Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2007 8:37 pm Post subject: yraditional bacon curing.
if you go to sainsburys in the week take a look at the bacon isle,everything from basics at 99p a pound to dutchy originals dry cure bacon at over £18.00 per Lb!!!!!!!!!!! most bacon these days isnt realy bacon as we think of it,pork is injected with brine and left for 24 hours then sliced and packed,thats what the white scum is when you cook it! also the brine adds weight!so you are paying for water!!!! :banghead: also mixed into the brine are artificial preservatives,the product needs this as isnt realy cured and there fore will go off when not in a vac pack! even dry cures contain preservatives in the salt rub.I for one am allergic to the preservatives and cant eat bacon baught from the shop!!! :angry4:
last year i worked at a farm shop cutting plant and there i was given the job of bacon curer,and it is realy easy! i cant see how the shops can get away with the price! i started to make my own bacon at home,minus the preservatives in the rub as i now make my own rub(see lets make bacon baby in this forum for the recipe).
Tonight gareth and i made 20lb of dry cured streaky bacon and it took only 30 minutes! it will take 4 days to cure then i shal smoke it.
below is the basics of bacon making.pork,rubs and knife
firstly the ribs need cutting off and put aside for the BBQ,your butcher will gladly do this for you.also trim the flare fat and trim any mis-shaped edges off the piece.
next turn the meat skin side up,and stab/ pierce the skin all over with a knife point,dont go too deep 1cm should do!(It helps to think of 'psyco'shower scene!)
next spinkle the rub mix libraly onto the skin side and rub in hard ,pushing the rub in with the heel of yer hand:
next turn the meat over and repeat the process,ensuring that you rub the mix into all the seams and folds.
not forgetting the sides of the meat,use plenty of rub,dont be shy!!!
and here you have the final product ! best hung in a fridge or outside in the winter,when hhanging outside i put it in a pillow case to keep the bugs off! this time of year i just pop mine in a bag and place in the bottom of the fridge for 4 days,at which time i pat it dry with a cloth and smoke it,its ready to try now and is fine if you like 'green' bacon.
I tried some curing using a brine and was far to salty. I then soaked it again in clear water to rid it of the salt thus defeating the purpose of the cure. I could of just left it in the freezer.
Also is it hot or cold smoked and what fuel and for how long?
wet cured bacon is no where as good as dry cured,the dry cure pulls a fair bit of moisture out of the meat so intensifying the flavour,this particular rub works a treat and won awards up and down the country.3-4 days is about right,the longer the saltier. once its hung for the alloted amount of time i just rinse lightly under the cold tap then pat dry,only wrap it in baking parchment/paper,in plastic it will sweat.this recipe keeps about 6 weeks in the fridge,it might keep longer but it gets eaten! as for the smoking i cold smoke mine for 2 hours with oak.
dry cure rub for bacon and gammons:
2lb salt,
6 cloves,*
12 bay leaves,*
8 table spoons juniper berries,*
8 table spoons thyme,*
1 table spoon black pepper corns,*
2 table spoons dark brown sugar,
* grind to a coarse look.
then mix all together,this cure can benifit from leaving for a couple of days for the salt to drawout the juniper ,but i have used it streight away.this amount of rub should do up to 6 loins,or more!
Just to start a whole loin of dry cured back bacon as well as some gammon from bone in leg joints. Was thinking of adding some loin to the wet cure too to see how it turns out. We are finding with the dry cured back we are losing a lot of the eye of the meat. Any ideas? Also have a whole belly to heavily dry cure will then hot smoke as a pancetta - will keep around three months in the fridge that way.
Our dy cure is a lot more basic that yours though Fish - will add some bay to the dry cure and a little juniper to see how it turns out.
I normally leave it about 5 or 6 days for back. Don't notice it with the steaky but definitely with the back. Its not as if there is any added water or additives to come out either!
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