Make your own bacon. Homemade bacon tastes fantastic!
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Today's supermarket bacon is OK. I mean, you can't go too far wrong with bacon; but to really know good bacon you either need to find a great artisan producer, or make your own.
Supermarket bacon is "wet cured" it is submerged in a vat of briny water and artificial smoke and other flavorings are added. Real bacon is dry cured, and exposed to real hardwood smoke. You won't believe how much better it is; and how easy it is to make your own bacon at home. It's one of those things that sounds really hard, and will sure impress people when you tell them they're eating your own home-cured bacon, but is actually really effortless!
You'll need to source a couple of ingredients, but they're probably both found at the same place; you're neighborhood butcher shop. Tell your butcher what you're planning to do, and ask for a piece of pork belly (make sure you don't get salt pork. You want fresh peork belly.). About 5 lbs is a pretty good place to start (don't make less than this or you will regret it later!) and also ask him or her for pink curing salt. Pink salt is a mixture about 6.5% sodium nitrite, and 93.5 percent kosher salt. It is called pink salt as it is dyed pink to prevent accidental use as regular salt. With these two items in hand, you're ready to get started.
Great homemade bacon recipe
- One 5lb slab of pork belly, rind removed. Ask your butcher to take of the rind.
- 1/4 cup of salt
- 1 tsp pink salt
- Generous half cup of maple syrup or honey. (You could also substitute a half cup of brown sugar if you prefer.
That's it, there are only three ingredients needed! Rub the pink salt all over both sides of the bacon and then slather on the salt andmaple syrup or honey as well, trying to get all exposed surfaces coated. Pop the pork belly into a large Ziploc bag, and keep it in the fridge for a week, turning every day. There will be some liquid accumulating in the bag; this is normal, don't remove it.
After a week, take the bacon out of the bag, wash off any salt that remains...and voila, you have bacon.
Now fry a little piece cut out from the center of the belly. It's bacon after all, so it should be salty; but if you think it is too salty, try soaking it in cold water for about an hour. This will leach out some of the salt. Repeat the tasting and if you still think it's too salty, give it another hour in a new batch of water.
You now have great tasting bacon that's ready to enjoy; and you can either now slice it up and watch how fast it disappears from your fridge, or get ready to take it the next level by hardwood smoking it.
The smoking stage will make this bacon even better, but you'll be amazed at how good the bacon already tastes. All the excess water has been removed through the dry curing; so the tastes are concentrated...and you'll never see your homemade bacon shrivel away to nothing in the frying pan.
Commercial bacon is pumped full of water, and when you cook it, all this water is released. Adding water is a great way to make more money when you're selling bacon by the pound, but not such a good way to make delicious bacon.
If you decide you want to smoke the bacon, you'll see that's its pretty easy as well. Take a look at my (link below) hub on smoking for easy to follow instructions...using a backyard BBQ!
There's a great thread on the cooking forum at E-Gullet all about charcuterie, so check out their link below if you want to learn more about home curing.
A great book on homemade bacon, sausages, hams, etc. is Michael Rhulman's Charcuterie. People are raving about this easy to follow text on all sorts of different charcuterie. It taught me a lot, and the bacon recipe above is loosely based on one from the book.
Try an artisanal bacon...
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Nueske Thick Sliced Applewood Smoked Bacon, Regular: 2 lbs
Price: $24.45
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Nice short video of home smoking a side of pork belly on a Weber grill
- E-Gullet Forum-charcuterie thread
This is a great website, that will keep you engrossed for hours. This particular thread has been ongoing for months, so there is lots of information here! - Here's my hub on easy bacon smoking..using a backyard BBQ
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Comments
I am going to give the bacon a shot but it seems like the shoulder and ham would be different because of the size? Do you have to inject it or anything? Is there anyway of actually telling that it is smoked good enough? Should I do a couple batches to see how the bacon comes out or would you say three hours will do it and the brine is more of the key? Great article!
Hi Jim,
I have never dry cured a ham - I would love to, but live in a pretty hot place, which makes it tricky. Something like a ham, or a pork shoulder, that has such a wide diameter, needs some extra special care, especially around the bones - slabs of pork belly are rarely more than a couple of inches thick, and so the salt penetrates much more easily.
For the time spent in the smoker - I am afraid this is a bit more art than science! WHat I tend to do, is let it smoke for a couple of hours, and then try to cut a slice out of the middle of the belly (The outsides will be stronger, and not a good indicator) I give it a quick cook and have a taste.
I tried the above mentioned recipe on 2 X 5lbs pieces of pork tenderloin. I Left them in the fridge for 7 days flipping them every day and then smoked them in my gas BBQ using hickory wood for smoke at roughly 190 degrees for 5 hours. What I ended up with was the best canadian bacon I had ever tasted. The mix of salt, maple syrup, and smoke was perfect, the best part, which my wife pointed out was how the pieces didnt shrink. We (my wife, kids and my self), finished that in 2 sittings and I am now in the process of curing another 20lbs using the same method and recipe. I also have a ham on the go in the fridge using the same recipe but with a much longer curing time, approximately 27 days. I have taken little bits of advise from where ever I can find it and think I have the right idea for how long the ham has to cure before I can smoke it. If you do have any advise for me on curing hams it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for a great recipe and, what is now for me, a fantastic new hobby..Happy smokin..Dean.
Hi Dean,
I am really glad you've found a technique that works for you! I have never dry cured a ham (I am jealous of your experiment!) so I can't offer much insight. I have wet cured ham, and I know that in brine, ham cures at the rate of about 2lb per day. Dry cure is surely much slower. If you have success with the ham, I would love to hear about it, specifically - how long it took to cure under what conditions.
Best of luck and thanks for the comment
John
Hey John, it's me again, just want to follow up on my last entry. The ham turned out excellent, it was a bit salty at first but nothing a bit of soaking didn't take care of. I cured it in a bag for 27 days in the bottom of the family fridge, yes I have a very patient and understanding wife, but in hindsight I should have only cured it for 21 days. I am picking up another leg tomorrow and I think I am going to modify the recipe a bit. I am going to try brown sugar this time instead of maple syrup. The reason for the change is because instead of keeping the ham in a bag, I am going to wrap the leg in cheese cloth and let it cure on a rack over a pan to catch the drippings (refigerated of course). I used hickory wood for smoke but I think this time I am going to try apple, I hear it gives a milder smoke flavour, but having said that the smoking that I did do seemed to give it that extra bit of flavour you just can't find in most commercial hams. Even though it was dry cured, the ham still turned out to be very moist and tender, much to my surprise. I don't suppose you have a dry cure recipe for corned beef or pastrami do you? Yes my new hobby is really taking off..lol. So much so, that my wife went out and bought me a beer fridge so I can do all the curing I want, and to think this all started off with a simple bacon recipe from you.. Thanks John, much appreciated..Dean.
hi john, I live in thailand and the cured bacon is the worst I've ever tasted. I am going to give your recipe a try. my difficulty is finding pink salt. and my have to try and make my own. do you know the ingrediants for it. many thanks. laura
Dean - That is great!! You've got me itching to do a dry cured ham now too! I will take a look for a recipe for pastrami - I think I have one kicking around.
Dean - That is great!! You've got me itching to do a dry cured ham now too! I will take a look for a recipe for pastrami - I think I have one kicking around.
Hi Laura Ann
Funnily enough - I live in Thailand too! Pink Salt is a mixture of about 93.5% regular salt (kosher salt is good as it has no iodine) and 6.5% Sodium Nitrite. It is is mixed in this way assodium nitrite can be toxic and even lethal if ingested in overdose quantities. By pre-mixing it it is easier to work with and you are less likely to make a dangerous mistake. Likewise - it is dyed pink to make sure you don't use it accidentally as normal salt.
I made my own by buying 100% sodium nitrite from a chemical supply store and then mixing it in solution with water. SO - for one litre of water i added 65 grams of pure sodium nitrite.
I did not mix it with salt because I wanted to be sure that the nitrite was evenly dispersed. I am no chemist!
I use this as a 1:1 substitue by weight for pink salt in recipes. So if a recipe calls for 20grams of pink salt I use 20 grams of my nitrite/water mixture.
I make sure to label the bottle of water pretty dramaticaly, so no one drinks it by mistake!
It's not perfect perfect - but I have found it to be a pretty easy solution, and it does work well as a replacement for pink salt.
Feel free to email me if you want more instructions. This is pretty easy - but you want to make sure you know and understand what you are doing when you start to use these chemicals.
Hey John, my dry cured ham in a sack worked out really well, except I will never add crushed cloves to my cure mix again. It was a 6 lbs pork shoulder and it sat in cloth for 20 days and turned out really well. The meat was very moist, this always surprises me, as well as very tender. I am going to have to try different flavours, any tips, I am open to all suggestions. Thanks again.. Dean
hi John. never had any luck, getting sodium nitfite here in cha am or petchburi. nor pink salt. until I tried to get through to the people in the local chineenes shop. low and behold they had packets of preserving salt and guess what it was in pink packets????. so I got busy and made some bacon, one lot with added honey and herbs and one plain lot, both turned out well, just need to locate a slicer for my next batch. but am now making my own sausages as well, couldn't get on with the thai ones, all fat and noodles errrrr.
With all due respect, why use pink salt? You can get bacon at the supermarket that is full of that cr*p, that throws your blood pressure way out of whack, causes cancer, hyperactivity in children, etc, etc. The goal of making these things yourself is to produce foods that do not contain the chemicals that the evil scientists and lawyers put into foods.
Pink salt, or sel rose in French has only one purpose- it keeps the meat pink after it's been cooked. Why do hot dogs, ostensibly a meat product stay pink after cooking? Nitrites/ nitrates. Ditto processed sausage, bacon, etc etc. Society has been trained that prepared pork products stay pink after cooking , so if somebody makes a pork product that turns white after cooking, people think there is something wrong. Not wrong, very right. It means that you're not about to pollute your body with these dangerous chemicals. Go to a health food store and see the premium that is being charged for "uncured" bacon. All that means, is that it has no pink salt in it. Clearly, someone gets it. Buy some and experience the true sweetness of good pork that has not been adulterated with nasty chemicals.
Just use kosher (non-iodized, pure) salt, and something sweet (honey, cane sugar, etc). Beyond that, coat it with black pepper (like pancetta), or herbs, etc. for variations. Experiment with salt, time and temperature to see what effect it has on the finished product, then experiment with the flavorings. After a few months, you'll have gained a valuable skill that you will use to nourish yourself, family and friends for a lifetime, and can hopefully mentor others to follow in your footsteps. Putting Hormel et al out of business is a most noble goal.
Stay away from that pink salt cr*p, and you'll be fine.
Hi JA,
Pink salt is used to prevent botulism.
First of all, love your site. It's on my list of Favorites and I refer to it often as I smoke bacon for the restaurant I cook for (Wine Spectator Award-winning).
I usually get my pork bellies delivered in 10-12 pound bellies and I am wondering if I can cure it all, and then freeze half to smoke later? The smoker I have is a bit small...
Hi Kirsten,
I am impressed that you smoke bacon for your restaurant! Let us know where it is so anyone near can come try (Hopefully me!) What wood are you using?
You could freeze half prior to smoking without any difficulty as long as you were aware that the high fat content (and also the salt content) reduces the length of time that the bacon is freezable for.
a week or two well wrapped is no problem in the freezer, and once thawed and dried enough to develop the pellicule it will take smoke just fine.
Thanks for the question.
John
Hi John, it's been a while and I have a lot of success and a little failure since I last wrote. I have had 100% success when dry curing smaller hams in a bag over 10-14 days but about 50% on the larger ones, and by small I mean an 8lbs pork shoulder roast. I am itching to try my hand at making sausages and I was wondering if you had any sausage recipes you would be willing to share.
Just a short blurb on what I did with the hams. I would cover them in curing salt, 1tbs per 1 lbs, and a generous helping of real maple syrup. leave and flip in bag over 10-14 days depending on size. After time in fridge I would soak in cold water for 1 hour then leave in fridge for 24hrs to allow a sticky film to develop on outer surface,I can't remember what that is called. then I smoke for 4-5 hours using apple-wood and then finish off in my oven for roughly 4 hours at 190 degrees. I made the mistake of giving one of my hams away as a gift and now have received calls from people asking if I would consider making hams for sale. Still doing it for fun so I had to say no. I have also had tremendous success with salami, summer and Italian sausage which you cook in large "log" type rolls wrapped in tin foil and cooked in the oven under high heat then sliced for making sandwiches, and pastrami, which is now my family's favorite luncheon meat. Amazing what one try at home made bacon can start ;)
Fun reading guys
It's been my hobby for a year know
Everyone needs a copy of Charcutrie by Michael Ruhlman & Brian Polcyn
A tremendous resource and has all the answers the questions you been looking for.
Hi john/ hi Dean.
the bacon turned out great and I have made back rashers as well, I've got a leg of pork curing at the moment and will be finished in 14 days.
Here's a basic breakfast sausage recipe, you can add your own flavourings to taste.
1kg pork shoulder
200g pork fat
100g breadcrumbs,
150ml water
5g salt,
5g pepper
2metres of casings, skins. washed well
roughly mince the pork and fat together, mix with the ingreadiants and finely mince,
stuff the casings and link into length you require, leave to rest in fridge for 24 hours.
thats it hope you enjoy them.
laura
TOO HIGH A HEAT,TRY 170 degrees.
hiya john!
this is a fabulous post - thanks!!
i sent you an email, previously, asking about to how to bbq a slab of bacon (4 lb hunk of one) on a bbq - because i have to compete in a backyard iron chef housewarming/birthday party competion thingy evnet - and the ingredients are bacon and garlic.
but - since reading further in your blog - what better way to wow everyone than to cure and smoke my own bacon? my husband is a nearly pro weekend warrior at the bbq, and i'm not a novice in the kitchen - AND we have a smoker which makes it easier. CAN"T WAIT to do this.
if i do 2 - what better b-day/housewarming gift than a 4-5 lb hunk of our own, housemade bacon? the other one will be ours - which i can use a bit of to make a cassoulet, and then bbq the rest of it up whole at the part - taking along a serious skillet with which to make cracklins. maybe i better take my own propane burner too...
can i freeze the bacon after i smoke it? it might make a handier gift that way? or take it to them cold and suggest they freeze half of it?
any hints on a garlic rub that you like? i want to add pepper and garlic in the curing process, yes? if i rinse it to leach the salt - shall i then re-rub it with sweet/garlic/pepper before i smoke it?
smiles, jacquie
HI Jacquie
I think bring bacon you cured and smoked yourself will definitely giev you a leg-up on the competition at your Iron Chef event!
You can certainly freeze bacon for about a month or so with little loss in flavor.
Usually when doing a garlic pepper bacon, you'd reduce the sugar in the rub, maybe cut it by half.
The garlic and pepper will flavor the bacon as it cures, and that flavor will remain even after you rinse the bacon off. If you like the look and bite of peppercorns on your finished bacon, then you'd have to add some on again prior to smoking.
Have fun!
John
Has anyone tried making ethnic style bacons such as mexican style bacon. I know its not traditional but would be interesting to stuff it with jalepeno peppers or perhaps thai chili's during the curing process. I'm just finishing up my first attempt at homemade bacon and am just thinking of the possiblity's for my second round.
A good source for pink salts and basically any butcher supplies is this company. They are located in Huntington Beach, Ca and ship basically anywhere. Thanks for the great post!
a few years ago i used a hugh fearnley whitt...... recipe to cure a leg of ham Spanish style. left the leg smothered in salt in a wooden wine box, for i cant remember how long,but it was the reciped time length,removed it and enclosed it in a net washing bag and hung it out to dry for just over a year in my garage it resembled the fabulous spanish hams seen hanging in the hot spanish bars. shortly after it started to rot. so i threw it away
Hi i would to give it a shot however i dont know were to get the pink salt in the uk could you help thanks
Hi Chris,
I just did a quick search and found this site, http://www.sausagemaking.org/ they seem to be UK based and have all you need.
Best of luck,
John
Hi, guys. I can vouch for sausagemaking.org as I've bought skins and other items from them. Love the bacon curing recipe. Will have to try it. Cheers
Thanks very much scarytaff, for letting us know
Hi john i would like to know what is wrong with using iodized salt in preparing brine and must one use pink salt thanks
Hi Chris,
The Iodine in iodized salt can leave an aftertaste. It's not a huge deal, but you're better off avoiding it by using non iodized kosher salt.
Pink salt is a mixture of salt that contains a small amount of sodium nitrite. The sodium nitrite turns the meat pink (whereas otherwise your cooked bacon would be a grey color) and also protects against botulism.
How did they do it in the olden days, when there was no pink salt? Also, aren't nitrates and nitrates bad for you? If your going to go through this whole process of making it homemade, why not also make it 100 percent pure and healthy?
Hi E,
In the olden days they used saltpeter, which is sodium nitrate, and in the olden olden days...I don't know, they probably didn't use any nitrates at all. You can make great tasting bacon without pink salt, but you do run a small risk of botulism when doing so - ultimately nitrates and nitrites are added for food safety, although they also add that characteristic pink color to bacon as well.
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mark c says:
2 years ago
great info