have put out a forest fire with all the liquid I got out of my last ham.) It is very important to have "some" exudates and it should not be removed. It does not have to be completely submerged because osmosis will take up the liquid with salt and cure in it. If there is very little, then add a little water to help disperse the cure and salt. The salt is actually traveling in AND out of the cells in the meat. Some is deposited along the cell walls and will remain there.
Jer, if you`d like, you could temporarily place all three slabs into one container and add two quarts of water to them, rinsing them. After fifteen minutes, rotate the bottom slab to the top. Do this once more in another fifteen minutes and the solution should be pretty much equalized. Next put the slabs into their own lugs and divide the liquid equally poured over them. Don`t be tempted to modify the time or the amount of cure and salt. They will turn out just fine, believe me.
As far as the "glaze" goes, it certainly may be done but it is a messy, sticky, process that leaves everything around you being sticky... your glasses, your telephone, your refrigerator handle, and worse of all... possibly your mustache!
Most often, the honey residue is rinsed off at the end of curing so that the meat may be handled - long after much of it has been absorbed into the meat.
Okay pal, keep us aware of your progress and let us know how you`re doing.
Best Wishes,
Chuckwagon
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it probably needs more time on the grill!
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huckelberry
- User
- Posts: 97
- Joined: Tue Sep 25, 2012 18:37
- Location: Arkansas
Bacon or Panchetta
So I finaly made it home and decided I wanted to make C.W's honey maple rubbed bacon. I went to my local butcher and asked for a couple of pork bellies and was informed he would have no trouble ordering them for me and that they only come two to a pack.
When I went to pick up my bellies it turned out that they sent two cryo packs... Four bellies insted of two, so they offered me another twenty cents off per pound making it $2.40 a Lb. if I would take them all. Me being who I am I couldn't pass up a deal ( Hope it's really a deal
) so I took all four.
Now... what to do with the extra two bellies?
I got it!
How about panchetta? who doesn't love panchetta?
So here are some photos of my progress. I hope this works I've never tried to post photos.
Dividing the bellies.
Everything measured and waiting to be mixed and rubbed.
Getting the rubdown.
Now for a cool nap.
So I've got all this pork, what to do? Why not panchetta. Never made it but what the heck.
Here it goes. I used the recipie from the CHOW website here http://www.chow.com/recipes/10699-chow-pancetta
only change was to add fennel as in the recipe on wedliny called for. Just because it sounded right. No red or white pepper either.
Squared and ready to make the panchetta.
Ready to mix and rub.
After the rubdown and in to the fridge.
Well I still have ten pounds of pork left and I'm out of maple syurp so I figure I will experiment. I'm using C.W's honey maple bacon recipe but in lieu of maple I'm going to use some molasses and keep my fingers crossed. I like molasses but only used half as much as the maple syurp for fear of over powering the bacon. Anyway here is a shot of it.
Really hope I didn't mess up with the molasses
When I went to pick up my bellies it turned out that they sent two cryo packs... Four bellies insted of two, so they offered me another twenty cents off per pound making it $2.40 a Lb. if I would take them all. Me being who I am I couldn't pass up a deal ( Hope it's really a deal
) so I took all four.Now... what to do with the extra two bellies?
I got it!
How about panchetta? who doesn't love panchetta?
So here are some photos of my progress. I hope this works I've never tried to post photos.
Dividing the bellies.
Everything measured and waiting to be mixed and rubbed.
Getting the rubdown.
Now for a cool nap.
So I've got all this pork, what to do? Why not panchetta. Never made it but what the heck.
Here it goes. I used the recipie from the CHOW website here http://www.chow.com/recipes/10699-chow-pancetta
only change was to add fennel as in the recipe on wedliny called for. Just because it sounded right. No red or white pepper either.
Squared and ready to make the panchetta.
Ready to mix and rub.
After the rubdown and in to the fridge.
Well I still have ten pounds of pork left and I'm out of maple syurp so I figure I will experiment. I'm using C.W's honey maple bacon recipe but in lieu of maple I'm going to use some molasses and keep my fingers crossed. I like molasses but only used half as much as the maple syurp for fear of over powering the bacon. Anyway here is a shot of it.
Really hope I didn't mess up with the molasses
Don't take life to seriously.
You're not getting out of it alive!
You're not getting out of it alive!
