Strange question maybe...

[Toker]

Hi I'm in process of making bacon, but my heat element failed (burnt) new one is on his way but not in time for tomorrow so i was thinking about a plan. Please tell me if my plan sound good enough to try.

My plan is cold smoking it then plugging my Auber PID into my Excalibur 3900 to cooking it cause my kitchen oven only start at 200 F and i need to cooking it at 150 F max. It's belly bacon not Canadian. Would it work? What do you think about my plan?

[OU812]

Just my thinking but the dehydrator might dry it out a bit.

You could set your oven on low and when it hits your desired temp shut it off.

Throw your belly in, close the door and have an temp probe in there with it.

Watch the temp and when it drops turn your oven back on then when the temp is with in 10 deg of your desired temp turn it off again and so on and so forth.

If it gets to hot prop the door open for a wile.

Kinda like a human PID.  ;D

Grab a beer or what ever trips your trigger and baby sit that belly, it dont take long.

[Phone Guy]

I have cured and smoked lots of bacon. Mostly shoulder but just last night I smoked about 14lbs of bellys. I put the smoker at 200 and took it out at 140f IT it worked out just fine. I think you could make it work. I like what OU812 said about putting it in the oven ontil the min. temp is reached then turn the oven off. You might be able to add a little liguid smoke to the curing bacon now to get a smoke flavor. I think you are fine at 200f.

[OU812]

I was thinking cold smoke it first.  ;D

[Phone Guy]

Cold smoking is the answer to the smoke. 200F is fine for finishing the bacon. Trust me. Just take it to 140 and you are Golden!

[Toker]

Of course i will cold smoke it first :) but at 200 the bacon will fat out. It did with a temp of 160, so i guess it will at 200F I usually cook it between 140-150 MAX (or the fat drip). 200 is for Canadian bacon not for bellies. And i HATE liquid smoke :)

I don't see why the Excalibur would dry it out more than the oven at the same temp. Is there anything I'M missing?

But THX for your input.

But wait, i remember, i have an old roaster oven that i could set at 150 and hook my PID looks better and easier than the regular oven idea but THX OU812 :)

[Phone Guy]

I guess there are many different ways of making bacon. The bellys last night were about 60 deg when I put them in the smoker with the smoker at 120 for an hour. I then cranked up the temp setting on the Auber to 200 and applied smoke. However the temp in the BS never fully got to 200 due to the meat keeping the temp from rising fast. It took about 3.5 hours to get the bellies to 140 and it didn't "Fat Out". It came out just like I expected and tasted great. I suspect a kitchen oven would get to 200 pretty fast and I guess that could cause the "Fat Out".

[KyNola]

Toker,
I'm not trying to disagree with you but I always smoke/cook my belly bacon at 200 degrees.  I take it to an IT of 152 and remove it.  I have never had a problem with it fatting out.  Fatting out is more of an IT issue rather than a cooking temp issue.  That's why you see the sausage makers pulling their sausages at an IT of 152 because a higher IT causes the sausage to begin to fat out.

[Piker]

Check your manual on your oven. I hold the baking button down for 60 secs. and a plus minus figure shows up. By changing the temo control up or down I lower my oven yemp by as much as 30 deg. if I want.  My oven only goes down to 170f so I lower the baking reading to -10 deg. so the oven  is at 160f. Hope this makes sense. The stove is an Inglis. Piker

[wyoduke]

My last time doing belly bacon i cold smoked and let it sit 2 days and sliced it you are going to fry it why cook it 2 times i had 70 degrees for a hi temp but thats just me ;D

[Toker]

Well Wyoduke i seriously think that's the way i will go for this time. THX

[Tenpoint5]

I would give the bacon a shot at the lowest temp in the oven. You might have to crack the door to get the temp to drop some. But like Kynola said it shouldn't start fatting out until you get above 152º. You should be just fine smoking then putting it in the oven.