Originally Posted by
Henry Krinkle
It's pretty straightforward. Back bacon, or even refrigerator side bacon, are some of the easiest things to cure. I use good quality pork tenderloins instead of loin. That is both a preference and a way to shorten the cure time.
Take two litres of water
90 grams kosher salt, which is 6 tablespoons. Different grades of salt occupy different volumes, so using a tablespoon is only good if you are using kosher. Weight is always a better way to go.
20 grams sodium nitrate, also known as Cure #1. Cure #1 is available from butcher supply stores and some small butcher's. It might even be found at giant sporting goods stores like Cabellas. Bacon can easily be made without sodium nitrate, but the cure time will be considerably longer and the salt sugar content will be raised. I find that bacon made without sodium nitrate tends to be significantly saltier.
125 grams of sugar. White sugar works fine, brown sugar gives a little more molasses flavour.
That is a basic brine. Bring all these ingredients to a simmer and stir until the salt and sugar have dissolved. Cool. Chill in the fridge. Flavourings, if desired, would be added into the brine when heating. The one I made had garlic, lemon, thyme and sage. One could add juniper and pepper, or maple syrup, or go Asian with some Chinese five spice. The variations are endless. Nothing but the brine is pretty tasty too.
When the brine is cooled add 1-2 kilos of tenderloin or pork loin. Make sure it is completely submerged. I often use giant ziplock bags and squeeze all the air out. If you use a ziplock keep it in a large container, because it may leak. Put in the fridge for 72 hours. Rinse with cool tap water and pat dry with paper towel. Put the bacon on a wire rack and return to the fridge. Let stand uncovered in the fridge for 24-30 hours.
You have now made basic bacon! Here's the only thing you need to know. Don't worry if it looks slightly greyish pink on the outside. When you slice into it, it should be bright pink/red throughout. If it is off colour in the centre, even normal pork colour, it is improperly cured and you should cook all of it immediately, or freeze it, or discard it. I have under-cured duck breast bacon and I always cook it and have never gotten sick. It is just not as bacony as one would like towards the centre. Just don't leave it uncooked in your fridge.
Slice.
Fry.
Enjoy.
It will safely store in the fridge for a couple of weeks, but I slice mine up and freeze small packages of it for later use. You can mix it up a bit and change volumes, but even with sugar, which is a curative on it's own, you want to maintain a salt content of around 5%, somewhat more if using only salt rather than a slat/sodium nitrate blend.
Likes: 13,204
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote