Bacon Cure - HELP!

BigGreenCraigdotcom

I picked up a couple pork bellies from out local farmers market with the intentions of curing it for bacon. I have cured a pork belly before, but the cure I used was a sweet/wet cure. I prefer more of a savory bacon and was considering a dry cure. Anyone have a recipe or some sort of direction? 

The Cen-Tex Smoker

It's on here. Just search for it. You will need sodium nitrite (pink salt) which is not readily available at most grocery stores. You can get from amazon or modernist pantry (but MP is insanely expensive).

The Cen-Tex Smoker

Just google "ruhlman bacon" and his savory recipe will pop up. It's what most of us use on here. Also- buy his book "charcuterie" has tons of great recipes and techniques for stuff like this. His recipes are littered all over this site but the bacon is probably the most used.

BigGreenCraigdotcom

Cool thanks. I have some sodium nitrate from the last cure. I'll check it out. 

hondabbq

I am doing my first ever cure but I am doing back bacon. I read a lot and I am using Mortons Tender Quick for my first go at it. I ma going to mix a little brown sugar and black pepper for the dry cure.

DMW

BigGreenCraigdotcom said:

Cool thanks. I have some sodium nitrate from the last cure. I'll check it out. 

Just a heads up, nitrate and nitrite aren't interchangeable.

BigGreenCraigdotcom

DMW said:

Cool thanks. I have some sodium nitrate from the last cure. I'll check it out. 

Just a heads up, nitrate and nitrite aren't interchangeable.

Thank you fore the clarification. I have sodium nitrite. (pink curing salt)

Charlesmaneri

I have been using Michael Ruhlman's curing recipe in the book called Charcuterie ,the bacon comes great

nolaegghead

The salt/nitrite and cure type/time is somewhat important in the process, but the spices can be anything you want - be creative. You can go Italian with the same type of spices you see in Italian sausages, or Spanish, use chorizo spices.  Sky is the limit. I do like it savory. 

BigGreenCraigdotcom

I got to looking at Ruhlman's cure. Is the brown sugar necessary? I'm just concerned about the sweetness.

nolaegghead

BigGreenCraigdotcom said:

I got to looking at Ruhlman's cure. Is the brown sugar necessary? I'm just concerned about the sweetness.

It doesn't make it noticably sweet, it's really part of the cure, but you can omit the sugar.  I usually do because I'm more of a savory kind of guy.  (most would say "unsavory")

The Cen-Tex Smoker

I add extra-  and it is still not sweet. I do the savory (minus the garlic as it gets really strong) and I add a 1/4 cup of maple syrup before sealing the bag. It's not sweet but it caramelizes like crazy when you cook it. don't be afraid of the sugar. It's needed.

Cookinbob

I start with Ruhlmans basic cure:  

• 1 pound/450 grams kosher salt
• 8 ounces/225 grams sugar
• 2 ounces/50 grams pink salt

Combine, mix and store in an air tight container indefinitely.

Use 16.66 g of the cure per pound of belly.  Add other seasonings to taste.  I use Thyme, garlic, and black pepper.  Some folks like brown sugar or maple syrup, but you con't need to.  Some sugar is necessary as it supposedly takes the edge of saltiness.  It may take quite a bit to make it noticeably sweet.  I have my second cure going right now, the first worked great.

nolaegghead

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curing_(food_preservation)

The sugar added to meat for the purpose of curing it comes in many forms, including honey, corn syrup solids, and maple syrup.^[5] However, with the exception of bacon, it does not contribute much to the flavor,^[6] but it does alleviate the harsh flavor of the salt.^[2] Sugar also contributes to the growth of beneficial bacteria like Lactobacillus by feeding them.^[7]

The Cen-Tex Smoker

Whatever Lactobacillus are, they are delicious.

Little Steven

I use the spray Lactobacillus.

nolaegghead

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

Whatever Lactobacillus are, they are delicious.

They sure are^[2] : 

Lactobacillus, also called Döderlein's bacillus, is a genus of Gram-positive facultative anaerobic or microaerophilic rod-shaped bacteria.^[1] They are a major part of the lactic acid bacteria group, named as such because most of its members convert lactose and other sugars to lactic acid. In humans they are present in the vagina^[2] and the gastrointestinal tract, where they make up a small portion of the gut flora.

Cookinbob

Too much information ~X(

Thatgrimguy

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

It's on here. Just search for it. You will need sodium nitrite (pink salt) which is not readily available at most grocery stores. You can get from amazon or modernist pantry (but MP is insanely expensive).

Bed Bath and Beyond sells it here.

The Cen-Tex Smoker

Thatgrimguy said:

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

It's on here. Just search for it. You will need sodium nitrite (pink salt) which is not readily available at most grocery stores. You can get from amazon or modernist pantry (but MP is insanely expensive).

Bed Bath and Beyond sells it here.

I'm guessing they don't. They all carry pink salt (like Hawaiian or Himalayan) but they don't(at least I've never seen it) carry sodium nitrite. They are 2 commonly confused but very different things.

Thatgrimguy

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

Thatgrimguy said:

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

It's on here. Just search for it. You will need sodium nitrite (pink salt) which is not readily available at most grocery stores. You can get from amazon or modernist pantry (but MP is insanely expensive).

Bed Bath and Beyond sells it here.

I'm guessing they don't. They all carry pink salt (like Hawaiian or Himalayan) but they don't(at least I've never seen it) carry sodium nitrite. They are 2 commonly confused but very different things.

Good to know. I probably made that mistake then.

Cookinbob

Instacure # 1 is what you need. Amazon has it. A pound will last years!

The Cen-Tex Smoker

Cookinbob said:

Instacure # 1 is what you need. Amazon has it. A pound will last years!

I've been through 3 lbs in the past year. I might need to cut back on my cured meats )

The Cen-Tex Smoker

Thatgrimguy said:

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

Thatgrimguy said:

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

It's on here. Just search for it. You will need sodium nitrite (pink salt) which is not readily available at most grocery stores. You can get from amazon or modernist pantry (but MP is insanely expensive).

Bed Bath and Beyond sells it here.

I'm guessing they don't. They all carry pink salt (like Hawaiian or Himalayan) but they don't(at least I've never seen it) carry sodium nitrite. They are 2 commonly confused but very different things.

Good to know. I probably made that mistake then.

you are not alone. It's all over the forum and it's confusing.

nolaegghead

Thatgrimguy said:

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

It's on here. Just search for it. You will need sodium nitrite (pink salt) which is not readily available at most grocery stores. You can get from amazon or modernist pantry (but MP is insanely expensive).

Bed Bath and Beyond sells it here.

Bed Bath Salts and Beyond...stay away

Cookinbob

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

I've been through 3 lbs in the past year. I might need to cut back on my cured meats )

Wow, Everything I have read says 1 lb of #1 will cure 400 lbs of meat!  do you have a smokehouse full of hams?

The Cen-Tex Smoker

Cookinbob said:

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

I've been through 3 lbs in the past year. I might need to cut back on my cured meats )

Wow, Everything I have read says 1 lb of #1 will cure 400 lbs of meat!  do you have a smokehouse full of hams?

You use 2 oz every time you make bacon cure. That makes about 10 lbs of bacon. So that's a lb for 80 lbs of bacon. When I learned to make bacon last year I was making it every other week to play around with flavors and stuff. We also gave a lot away over the holidays. I probably gave a half pound away to egg buddies learning to make bacon. You also use it for smoked turkey, Canadian bacon, duck Procuitto, pastrami the maple glazed holiday ham that we did for thanksgiving and Christmas . It adds up Pretty fast but 400 is not the number.