I love a good kitchen experiment.  This takes kitchen experiments to all new level though.  If you’ve never had homemade bacon you have no idea what you’re missing.  It makes bacon from the store seem so wrong and inferior.  It is really very easy and while it takes some time you don’t have to do much during the time.  If you don’t have a smoker yet I don’t know what better argument there is than homemade smoked bacon 🙂

I like to cut the pork belly into manageable sizes, since it makes it easier to cure them in ziplock bags and also when it comes time to slice it later on.  The rub amounts are for each pound of pork belly, so adjust accordingly.  I did half of mine in brown sugar rub, and the other half in the peppercorn herb rub.  We go back and forth on which we like better and I honestly can’t tell you which is better!  Next time I might try adding a little maple syrup as well.  You can play around with the seasonings, just be sure to use the right amount of tenderquick, as that will keep bad bacteria from growing.  You can use pink salt, but you need to be careful when using that, as too much can actually be lethal.  I feel like tenderquick is a little safer for a home kitchen.

Pork belly, rind on

BROWN SUGAR RUB:
1 T Morton’s tenderquick
1 T brown sugar
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp black pepper

CRACKED PEPPERCORN AND HERB RUB:
1 T Morton’s Tenderquick
1 tsp sugar
1 T crushed black peppercorns (Using the side of a chef’s knife, press down to crack)
1 tsp garlic powder (or 1 crushed garlic clove)
1 tsp minced fresh rosemary
1 tsp minced fresh thyme leaves
1 crumbled dried bay leaf

Place pork belly in a shallow pan and rub all sides with rub.  Place in a ziplock bag with any remaining rub.
Refrigerate for 7 days, turning ever day to redistribute the rub and any liquid.

After 7 days it’s time to rinse the rub off.  You don’t want to skip this, as the bacon will be too salty if you don’t.

After you have rinsed the pork belly, place it on a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet and refrigerate for 2 days.

Time to smoke!  Hot smoke, rind side up, for about 2 hours (we used a mix of hickory and cherry) or until it reaches 150 degrees.
If you don’t have a smoker you could bake it in the oven at about 200 degrees on a rack set over a rimmed sheet.  But for optimal flavor, we’re going to smoke. 🙂

Above is what the rind side looks like when done, below is rind side down:

Trim the rind off.  Unless you want rind-on bacon, then you would leave it on.

Cool, then slice in desired thickness.  It’s easiest if you slice with fat side down.

You’ll want to cut the ends off to get nice neat slices.  But you don’t want to waste any!  So cut the ends into 1/2 inch cubes, or lardons.  You can throw these in a freezer ziplock and they won’t freeze together solid.  You can pull out however much you want at a time.  These are great for chili, cook until crisp to top baked potatoes, salads… pretty much anything you want to taste amazing.

To store the bacon I weigh out half pound amounts, wrap in butcher paper and freeze.

DIY Smoked Bacon

October 15, 2014

by Holly

Category DIY / How to... Grilling / Smoking

Ingredients

• Pork belly, rind on

BROWN SUGAR RUB:

• 1 T Morton’s tenderquick
• 1 T brown sugar
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

CRACKED PEPPERCORN AND HERB RUB:

• 1 T Morton’s Tenderquick
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 T crushed black peppercorns (Using the side of a chef’s knife, press down to crack)
• 1 tsp garlic powder (or 1 crushed garlic clove)
• 1 tsp minced fresh rosemary
• 1 tsp minced fresh thyme leaves
• 1 crumbled dried bay leaf

Instructions

1. Place pork belly in a shallow pan and rub all sides with rub. Place in a ziplock bag with any remaining rub.
2. Refrigerate for 7 days, turning ever day to redistribute the rub and any liquid.
3. After 7 days it’s time to rinse the rub off. You don’t want to skip this, as the bacon will be too salty if you don’t.
4. After you have rinsed the pork belly, place it on a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet and refrigerate for 2 days.
5. Time to smoke! Hot smoke, rind side up, for about 2 hours (we used a mix of hickory and cherry) or until it reaches 150 degrees.
6. If you don’t have a smoker you could bake it in the oven at about 200 degrees on a rack set over a rimmed sheet. But for optimal flavor, we’re going to smoke
7. Trim the rind off. Unless you want rind-on bacon, then you would leave it on.
8. Cool, then slice in desired thickness. It’s easiest if you slice with fat side down.
9. You’ll want to cut the ends off to get nice neat slices. But you don’t want to waste any! So cut the ends into 1/2 inch cubes, or lardons. You can throw these in a freezer ziplock and they won’t freeze together solid. You can pull out however much you want at a time. These are great for chili, cook until crisp to top baked potatoes, salads… pretty much anything you want to taste amazing.
10. To store the bacon I weigh out half pound amounts, wrap in butcher paper and freeze.

I have this obsession.  It can get a little out of hand at times.
If you can buy it, odds are I’ve thought “can I make that?”  Doesn’t really matter what it is… I’ve thought that. 🙂
One of my favorite cookbooks is Charcuterie: The Craft of Salting, Smoking, and Curing.  I read it like some people read a magazine.
I have gone so far as to buy a meat grinder and have made my own sausages.
Anyways, I usually buy Canadian Bacon from our butcher, Butcher Boys.  (Who are so cool they don’t even have a website.) 🙂
They make it there and it’s amazing.  If you’ve only had the fake canadian bacon (you know, those round slices of compressed “meat”), you don’t know what you’re missing.
But one day I came across a recipe in Charcuterie for none other than Canadian Bacon and it was like a light bulb went off in my head.  How have I not thought to make it myself before?!
I used the technique in Charcuterie but made my own brine recipe.  It turned out absolutely amazing and I will never buy it again!
EDIT: I’ve added a printable recipe card using Tenderquick instead of pink salt.  It is more readily available and reliable.  Pink salt can be very dangerous if used in incorrect amounts and when purchasing online it is not always clear what you’re buying and how to properly use it.  Tenderquick is pretty straight forward, you use 1 Tablespoon per pound of meat.

DIY CANADIAN BACON

4 lbs boneless pork loin

For the brine:
1 gallon(16 cups) water
5 garlic cloves, smashed
3 bay leaves
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 1/2 cups kosher salt
8 tsp pink salt (or another curing salt- I get it from my butcher)
4 sprigs fresh thyme (or 2 tsp dried)
2 tsp peppercorns

Place all the brine ingredients in a large pot and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the salt and sugar.

Refrigerate until cold, then place the pork loin in a large container and add brine to cover.  Weigh pork down with a plate if needed to keep it submerged.
Refrigerate for 48 hours.

Remove loin from brine and place on a rack over a tray and chill, uncovered for 12 to 24 hours.
(This will develop the pellicle, the tacky surface that allows the smoke to adhere.)
Hot smoke the pork to 160 degrees, which should take 2-3 hours.*

(the canadian bacon is on the right, I smoked a ham with it.)
Cool before wrapping.  Refrigerate up to 10 days.
Easier to slice after fully cooled as well.

I sliced mine thinly and wrapped in packages of 4 oz in butcher paper and froze.

*Oven directions: Instead of smoking it, bake at 200 degrees until meat is 160 degrees.  I haven’t tested this, but it will definitely be missing the smoke flavor, which really does add alot to this.

DIY Canadian Bacon

January 23, 2013

by Holly

Category DIY / How to… Grilling / Smoking

Ingredients

• 6-8 pounds pork loin
• 8 cups water
• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup Tenderquick
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 1 teaspoon peppercorns

Instructions

1. Place all the brine ingredients in a large pot and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the salt and sugar.
2. Refrigerate until cold, (or add 8 cups of ice to cool faster) then place the pork loin in a large container and add brine to cover. If you didn’t use ice to cool brine faster you’ll need to add some additional water to cover.
3. Weigh pork down with a plate to keep it submerged.
4. Refrigerate for 48 hours.
5. Remove loin from brine and place on a rack over a tray and chill, uncovered for 12 to 24 hours.
6. (This will develop the pellicle, the tacky surface that allows the smoke to adhere.)
7. Hot smoke the pork to 160 degrees, which should take 2-3 hours.*
8. Cool before wrapping. Refrigerate up to 10 days.
9. Easier to slice after fully cooled as well.
10. I sliced mine thinly and wrapped in packages of 4 oz in butcher paper and froze.
11. *Oven directions: Instead of smoking it, bake at 200 degrees until meat is 160 degrees. I haven’t tested this, but it will definitely be missing the smoke flavor, which really does add alot to this.