[pics] fresh bacon imglog

N

nigafool

Veteran XX
the 15 lb. pork belly finished defrosting today

i cut it into 3 sections, one for bacon, one for pancetta, and one small one for braising or something

i shrink-wrapped all but the bacon piece for now and put them back in the freezer

the bacon is in a 2 gallon ziploc with a rub mix of:
salt
sugar
pink salt (curing salt #1)
ground black pepper
brown sugar

it will stay there for 7 days, being turned over every other day

then it will be hot smoked until it reaches 150 internal

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after doing some reading i think i might cold smoke it, or maybe even cut it in half and figure out which way is better. doesn't seem like there is a consensus.
 
very cool - i'm looking forward to seeing how this all turns out - where did you get the pork belly?
 
i got it from a local meat packer. it was $2 a pound, 15 lbs. total. i was afraid it would be more expensive.

i called a couple supermarkets first and they said they never have them
 
since this thread is basically my datebook, i have to post that i turned the bacon over today. a lot of liquid has leaked out of it now, and it's this liquid that actually brines the bacon. i'll turn it again in 2 days.
 
yesterday they didn't seem firm enough

today i decided that i was going to take them out regardless so they don't get too salty. when i took them out, they seemed a lot firmer than when i was pressing on them through the bag.

i washed them off with water, dried them, sliced off a piece for salt-testing, and then put them in the fridge on a rack to air-dry overnight. smoking will be either tomorrow or monday. they can sit in the fridge forming a pellicle (dried out edge that accepts smoke better) until then.

the piece i fried tasted great, not too salty. if it was salty, i'd have soaked it in fresh ice water before air-drying.

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looks great. when i do my bacon i've taken to rolling it up like pancetta. i love having little bacon wheels to go on sandwiches and things.

i've got a few pig heads i'm going to try and do something with in the next few days, i'll try and remember to take some pictures.
 
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