Smoked Bacon

Dark Tuna, here you go:
Bacon to go with Lingcod and egss:
•   5 pounds pork belly, skin on (I get a 10-lb at Costco and cut in half and freeze half)
•   1/4 cup kosher salt
•   2 teaspoons pink curing salt
•   1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
•   1/4 cup honey
•   1/4 cup of maple syrup
•   2 tablespoons red pepper flakes
•   2 tablespoons smoked sweet paprika
•   1 teaspoon cumin seeds
•   Other shitamuck you might think tastes good, it's BACON
Directions
•   Rinse the pork belly and pat dry. Transfer to a re-sealable 2-gallon plastic bag. To make the spice rub, mix the kosher salt, pink salt, maple syrup, 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. (make real sure you put it on a ridged cookie sheet!)
•   Remove the pork belly from the bag, rinse thoroughly and pat dry. Refrigerate the belly on a rack, uncovered, 24-48 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. (I use a little chief, works great)
•   Put it in a 225 degree oven till the internal hits about 160, take it out and let it rest.)
•   Remove the rind (optional, I leave on), 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. (it cuts easier cold with a long sharp knife, I like mine between 1/8 and 3/16 thick)
•   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.
If you don't have a smoker, you can cook the pork belly in a 200 degrees F oven until it registers 160 degrees F on a meat thermometer. (Times will vary; check after about 2 hours.)

Start with a cool pan, use low heat as the sugar ingredients will burn. 1/4 inch slices make for a great BLT with thick beefsteak tomatoes!

That looks delicious! This makes me want to invest in a fancy smoker.

well, that got my printer up and running!
 I will be trying that as soon as I can get to cash and carry for the pork belly's!

This looks GREAT!   Thanks Trident 13.

Mmmm, bacon!  This sounds really yummy.

That looks delicious! This makes me want to invest in a fancy smoker.

And you can also smoke fish in a smoker!

Smoked fish is what got me back into fishing. I fished a lot when I was a kid, but just big game hunted for many years when I got older.  Then I was on a backcountry ski trip, and when we stopped for lunch, one of the guys I was with pulled out a big slab of smoked rainbow and passed it around.  It was great.  Right there, I said "I have to start fishing again, and I have to get a smoker."  And I did both.

If you try it, you'll like it.  Cash and Carry has pork belly, but we get to costco more often and most of the belly's are in the 10 lb range.  This could be one of the easiest treats to make I've done, and I do smoke some stuff.  Mix, bag, turn over each day for 7 or so, smoke 3 pans in a CHEAP smoker (really, all you need is the smoke) and bake a short period.  A slicer is on my list as my wife tends to frown when it takes both hands to to hold a BLT after taking a bite.  Be careful with the heat when cooking, it burns pretty quickly and thick slices take about 20-30 minutes on low heat to turn into bacon candy.

I bet that would be awesome in a Traeger grill.   

Trident 13 your bacon looks great with a good ratio of meat to fat. Ive found that the fat content can vary depending on the section of belly the cut comes from. It helps to find a consistent supplier or butcher that provides the prime cuts.
I try to avoid using Pink Salt for health reasons & find it doesnt make much difference if done right, although it doesnt keep as long. Cooking bacon in the oven helps prevent burning & makes for easy cleanup. 
Thanks again for sharing, definately bookmarking this one.

Appreciate the note about the curing salt. Reaching the expiration date for this bacon has never been an issue.  For those concerned about curing salt, here's one link and there are many others:
http://www.lets-make-sausage.com/sodium-nitrate.html

Personally, I think being happy is one of the important things to long life.  Kayak fishing makes me happy even if there are big waves and sharks.  Bacon makes me happy.  I rinse the bacon VERY briefly before cooking.  I doubt anyone including me actually believes that removes any smoke or nitrate hazard, but that's my story and I'm sticking to it!  I've also heard that harmful bacteria can't live in beer.  I try hard to drink a beer with every BLT that becomes a method of delivery for my bacon.

I have started making my own bacon as well. A couple of things I have learned...

1. You don't need to "hot smoke" your bacon. That is what the cure is for. (smoking also helps with the curing process) This is allowable under USDA food safety standards. It doesn't hurt if you do but is unnecessary.  Fat will start to render above 100'F. I cold smoke for 24-36 hours.

2. I found a proven wet cure that is MUCH easier (and better in my opinion) than measuring the proper cure, meat weights, and other ingredients. Just mix up recipe with a gallon of water and drop it in and forget about it! Works for ham, poultry, Canadian Bacon , Buckboard bacon or whatever.  PM me your email address if you want the recipe.

3. It is way easier to slice your bacon when its partially frozen whether you use a slicer or a knife.

4. A smoke generator changed my life! such as: http://www.amazenproducts.com/product_p/amnps5x8.htm


Here is a batch of Buckboard Bacon 36 hours of Pecan.

Agreed that semi-frozen is easier to cut, but I tend not to get it as thick then and it's harder to blame if on a flabby belly other than mine:-)

Sent a PM about the wet brine, but really, mixing takes but a few minutes and turning it once a day for a week before getting the cup of coffee starts my day off with a new countdown.

Thanks, and looks great.