Made some bacon today and thought I would share the experience and offer some pics. Thanks to the Cookshack forum and Cadillacs post in particular. Made me look like a pro!
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Hey man that bacon looks mighty fine!
Way to go!
Way to go!
Thunderbyte - Bacon looks fantastic! What kind of wood did you use? What's that little round thingy in the first pic. Looks like a timer. Did ya smoke that too...? LOL 
Hope it tastes as good as it looks!
Hope it tastes as good as it looks!
That round thing is a thermometer. I usually dont put it in, but I dont have a second Taylor for oven temps while cooking so I put it in to see what the temps were when I finally opened the door.
Yep, bacon tasted great! Everyone that tried it liked it.
Yep, bacon tasted great! Everyone that tried it liked it.
Yes, that bacon does look very good! Congratulations!! I smoked 25 lbs Friday nite I had curing for the last 2 weeks. Sliced it up Sat and ate some Sat nite and again Sunday. There is NOTHING like the taste of homemade bacon and if you havent done it, you dont know what you are missing. Great job Thunderbyte!!
Bob
Bob
looks great. where do you get these raw slabs of bacon from, the local butcher? how much do they cost a pound? how exactly did you cure it? i want to try this soon. thx!!!
Yeah, I've got the same question as L.A. where do you find the pork bellies? I suppose I could special order them but they're never in the local display case and special orders usually cost an arm and a leg.
Getting your hands on uncured pork isn't easy. Here are two online sources I found, and both are expensive, particularly the shipping. First is Niman Ranch which ships organic pork and they also have uncured pork bellies.(http://www.nimanranch.com/)
Second is Forbes Meat, and here is the link for what they call "side pork", also uncured. (http://www.forbesmeat.net/SidePork.html). Please note that I haven't tried either of these sources because, tempted as I am to try smoking some bacon, I'm too cheap to pay these prices! In the end, shipping cold pork (and it needs to be cold!) is a challenge and will end up being costly, so I'm still searching for a local source.
Second is Forbes Meat, and here is the link for what they call "side pork", also uncured. (http://www.forbesmeat.net/SidePork.html). Please note that I haven't tried either of these sources because, tempted as I am to try smoking some bacon, I'm too cheap to pay these prices! In the end, shipping cold pork (and it needs to be cold!) is a challenge and will end up being costly, so I'm still searching for a local source.
If any of you have the means, consider raising your own hog and taking it to the local custom butcher shop. Can be high start up costs, (pen, etc.) and take up some of that precious time, but worth it I think. I can't have livestock where I live now, but grew up with homegrown beef, pork, chicken, eggs, milk, veggies, fruit, etc. Clean living. An alternative would be to just buy a butcher ready hog from a farmer you trust and have it butchered. Oh yes, you will need a large freezer.
I also posted in another topic with a bit more detail on how I went about making it. The topic is:
http://forum.cookshack.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/7091028883/m/2881099114
Just copy and paste that into your browser as I dont think I cant add a url in this post.
Anyway, I called around until I found a butcher that sold side meat. He butchers on fridays, so when I picked mine up friday morning, I knew it was cut fresh. It was $2.59 a lb, without the skin.
I cured using 1TBSP Mortons Tender Quick and 3 TBSP dark brown sugar per lb of meat rubbed over the entire surface of the raw pork. I let this sit for 3 weeks in my fridge (average temp 36 deg F) until ready to smoke. I have heard two weeks should be enough though. Before smoking, I rinsed very well with cold water then let it soak for 1/2 hour in cold water. I have read where some soaked it longer but Im impatient!
The wood box was loaded with 3oz chunks of maple and 1 oz hickory. I smoked at 150 until an internal temp was at least 145. I then threw it back in the fridge to firm it up to make slicing easier.
Flavor was just was I wanted. I wont change a thing next time.
http://forum.cookshack.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/7091028883/m/2881099114
Just copy and paste that into your browser as I dont think I cant add a url in this post.
Anyway, I called around until I found a butcher that sold side meat. He butchers on fridays, so when I picked mine up friday morning, I knew it was cut fresh. It was $2.59 a lb, without the skin.
I cured using 1TBSP Mortons Tender Quick and 3 TBSP dark brown sugar per lb of meat rubbed over the entire surface of the raw pork. I let this sit for 3 weeks in my fridge (average temp 36 deg F) until ready to smoke. I have heard two weeks should be enough though. Before smoking, I rinsed very well with cold water then let it soak for 1/2 hour in cold water. I have read where some soaked it longer but Im impatient!
The wood box was loaded with 3oz chunks of maple and 1 oz hickory. I smoked at 150 until an internal temp was at least 145. I then threw it back in the fridge to firm it up to make slicing easier.
Flavor was just was I wanted. I wont change a thing next time.
I get my side meat or, "pork belly" here in OKC at the oriental market for $1.69 a pound. With the skin on. Im getting ready to do my next batch. I think I will take the skin off this time before putting the rub on. Thunderbyte, its kinds fun huh?
Yea, it is fun. Whats odd is that I own and operate a hobby shop. Our slogan (on the back of all my shirts) is "Whats Your Hobby?" Actually my hobby is now cooking. I used to enjoy rc cars, planes, models, etc but since that is now my job, this smoking, grilling and kitchen cooking is my hobby.
I dont think my bacon was less expensive than store bought, and the flavor and quality was close to about the same. What I did gain was knowing exactly what was in it and how it was handled and prepared. The biggest things I gained though was the enjoyment of doing it and the bragging rights I earned!
Right now Im getting ready to pull a pork butt that I will take camping this weekend.
Yes, this if a lot of fun!
I dont think my bacon was less expensive than store bought, and the flavor and quality was close to about the same. What I did gain was knowing exactly what was in it and how it was handled and prepared. The biggest things I gained though was the enjoyment of doing it and the bragging rights I earned!
Right now Im getting ready to pull a pork butt that I will take camping this weekend.
Yes, this if a lot of fun!
What is even better is knowing where the hog came from, what it was fed out on, and taking it to a butcher that you trust yourself.