Yield: 2.2 pounds / 1 kilogram / 1000 grams
Perfect Traditional Smoked Bacon at Home Recipe
Traditional smoked bacon involves salt dry curing (2 methods showcased) and cold smoking the bacon. Here is the process in full!
Prep Time
1 hour
Additional Time
14 days
Total Time
14 days 1 hour
Ingredients
- Sea Salt
- Sweetener (Sugar, Honey or Molasses)
- Pork Belly (fat, quality, older pig ideally over 8 months)
Instructions
- Trim Bacon - Remove Skin if Desired(no rib bones also)
- Weigh the Meat
- If Using Equilibrium Method, Calculate the Salt, Sugar and Spices
- Curing the Meat - Saturation or Equilibrium Method (Explained Below)
- Cure in Fridge Based Temperature
- Remove from Dry Cure
- Dry Meat on Rack or Hook to Form Pellicle
- Cold for 6-8 hours
- Place on Rack in Fridge or Hang in Cool Area to Dry
- Once at least 15% Weight Loss, Bacon is Ready
- Slice as needed, or slice whole bacon slab and freeze on tray with baking paper
Notes
- Meat - Pork Belly is obvious choice, however, boneless pork shoulder (butt), or loin with fat cap could be used also
- Weighing Meat for Equilibrium Curing - Digital Scales to 1 or 2 Decimal Places, is the best way to measure weight of salt/spices as a percentage of the weight of the meat
- Salt and Sugar are the basis curing - other options:
- Pellicle is a tacky slightly stick bind of the proteins on the surface of the meat, overnight/8 hours uncovered in the fridge does usually achieve this, ideally hung. On a rack, with a plate/tray underneath is suitable also.
- Cold Smoker - here is a link to cold smokers,
below is code