Have a question about my belly bacon......

[firerescueman]

Hey guys (and gals)......

I have a quick question about my belly bacon.    The recipe that I am using (I think it was Habs'.... I might be wrong) calls for 7 days of curing time..... then rinse, dry, and back into fridge for day 8 to form pellicle,  then smoke.

Here's my question,   I left the skin on and it has now been in the cure for 9 days.  Most of the pieces feel really firm but a couple of them still seem to have a couple of soft spots on the skin side.  These are not very thick pieces so it surprises me that they don't seem to be ready....

The thicker pieces seem to be ready......  Should I leave these in the cure another day or two to finish firming up?  How can I tell if the cure has penetrated completely?  Is it possible that there could be a pocket of fat under the skin that is making it feel softer than the rest of the belly?

Sorry to bother you fine folks,  but thanks for the help!


Jeff

[Habanero Smoker]

Other then slicing into it the best way to tell is the length of cure time, and firmness; and if the soft spot is fat you can't really tell by appearance. Though it would see that the thinner ones should cure faster, the thickness of the skin and fat also plays a role.

Some times it is hard to determine firmness of pork belly. You can let those pieces you are not sure of cure for another day, or you can go ahead and prepare them for smoking. In this case you are not curing to preserve you are curing for flavor. With today's refrigeration bacon is refrigerated the same as fresh meat, so you should be fine either way.

[Smoking Duck]

My belly bacon has been in the refer for 6 days now.  I haven't really noticed much change in the firmness of the meat to be honest with you.  However, I'm not sure if introducing the maple syrup to the bacon on day 3 of the cure hasn't caused some of the lack of firmness.  My bacon already had quite a bit of liquid from the cure before I introduced the maple syrup as well.  Either way, I'm not really worried about it.  My feelings are that if you follow the directions for the cure, the cure will do its job as it is intended to do.  My refer is setting at 39F right now, so maybe that has something to do with it.  Or, it could just be the belly that I got from the butcher.  There really are so many variables that IMHO, you have to trust that if you did everything correctly, it will work out.

Habs is the man when it comes to bacon and if he says you're good to go, you can take that to the bank.  If you get the chance, post some pics of the bacon when you get it done.  Everyone loves pics of bacon.

SD

[gunguy1]

Firerescueman, I have been having the same feelings about my first attempt to make bacon.  I think everyone does.  See me recent subject I started.  But, after listening to many replies, I feel much more at ease.  Before I cured the belly, I made sure that the container that they I put the peices in originally was sanitized with bleach and soap.  I made sure everything was clean.  So, like someone said in a previous post to your subject, It will work.  I am letting the belly cure for a total of 9 days.  Then will wash and soak them for two hours.  Then, Im gonna rub them with a apple juice/cider and maple syrup mixture and let em sit over night in the fridge.  Then smoke.  They should turn out great.

[KyNola]

Firerescueman and Gunguy,
I know this is hard to do but relax.  I'll wager $100 that your bacon is going to turn out just great.  My first attempt I was like an expectant father.  But as a famous chef once said "this ain't rocket science".  The cure will do its magic.  Don't stress over it.

Can't wait to read your posts when you are screaming "Oh my God, that is the best bacon ever" because it really is.

Enjoy and smoke on,

KyNola

[firerescueman]

Thanks for the replies folks.....


I breathed a sigh of relief tonight when I brought the cured belly in and soaked it for a couple of hours.  I went ahead and fried a small piece just to test for saltiness.........    OMG THIS IS GONNA BE THE BEST STUFF EVER!!!!!

I haven't even smoked it yet and I'm already in LOVE!   :o :o

I put it back in the fridge tonight (out of the cure,  but not yet on racks to dry out)  I will get it out in the morning and dry it on racks before going into the smoker.

I am reading different temps that people bring their bacon to,    what do you folks recommend?


Thanks again!   This site is the greatest!


Jeff

[Habanero Smoker]

It depends on your personal preference. The minimum is 137°F, but you should take it to 140°F to give yourself a cushion. I use this temperature for bacon with little sugar (mainly to save time during smoking). If my bacon has a lot of sugar then I'll smoke to 150°F - 152°F; it requires less time for frying and lessen the chance for burning.

[firerescueman]

Thanks Habs,

This has alot of sugar in the cure,  so I will probably go on and take it to 150 or so.   I can't wait!   (I feel like a giggling little schoolgirl!) ::) ;)


LOL


Jeff