hey everyone.
i picked up some Bradley Maple Cure the other day and tried my hand at curing. thanks to Tenpoint5 for his great pictorial, it definitely helped me along. also big thanks to everyone who has contributed to this topic in the Curing forum - there is a wealth of information here!
anyhow here's the 5lb belly. along with the Bradley cure, i rubbed in some Onion Powder/Garlic Powder/Maple Syrup/Brown Sugar.
cured 10 days, soaked for 1 1/2 - 2 hours after curing, then hit it with 2 hours of Maple. it's been pretty cold up here in Ottawa so i pulled it once the IT hit 138F.
let's just say i'm never buying bacon at the grocery store ever again. WOW :)
my girlfriend didn't want to try any. i think she was traumatized to see the belly soaking in our sink (see pic #3 :D)
-monty
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Beautiful job Monty. That looks food enough to eat ;D ;D I pull my bacon at an IT of 135 so no worries.
Where did you get the cure??
Now that is just perfect looking bacon Monty!! Looks like you got yourself one of them premium slabs with more meat than normal. NOW you know why I start salivating when I hear the word BACON. I aint thinking about no store bought stuff. When is the next slab going in the cure?
Quote from: monty on January 29, 2010, 09:13:12 PM
my girlfriend didn't want to try any. i think she was traumatized to see the belly soaking in our sink (see pic #3 :D)
Anybody else thinkin' "Time to get a new girlfriend...." :D :D :D :D
Only joking of course!!! That looks AMAZING.... if mine turns out half as good, I'll be happy.
That is some nice looking bacon monty!
Great looking stuff. I just wish I could get that good of a belly out here in Ab. The best I have done is probably 50/50. The problem is I think there is not much call for it and we take what we get. Piker
Once you make it yourself, you cannot eat the store bought stuff anymore
tell her about the Argentenian announcement of the wonders of pork as an aphrodisiac
I bet she changes her mind ::)
Well done mate ! gotta love that !
Went to a butcher shop yesterday and bought a 5 lb piece of fresh side bacon. Not going to make it for a couple of weeks as my wife got a buy on bacon last week and we've got a months supply right now and she doesn't want any more for a while. We're also still working on the back bacon I made last month.
RAF it does freeze well.
Oh I know that but you can't argue with a wife, if you know what's good for you ;)
thanks everyone. 10.5 i'm thinking of starting another one this week. my dad was over last night and made away with a 1lb ;D
Quote from: Bavind on January 29, 2010, 11:22:47 PM
Where did you get the cure??
are you in Canada? they sell the Bradley cures at Le Baron. they have a store here in Ottawa. pretty sure they do mailorder too.
Quote from: ExpatCanadian on January 30, 2010, 04:34:48 AM
Anybody else thinkin' "Time to get a new girlfriend...." :D :D :D :D
lol :D
Quote from: Piker on January 30, 2010, 07:05:22 AM
Great looking stuff. I just wish I could get that good of a belly out here in Ab. The best I have done is probably 50/50. The problem is I think there is not much call for it and we take what we get. Piker
hey Piker where are you in AB? if you have a local Chinese market, try there. it's always on hand (along with pig hoof!)
Thats some damn fine lookin bacon monty, nice and meaty too.
Mmmmmmmmmm BACON.
Excellent work, Monty! You will NEVER go back to the store-bought stuff!
Mrs
THAT IS SOME GREAT BACON PORN...
Nice to hear from you MW.
Monty, where abouts are you shopping for meat in Ottawa?
Peter
Quote from: PGB on March 22, 2010, 09:29:45 AM
Monty, where abouts are you shopping for meat in Ottawa?
hey Peter. this pork belly was from T&T Supermarket on Hunt Club (they have pig hoof there too!)
my local go-to butchers are Brian's Butchery in Nepean and The Butchery in Bells Corners.
monty, I don't know how I missed this first time around but am glad I caught it on a new post.
Top Notch! I really want to try some Bacon soon.
You may have just pushed me over the Edge.
Very nice.
That looks great!
I have some curing as we speak.
I do have a question though. I noticed that your, like mine, has the skin on it. How did that turn out? I tried slicing the skin down to the meat surface but the skin was SO tough!!
How is the skin afterwards??
Thanks. Ya I was in the T&T and saw the porkbutt (along with the live king crab...man that looked good but tough to fit in a smoker.) . I have not heard of Brian's Butchery will have to check it out, how are prices at the BC Butchery, was in there the other day and didn't see any butt in the counter.
T&T seems to be the only place here in Calgary that I can get pork belly without doing a special order. You do have to watch what you get because some of it is very fatty.
CRG - thanks man! means a lot from a seasoned smoker like yourself. highly recommended. the only problem is now i need a meat slicer. i might be a single smoker if the old woman finds out i'm buying more toys :D
slamdunk - i peel the skin off while it's still warm. make sure not to remove too much fat.
PGB - Brian's doesn't have bellies or butts on hand, they have to be ordered. that's why i go to T&T or Chinatown. The Butchery has pork butt, just ask one of the guys to cut you one.
Bavind - i've had pretty good success with T&T bellies. i always ask them to cut me a 5lb piece and i usually get one with a decent amount of meat:fat. just tell the guy you're makin bacon ;D
Monty have tried peeling the rind off before curing and smoking yet? Much better flavor penetration IMHO
Quote from: Tenpoint5 on March 23, 2010, 02:56:46 PM
Monty have tried peeling the rind off before curing and smoking yet? Much better flavor penetration IMHO
10.5 - i haven't tried that before. is the skin easy to get off before it's hot? will your butcher cut it off for you?
Mine will take it off for me.
Quote from: Tenpoint5 on March 29, 2010, 03:29:47 PM
Mine will take it off for me.
thanks for the tip - i'll check with my butcher!