Canadian Bacon

acords · May 25, 2006, 01:27:18 PM

I got the urge to try something new, so I ordered a Canadian bacon season pack from Butcher Packer. When I got it I found that it is designed to 20% pump, then brine. I was a bit disappointed as I really wanted to dry cure. After a few emails to the Duck Killer, and BP, I decided to give it a try. I used an injector that I use for Turkeys, and weighted them down with a couple of pint glasses in the stock pot. The directions call for 24 hr brine, but as I'm not convince that I got the full 20% so I'm letting them go till Saturday morning. I'll smoke to 160 with hickory/oak along with a rack of baby backs and give it a try. Loin was only $1.99/LB, so if it s**ks, I'm not out much. I'll take some pics, and post results.

JVR · May 25, 2006, 04:06:25 PM

I've used Butcher Packer's canadian bacon kit before. Its turns out well!

BigSmoker · May 25, 2006, 05:09:32 PM

Keep us posted I bet it will be just fine ;D :P.

jaeger · May 25, 2006, 08:58:56 PM

Quote from: acords on May 25, 2006, 01:27:18 PM
I got the urge to try something new, so I ordered a Canadian bacon season pack from Butcher Packer. When I got it I found that it is designed to 20% pump, then brine. I was a bit disappointed as I really wanted to dry cure. After a few emails to the Duck Killer, and BP, I decided to give it a try. I used an injector that I use for Turkeys, and weighted them down with a couple of pint glasses in the stock pot. The directions call for 24 hr brine, but as I'm not convince that I got the full 20% so I'm letting them go till Saturday morning. I'll smoke to 160 with hickory/oak along with a rack of baby backs and give it a try. Loin was only $1.99/LB, so if it s**ks, I'm not out much. I'll take some pics, and post results.

acords,
Don't forget to rinse well and soak in fresh clean water for at least 1 hour. Even without the dry cure you should rinse well and soak before you smoke it.

acords · May 26, 2006, 10:01:52 AM

Will do on the soak thing, thanks!! Should I expect a pellicle to form??

jaeger · May 26, 2006, 08:20:50 PM

Quote from: acords on May 26, 2006, 10:01:52 AM
Will do on the soak thing, thanks!! Should I expect a pellicle to form??

Sorry, no pellica on the canadian bacon. :)
Just for your reference, when I smoke one 8#loin it usually takes about 4-5 hours to an I.T. of 155F. I usually cut it in half and use 2 racks.
Let us know how it turns out!

acords · May 27, 2006, 01:03:42 PM

Smoked for 4 hours hickory/oak combo. Total of 6 hrs to a temp of 160. The seasoning from Butcher Packer was $6.00 :). Shipping was $7.00 :( :( :(. This will do 35lbs of meat, so total cost per lb is not to bad. Verdict YUMMMMYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

jaeger · May 27, 2006, 10:09:19 PM

Looks nice acords!!!
There are a lot of uses for canadian bacon. Just tonight my wife made a version of quesadilla with tortilla shells and canadian bacon. They were great. If you haven't tried pizza on the grill now would be a great time to give it a try.

Oldman · May 28, 2006, 07:07:10 AM

I got to try this one day, but I think I will T-Shirt smoke it. After smokin' it I will wrap it in plastic and give it a week's time to mellow though-out.
Olds

BigSmoker · May 28, 2006, 01:08:10 PM

Looks like it was a big success ;D :P.

whitetailfan · May 29, 2006, 07:49:20 AM

Looks like a fabulous job there.

Quote from: acords on May 26, 2006, 10:01:52 AM
Will do on the soak thing, thanks!! Should I expect a pellicle to form??

Definitely soak and scrub...glad you did it. It's not really one of those things you want to learn from experience (like I did). Better to learn from other people's over salty meat ;)
I find that there is pellicle when I do something similar for smoked pork chops. Leave it long enough and it will get dry and tacky, I find that there is less black smudge on your loin if you wait for the pellicle.

MallardWacker · May 29, 2006, 06:00:56 PM

acords,

Did you get much flavor from the brine??? That looks good...not bad for the first haul.

acords · May 30, 2006, 01:07:30 PM

Quote from: MallardWacker on May 29, 2006, 06:00:56 PM
acords,

Did you get much flavor from the brine??? That looks good...not bad for the first haul.

Duck Dude

They tasted fabulous. Very happy with the way they came out. The flavor is a bit on the mild side, but another day or so in the brine may fix that. I'm also thinking on going with straight oak too. A couple of pieces of dark rye, some mayo and mustard-maybe some cheese. I almost look forward going to work with that in my lunch. Thanks for your help!!

Biggun · May 30, 2006, 03:04:19 PM

Fine looking stuff, Acords! My last batch of HM loin, properly cured this time :-[,, came out much better. I'm looking forward to trying the BP stuff for comparison- sure looks good!

Habanero Smoker · June 26, 2006, 03:24:23 PM

Once a year I go to a two day jazz festival and meet up with some people that I haven't seen since last year. During this time one of the things that we do is to try out do each other in the food and/or beverages we bring. Last year I brought my pastrami, which was a great hit. This year I thought I would give Canadian bacon a go. I also brought some strawberry flavored vodka, so that may have had an influenced on the group's perception of taste (not to mention the rum, tequila and wine that others brought :P).

I bought about 8.8 pounds of pork loin, and after trimming the fat I had 7.5 pounds of loin to make bacon. Using Morton's Tender Quick, I used the dry cure recipe on the Morton site with some modifications. I cut the loin in two pieces (3.5 and 4 pounds) so they would fit on the tray, and make them more manageable for curing. The bacon came out great. When it was placed on a platter with cheese, crackers, salami and pepperoni, the Canadian bacon was gone long before the salami and pepperoni. Here is what I did.

Canadian Bacon
Pork loin (cut into 3 - 4 pound sections)
1 Tbl. Morton Tender Quick per pound
1 tsp. dark brown sugar per pound
1 tsp. garlic powder per pound
1 tsp. onion powder per pound

Trim fat from pork loin, and cut into 3 to 4 pound sections. Thoroughly mix Morton Tender Quick with the other dry ingredients. Rub the entire mixture on to the loin, (When I measured the dry ingredients, I did it separately for each piece of loin, depending on the weight). Place loins into separate sealable plastic bags, and remove as much air as possible. Cure meat in the refrigerator at 36° - 40°F. Morton states, allow to cure for 3-5 days (I cured mine for 6 days). Once a day turn meat over. You do not have to open the bags, if some liquid has formed, I gave the bag a few shakes to redistribute the liquid. Remove loin from cure. Soak loin in cool water for 30 minutes; pat dry. Refrigerate uncovered overnight, or long enough to allow to dry and to form pellicle on the surface. You may also see an iridescent sheen on the surface. OPTIONAL: at this point I used butcher's twine and tied the loin every 3-4 inches. I just wanted it to keep a more rounded shape.

Place loins into a 200° F preheated Bradley. Apply maple smoke for two hours, and continue to cook until an internal temperature of 150° F is reached. Remove loins from smoker, and tent foil until loins are cool enough to be handled by hand. Wrap each piece tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two days.

Cut into 1/8 inch thick slices and serve (if serving with crackers you may have to quarter each slice).

It is important to take the internal temperature of each piece of loin. I had two pieces in the smoker, and one piece took 45 minutes longer to reach 150° F. I'm not that familiar with this cut of meat. Is there more then one type of muscle in this cut?