Makin’ Bacon

[luke duke 6449]

Two pork bellies. About 13lbs total. Cured for 2 weeks.


Smoked to 150



Sliced up. I used an undersized & underpowered deli slicer for one slab and cut the 2nd one by hand


Vacuum sealed and ready for the freezer

[deadshank 24654]

You missed my freezer by 165 miles.

Nice work.  Please post pics of fried bacon surrounding fried eggs, re-fried beans and flour tortillas.

[LonghornJones 838]

3 minutes ago, deadshank said:

Please post pics of fried bacon 

agreed

[Al Czervik 1261]

Did this 2 weeks ago, surprisingly easy. 
Looking great. 

[tx 3 putt 78675]

Cut the ends extra bulky, they’re perfect for a pot of beans 

 

fyi : Costco will run their pork belly on special, $4 to $5 off the pack 

Edited November 2, 2022 by tx 3 putt

[Armybrat 41395]

[Native Horn 3581]

3 hours ago, Al Czervik said:

Did this 2 weeks ago, surprisingly easy. 
Looking great. 

Do you not own a gun to put on the counter?  Son, I am disappoint.

[Dry Elbows 142]

4 hours ago, luke duke said:

Two pork bellies. About 13lbs total. Cured for 2 weeks.


Smoked to 150



Sliced up. I used an undersized & underpowered deli slicer for one slab and cut the 2nd one by hand


Vacuum sealed and ready for the freezer

I've made a couple of batches lately.  Interested in why you cured for two weeks.  Did you use curing salt or go nitrate free?  What kind of wood did you smoke it with?

[UncleBuck 6455]

Did a 7 day cure once. Smoked with pecan. Heavy on the pepper as you did. Turned out awesome (if for no other reason than I made it and it tasted like bacon). Yours looks great. I might try again. 

[TonyTexas 10757]

Those pork bellies look perfect for makin bacon. I’m the one who looks through every bacon package to find the one with the right meat/fat ratio. 

[Hornbeliever 739]

Just did this for first time a couple of weeks ago.  Made mine without curing salt....just normal salt, pepper, and brown sugar.  Came out great but bacon not as pink as normal bacon. 

Will try with curing salt next time and see which way I prefer.  

 

[luke duke 6449]

You missed my freezer by 165 miles.
Nice work.  Please post pics of fried bacon surrounding fried eggs, re-fried beans and flour tortillas.

Huevos Rancheros. There’s a thin slice of ham and some more refried beans between the corn tortilla and the eggs. Unfortunately my tub of cotija cheese was moldy, so no cheese.

[dcbc 14644]

[Victor Lazlo 1812]

I just made some Buckboard Bacon out of an 11 pound, .88 per pound pork butt that I picked up at H‑E‑B.

Filleted out the bone, then sliced it horizontally to create 2 pieces about 2 to 2.5 inches thick.

Dry brined for 2 weeks with Morton’s Tender Quick and brown sugar. Then rinsed, dried, covered with coarse black pepper, and placed  uncovered on a rack in the refrigerator for a day to develop the pellicle.

Smoked for 3 hours on my ZGrill pellet grill smoke setting (160*) for 3 hours, bumped it to 180 for an hour, finished it at 225* to an internal temp of 145*.

Let cool on a rack, then into the refrigerator for a couple of days before slicing and packaging.

I did cut a few slices after smoking for a sample and fried them up crispy. It’s not fatty like bacon, much meatier. I like it a lot.