Bacon. Kosher vs table salt

TKoot

I smoked up some bacon a few weeks ago for the first time. My recipe called for 1/3 cup kosher salt for a 4-5 lb pork belly. I only had table salt. So I let it cure for 5 days. Smoked it up and it came out quite salty. Was that because I used table vs kosher salt or just to much salt. I talked to my Swiss butcher and he didn't even know what kosher salt was but he says I should only use 17grams per KG of meat. So if my math was right I ended up using 40 grams according to my scale. Does that make sense to anyone??

buzd504

Yes, table salt has a much smaller crystal, so you will have quite a bit more salt by weight for a given volume with table salt.

TKoot

That makes perfect sense. Thanks. 

Eggcelsior

Yep, what buzd504 said. I use Diamond Crystal kosher, and it has half the weight per volume as table salt(5 vs 10oz/cup here in the US). Unless specified, most recipes are calling for kosher in recipes as well(at least here in the US). 

You can blanch the bacon slices with boiling water for a few minutes and that will remove some salt.

chadpsualum

Was yours a wet cure or a dry cure?  I only ask because I'm trying my hand at curing a pork belly at the moment and used 3 different wet cure recipes.  In all 3, the salt dissolved in the liquid thus making the crystal size irrelevant.

The salty thing was my big concern.  The recipe just calls to rinse the meat off.  I have heard soaking does some good.  I guess it's trial and error to find the exact way you want it.

onedbguru

Before smoking the bacon, I rinse it off after curing (even with Kosher). After rinsing, I liberally apply more pepper and let it air dry in the fridge for a couple of days before smoking it.  Comes out perfect - i.e., not too salty.

My cure is eye-balled salt, br sugar and pepper. 

J-dubya

I use kosher, but - did you give it a good soak/rinse after curing/before smoking? 

Darby_Crenshaw

You need to weigh the salt. Crystal size doesn't quite matter during the cure (wet or dry), but it sure matters when measuring by volume

NorthPilot06

Yes, you used too much. Either weigh your salt (per Darby) or use kosher salt. 

And @chadpsualum - the crystal doesn't matter during the cure because a solution is formed, but it absolutely matters when measuring to ensure the proper salinity of your cure. 

And use the suggestion of @Eggcelsior - you can soak bacon (even after smoking) to remove some salt. Not optional, but it will work. 

bgebrent

NorthPilot06 said:

Yes, you used too much. Either weigh your salt (per Darby) or use kosher salt. 

And @chadpsualum - the crystal doesn't matter during the cure because a solution is formed, but it absolutely matters when measuring to ensure the proper salinity of your cure. 

And use the suggestion of @Eggcelsior - you can soak bacon (even after smoking) to remove some salt. Not optional, but it will work. 

Good advice here.  And he typed in optimal.

NorthPilot06

Haha good catch. They still haven't made these iPhones read your mind yet. 

Botch

You can measure out/substitute table salt for kosher salt, but I can't remember what the reduction ratio was.  Stand by....

Mickey

This is the salt I have cooked with for over 20 years. 

Carolina Q

Drastic differences among brands/types of salt. For example, per Serious Eats...

• "Table Salt: 7 grams per teaspoon
• Morton's Kosher Salt: 6 grams per teaspoon
• Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt: 4 grams per teaspoon
• Large Flake Sea Salt: 3 grams per teaspoon

Of course, measuring inaccuracies and scale rounding errors could mean your weights for the same salts could be a little different than mine, but in general, if using Diamond Crystal salt, you'll need about twice as much volume wise to get the same salting level as table salt."

http://slice.seriouseats.com/archives/2010/11/pizza-protips-salt-why-you-need-salt-in-baking.html

NorthPilot06

Thanks for that @Carolina Q - Good perspective to keep in mind.

I generally use Morton's Kosher for measurements because it's fairly commonplace, but it's good to remember that not even all Kosher salt is created equal.

TKoot

chadpsualum said:

Was yours a wet cure or a dry cure?  I only ask because I'm trying my hand at curing a pork belly at the moment and used 3 different wet cure recipes.  In all 3, the salt dissolved in the liquid thus making the crystal size irrelevant.

The salty thing was my big concern.  The recipe just calls to rinse the meat off.  I have heard soaking does some good.  I guess it's trial and error to find the exact way you want it.

I did a dry cure. I'm doing one now with a 10% salt brine solution 

TKoot

J-dubya said:

I use kosher, but - did you give it a good soak/rinse after curing/before smoking? 

I just gave it a rinse. After talking to my butcher he soaks his in fresh water for 30-60 minutes after brining it

shtgunal3

I always use kosher and always soak for at least an hour (have soaked for up to 4 hours) before smoking.

onedbguru

I have only  done this twice (actually third batch (12lbs) is in process). Batch 1 (1lb) I did not rinse and it was a bit salty.  Second (3lbs) just did a quick rinse under the faucet and added more pepper and dried for 2 days before smoking. So far, that was a winner - not too salty.  Dry-rub/brine for 3rd batch will be done on Thursday and will smoke on Friday just in time for Saturday breakfast.