[USA] Makin' Bacon
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- User
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- Joined: Tue Sep 25, 2012 18:37
- Location: Arkansas
Bacon or Panchetta
If only I could sell it for what they whant in the store I could retire and just make lots of panchetta. Who needs gold? LOL
Don't take life to seriously.
You're not getting out of it alive!
You're not getting out of it alive!
Hanging bacon to dry
About the first of May I set two slabs of bacon to cure in my usual salt, cure#1, sugar and molassas dry cure and on the 19th I hung it to dry in anticipation of smoking it. Today I have finally the time to stay around and tend the smoker fire. The hickory is making smoke and I expect this to be drier and to keep better than some that is more naturally wetter. pictures follow tonight.
Ross- tightwad home cook
The fire went out about 11 oclock last night so i left the bacon haqnging until this morning.
The outside looked pretty good so I cut a slab in half. And fried a couple of thick slices. Three weeks to allow a dry cure to penetrate and settle and four days hanging to dry and twelve hours of hickory smoke worked some very fine magic. The taste is superb.
The outside looked pretty good so I cut a slab in half. And fried a couple of thick slices. Three weeks to allow a dry cure to penetrate and settle and four days hanging to dry and twelve hours of hickory smoke worked some very fine magic. The taste is superb.
Ross- tightwad home cook
Well, I gotta get into the act, too.
I scored some pork bellies today for $1.48 a pound, too good to pass up. This will be my first try, so I didn't buy the whole cryovac package, just 3.5 lbs. (That way, I can pay way more, next time.) I loaded the "Sons of Bees" bacon brining instructions into my spreadsheet and scaled the thing down from 25 lbs. to 3.5 lbs. Here is the pork with some of the ingredients:
That's piloncillo (crude sugar) on the left, instead of dark brown sugar. There's a local meat market's brand of cure #1 in the center, and some local wildflower honey on the right.
I put the pork belly into a freezer bag, measured in all the ingredients, and vacuum sealed it. I then discovered that you can't manipulate the thing while under vacuum, so I cut the seal and did some massaging to distribute the rub/brine/goo/whatchamacallit. Here it is, sealed again, ready for a nice rest in the refrigerator under a watchful eye. It will get turned and massaged daily.
If you use the rule of thumb for how long to brine, such a small package should have been ready last week. No, actually, 3-1/2 days from now. I think it needs more than that, though, so I'll maybe go nine or ten days of the "up to 12" recommended.
Haven't decided what smoke to use yet. I have a supply of various pellets on hand for my Amazin' generator, so an overnight smoke with the recommended hickory, or maybe apple, will be in order.
This should be an interesting batch. Pork bellies, using this recipe, generate an extra volume of brine. Most of the brining calculations assume a 10% uptake, but if it gives off brine, what then?
The real answer is that more of the moisture than we normally count on is probably at play, here. It should be interesting.
...theories, anyone? The spreadsheet assumes a total volume of whatever you mix up, plus 10% to 12% added by the packer, and an ability to absorb 10% - 12% of the resulting liquid. It may be that 20% or so is a more realistic amount. After all, meat is made up of 75% or so water, but it's in different forms and behind different cell walls and such. ...or not. That 10% figure is probably between cells, rather than inside 'em.
"Inquiring minds want to know." Most interesting answer wins a prize. (2nd most interesting wins two prizes, so watch out!)
I scored some pork bellies today for $1.48 a pound, too good to pass up. This will be my first try, so I didn't buy the whole cryovac package, just 3.5 lbs. (That way, I can pay way more, next time.) I loaded the "Sons of Bees" bacon brining instructions into my spreadsheet and scaled the thing down from 25 lbs. to 3.5 lbs. Here is the pork with some of the ingredients:
That's piloncillo (crude sugar) on the left, instead of dark brown sugar. There's a local meat market's brand of cure #1 in the center, and some local wildflower honey on the right.
I put the pork belly into a freezer bag, measured in all the ingredients, and vacuum sealed it. I then discovered that you can't manipulate the thing while under vacuum, so I cut the seal and did some massaging to distribute the rub/brine/goo/whatchamacallit. Here it is, sealed again, ready for a nice rest in the refrigerator under a watchful eye. It will get turned and massaged daily.
If you use the rule of thumb for how long to brine, such a small package should have been ready last week. No, actually, 3-1/2 days from now. I think it needs more than that, though, so I'll maybe go nine or ten days of the "up to 12" recommended.
Haven't decided what smoke to use yet. I have a supply of various pellets on hand for my Amazin' generator, so an overnight smoke with the recommended hickory, or maybe apple, will be in order.
This should be an interesting batch. Pork bellies, using this recipe, generate an extra volume of brine. Most of the brining calculations assume a 10% uptake, but if it gives off brine, what then?
The real answer is that more of the moisture than we normally count on is probably at play, here. It should be interesting.
...theories, anyone? The spreadsheet assumes a total volume of whatever you mix up, plus 10% to 12% added by the packer, and an ability to absorb 10% - 12% of the resulting liquid. It may be that 20% or so is a more realistic amount. After all, meat is made up of 75% or so water, but it's in different forms and behind different cell walls and such. ...or not. That 10% figure is probably between cells, rather than inside 'em.
"Inquiring minds want to know." Most interesting answer wins a prize. (2nd most interesting wins two prizes, so watch out!)
Experience - the ability to instantly recognize a mistake when you make it again.
- Chuckwagon
- Veteran
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- Joined: Tue Apr 06, 2010 04:51
- Location: Rocky Mountains
...fascinating. ...so much still to learn, especially the dynamics part. Most people never venture there, just content themselves with buying the product. Thanks, Ross and those interested in brining, for opening up a fascinating new area to discover.
Now, back to my chorizo & egg breakfast. Life is good. What a great hobby!
Now, back to my chorizo & egg breakfast. Life is good. What a great hobby!
Experience - the ability to instantly recognize a mistake when you make it again.
- sawhorseray
- Veteran
- Posts: 1110
- Joined: Fri Jul 27, 2012 20:25
- Location: Elk Grove, CA
Pork belly at a buck forty eight is a beautiful thing Ducko! I did some about a month back and after much discussion and investigation pulled the brining slab from the fridge after five and a half days. The nice thing about using Ziploc freezer bags is it's easy to add some water after a couple of days, I dumped a quart into each of the two bags. Slice it thick, you'll be way happy with what comes out of your smoker! RAY
“Good judgment comes from experience, and a lotta that comes from bad judgment.”
I found pork butts fresh and on sale at $1.49. They were rather small about 8 pounds each. I cut the bacon slabs from each and much to my surprise they each weighed 2¾ pounds. I didn't plan it that way I just lined up the cut and started. so I have about 5 pounds that in each bag that will make sausage and about 5½ pounds that will make bacon.
Ross- tightwad home cook
While I was weighing the ingredients for the bacon cure I realized that my balance will resolve single grains of salt. I found it amusing that I was being so very careful in getting the weights exactly right when in a few minutes I would rub this mixture into the meat with my hand and naturally drag some of it away on my hand to be washed down the sink. No! I didn't compensate for that waste. (but I thought about it)
Ross- tightwad home cook
- sawhorseray
- Veteran
- Posts: 1110
- Joined: Fri Jul 27, 2012 20:25
- Location: Elk Grove, CA
You two guys have some wonderful projects underway. I have been taking a little time to consume what's in my freezer before venturing on another project, but a few things are starting to get dangerously low. I see where one of my local grocery markets has chicken thighs on sale till next week for 99≠lb. On Monday or Tuesday I'll by 30 pounds worth to make a 22-23 pound batch of Chicken Italian sausage with dried tomatoes and black olives. Deer season should put enough of a dent in my wild hog Italian sausage that I might have to process the last 28 pounds of wild pig meat along with my last whole 20 pound domestic porkbutt. Last year I grabbed 120 pounds of porkbutt at Christmas time when it was on sale for 99≠lb, want to be ready when that sale hits this year. Time for bacon and eggs!
“Good judgment comes from experience, and a lotta that comes from bad judgment.”
- sawhorseray
- Veteran
- Posts: 1110
- Joined: Fri Jul 27, 2012 20:25
- Location: Elk Grove, CA
You bet Ross, last year I scored about a half dozen during the Thanksgiving sales. I like to connect with the 10-11 pound birds because they fit on my Ronco 4000 rotisserie, and there's only three of us to feed. The Ronco is one of the best kitchen investments I've made. It cooks chickens, turkeys, and small roasts to perfection every time, something about a rotisserie makes meat come out juicy and flavorful. For years I used to do 14 pound birds in my deep fry set-up but the expense and oil slop all over got kind of old. I've had the Ronco for over five years now, I know the infomercials look kind of corny, but it really is a great product that delivers a lot of bang for the buck. RAY
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Ronco-4000-S ... kcfnBvn--s
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Ronco-4000-S ... kcfnBvn--s
“Good judgment comes from experience, and a lotta that comes from bad judgment.”