Home cured bacon is a delicious and rewarding culinary project that allows you to create your own unique bacon flavor. With a little bit of time and effort, you can make your own bacon that is sure to impress your friends and family. The process of curing bacon at home is relatively simple and only requires a few basic ingredients. Best of all, home cured bacon is much cheaper than store-bought bacon and tastes much better. This article will introduce you to the art of home curing bacon.
Check out the recipes below so you can choose the best recipe for yourself!
MAPLE-CURED BACON
A maple syrup-based cure gives this bacon a light sweetness that melds with the salty and smoky flavors to create overall excellent tasty and crispy strips.
Provided by Joshua Bousel
Time P5DT1h40m
Yield 16 Servings
Number Of Ingredients 5
Steps:
- In a small bowl, mix together syrup, salt, dark brown sugar, and pink salt. Coat entire pork belly with the cure and place in a large resealable plastic bag. Place in the coldest part of the refrigerator and cure for 5 days, flipping bag about every 12 hours.
- Remove pork belly from bag and wash any large deposits of salt under cold running water.
- Fire up smoker or grill to between 200-225°F, adding 1-2 fist-size chunks of smoking wood on top of the coals when at temperature. When wood is ignited and producing smoke, place pork belly in smoker, fat side up, and smoke until an instant read thermometer registers 150°F when inserted into thickest part of the meat. Remove pork belly from smoker and let cool. Wrap in plastic wrap and place in refrigerator until completely chilled.
- Cut bacon into slices at desired width and cook using your favorite method. Store leftover bacon in Ziploc or vacuum sealed bags in the refrigerator for up to a week, or in the freezer for up to 4 months.
HOMEMADE BACON
After you've tried this curing technique for homemade bacon you will never want the store-bought stuff again. You've been warned.
Provided by Andrew Armstrong
Time P14DT4h
Number Of Ingredients 6
Steps:
- In a large food-safe container, combine 1 gallon of water, 1 cup of Kosher Salt, 1 cup of white sugar, 1 cup of brown sugar, and 1 TBS of Insta-Cure #1.
- Mix together until dissolved.
- Drop in the pork belly and make sure it stays submerged. I used a plastic container filled with water to weigh mine down.
- Refrigerate for 14 days.
- After 14 days remove and rinse cure and pat dry.
- Leave uncovered in the refrigerator overnight.
- Smoke for 4 hours at temperatures under 165 degrees F.
- Remove and cool in the refrigerator overnight.
- Slice and enjoy.
HOME-CURED BACON
Pink salt, also known as curing salt No. 1, is a nitrate, a combination of sodium chloride - table salt - and nitrite, a preserving agent used to deter the growth of bacteria in cured meats. Bacon is cured in the refrigerator, then slow roasted, and finally cooked again before serving. It is not being consumed as a raw, cured meat, so the use of a nitrate is a personal decision. A small amount of pink salt in your cure provides that familiar pink color and bacon-y flavor, or what we have come to know as bacon-y. It is absolutely possible to cure bacon without nitrates; but be aware that the end product will be more the color of cooked pork and that the flavor will be akin to that of a pork roast. With or without the pink salt, homemade bacon is worth the effort.
Provided by Cathy Barrow
Time 2h
Yield About 2 pounds
Number Of Ingredients 10
Steps:
- Place the pork belly in a large Ziploc bag. Add the salt (and pink salt if using) and the cure additions. Rub the cure into the pork belly, turning the bag over and over and pressing the cure into the flesh. Close the bag, squeezing out all the air and refrigerate for seven days. Each day, flip the bag over. Some liquid will begin to gather in the bag.
- After seven days, wash the cure off the meat, rinsing thoroughly. Pat the bacon dry with paper towels and set it on a rack over a baking sheet. Allow the bacon to air-dry in the refrigerator for 6 to 24 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 225 degrees. Roast the pork belly in the oven to an internal temperature of 150 degrees for about 90 minutes. Chill the bacon well, then slice thick or thin, to preference. Any bacon that doesn't easily slice may be cut into chunks, for starting a pot of beans or soup. Wrapped in parchment paper, then wrapped in plastic wrap or foil and placed in a Ziploc bag, the bacon will keep for three weeks in the refrigerator and three months in the freezer.
Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 341, UnsaturatedFat 19 grams, Carbohydrate 4 grams, Fat 33 grams, Fiber 0 grams, Protein 6 grams, SaturatedFat 12 grams, Sodium 163 milligrams, Sugar 3 grams
HOMEMADE BACON
Provided by Michael Symon : Food Network
Time 3h30m
Yield 3 1/2 pounds bacon
Number Of Ingredients 8
Steps:
- Rinse the pork belly and pat dry. Transfer to a resealable 2-gallon plastic bag. To make the spice rub, mix the kosher salt, pink salt, brown sugar, honey, red pepper flakes, paprika and cumin in a bowl. Coat the pork belly all over with the mixture.
- Close the bag and refrigerate 7 to 10 days, flipping once a day, until the pork belly feels firm. It should take 7 days for a thin belly that is about 11/2 inches thick, longer for a belly that's 2 to 3 inches thick.
- Remove the pork belly from the bag, rinse thoroughly and pat dry. Refrigerate the belly on a rack, uncovered, 48 hours.
- Set up your smoker according to the manufacturer's instructions using applewood chips, and set to 200 degrees F. Smoke the pork belly 3 hours, or until the bacon reaches an internal temperature of 150 degrees F.
- Remove the rind (optional), then slice and cook as desired. To store, wrap the bacon in plastic wrap and refrigerate up to 1 week or freeze up to 2 months.
- Pink curing salt is a mix of salt and sodium nitrite. It keeps the meat pink and protects it from bacteria. You can find it at specialty food stores or online.
HOME-CURED STREAKY BACON
Curing your own bacon takes just three ingredients and requires your time rather than effort. For the best-quality bacon, buy the best pork you can find
Provided by Good Food team
Time 10m
Number Of Ingredients 3
Steps:
- Tip the salt and sugar into a freezer bag and shake well. Slip the pork into the bag, seal and scrunch around with your hands until the pork is completely covered in the cure.
- Lay the pork flat in the fridge and leave for five days, turning occasionally. The dry cure will turn into a wet brine as the liquid is released from the meat.
- After the five days, lift the pork from the bag, rinse it off and pat it dry. It's now ready to slice into rashers and cook. Will keep in an airtight container for one week.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 440 calories, Fat 34 grams fat, SaturatedFat 12 grams saturated fat, Carbohydrate 2 grams carbohydrates, Sugar 2 grams sugar, Protein 32 grams protein, Sodium 4.4 milligram of sodium
HOME-CURED BACON
Steps:
- Rub the pork belly top and bottom with the Aleppo pepper. Combine the kosher salt, curing salt, granulated sugar, and brown sugar in a large, nonreactive container and bury the belly completely in the mixture. Cover and refrigerate for 2 days.
- Remove the belly from the refrigerator and discard the cure. Rinse the remaining cure off the meat and pat it dry. Set the belly on a baking sheet and loosely cover. Allow to sit in the refrigerator another 2 days. On the second day, set the hickory chips in water to soak overnight.
- Using a conventional smoker, smoke the belly until the internal temperature reaches 145°F. Once the belly is smoked and cooled, cut into 4 sections. Wrap the sections well in plastic wrap and foil and store in the freezer until needed, up to 3 months.
Tips:
- Choose the right pork belly: Look for a pork belly that is at least 1 inch thick and has a good amount of marbling. This will ensure that your bacon is flavorful and juicy.
- Cure the pork belly properly: The curing process is what gives bacon its distinctive flavor. Be sure to follow the recipe's instructions carefully and cure the pork belly for the specified amount of time.
- Smoke the bacon at a low temperature: Smoking the bacon at a low temperature (200-225 degrees Fahrenheit) will help to develop its flavor and prevent it from becoming dry.
- Cook the bacon until it is crispy: Bacon is best when it is cooked until it is crispy. This can be done in a skillet, in the oven, or on the grill.
Conclusion:
Making bacon at home is a fun and rewarding experience. With a little time and effort, you can create delicious bacon that is sure to impress your family and friends. So what are you waiting for? Give it a try today!
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