Guilt Pork!

[GUS]

Is what I'm due to do this weekend, guilt pork, or any food product of choice which suits your "hobby" is where you stay at home to look after the dogs whilst your partner go's off on a much needed holiday, & they "incidentally" drop some pork in the fridge to muffle out your moans of neglect along with a few beers "to help you sleep"

So, just finishing off a smoke of some back bacon then onto the next three* ..which incidentally will likely be done & mess out of the way when she is due back.

Surprising that! (not)

*which will include my first bone in streaky, ...i'm likely to impale myself aren't I!? ..never mind, **germolene & some Curious George plasters will see me through




**But, they taste awful.

[kil2k]

Sounds like a one man party!

[GUS]

Marinating ribs & speculating devisive tactics in order to get enough pork in the house, consists of threatening the nipper with a rib drought (her favourite) unless I'm allowed to purchase decent wedges of bone in pork for streaky production.

..twas a moment of devious enlightenment.

[wheels]

It's persuading Mrs Phil to leave me unsupervised in the first-place that I've yet to work out!

Phil

[GUS]

Kinda helps to have 3 too many large Boxer dogs in the house, makes more financial sense to leave an adult at home to look after them than kennel them (costs akin to pay as you go privatised health care insurance revoked when in dire need, ..patently ridiculous)...even when we supply their own food!

That said this morning they've had black pudding & sausage besides their meal of heart, stock & biscuit, ..real hardship for them.

[GUS]

Still on the subject of "guilt pork" Wheels,

I'm a tad confused / thinking too hard, when adding maple to my streaky bacon it obviously thins out & creates a more viscose liquid right!?

yet technically I'm meant to pour off liquids whilst bacon transformation works after adding pink, Prague powder #1, salt & any sugar, (I swapped out the sugar for maple, to be clear).

The pork (for it is not bacon yet) ..is being held at 2.3C so whilst I don't have any worries of it turning nasty over such a short period I am curious as to conflicting info as to curing process.

It's a small piece with a mere 5 days left to run prior to drying & smoking.

Anyone feel free to explain to "Mr Thicky" (me), ..do jump in.

[wheels]

There's really two different methods. The traditional one, as famously practiced by Brican, where the meat is kept above any liquid, or the liquid's poured off, but in either case isn't allowed to be in contact with the meat, and the 'cure in a bag' system as in the forum tutorial where everything's shoved in a bag. With the first method, wet flavourings are often added as a separate process after, instead of during, curing.

Both methods produce good bacon - I'll concede that immediately after curing the traditional method has the edge. After maturing, I defy anyone to tell the difference.

If you have the space and conditions, I can't stress enough what a difference a few weeks maturing/drying makes.

[NCPaul]

I'll chip in one more idea, to best pick up maple flavor, try injection curing on a loin. And I'm in total agreement on post drying, improves the flavor and helps with slicing.

[GUS]

Thanks both, too much reading (or too little) easily adds to confusion level

Seeing as I have multiple fridges it's not a problem, but my knowledge is, ...how long & covered or not, etc, can someone please direct me to a concise thread covering the salient points of bacon after-care please, I'd like to read up & utilise it for ageing, the first batch I made whilst nice, could've turned me on a bit more, keen to improve ..not that it'll get wasted y'understand, for tis bacon after all.

[kil2k]

This is something I intend to test as well. My first bacon batches [500g pieces] were left in a sealed bag, turned every day, and dried for 3 days in a muslin sack [in the fridge] afterwards. It was the best bacon I've ever tasted. The second lot was done very similar, but turned every two days. Each piece was three times the size of my first bacon, and didn't turn out as well. Maybe I didn't let it dry enough, but future trials should narrow down the cause.

I will also be trying BriCan's method soon, so I'll update when I've nailed it.

[GUS]

I'm a bit miffed at using all my precious smoked maldon's ..think it is a bit of overkill to be honest, will just bang in a regular salt for the last batch.

I'm a turn it every day fan myself (& why not)!? when massaging sugar it is done a bit excessively as there is no real scientific basis, it just feels right in order to get the vanilla pods in contact with every grain, maybe a tad obsessive (but not as much as my neighbours car cleaning obsession)

[wheels]

Gus,
It's difficult for me to write at length at present so I'll be brief and let you ask questions, rather than cover everything. Post cure I put my bacon in my drying chamber - around 12°C and 75 - 80% RH - for 3 or 4 weeks.

If I was using a fridge with normal fridge temps/RH I'd loosely wrap the bacon in grease-proof paper or parchment paper, put it on an open rack and check it/turn it daily. I'd probably only do this for 10 days or so, 'cos I'd be fed up by then!

Phil

[kil2k]

Gus,
I'd probably only do this for 10 days or so

I think this is where a lot of confusion comes in - at least, for the beginner. I've read things that say the bacon should be good for a week in the fridge, or three months [?] in the freezer once done, but I've also read about someone who had their bacon hanging for ~5 months, and just sliced bits off as and when needed.

Once it's cured, is there any real time frame that the bacon is good for?

[NCPaul]

If it's any help, I work on a weekend schedule. So first weekend buy, skin, and cure belly (or buy and injection cure loin). Second weekend, wish that I had bacon and continue turning daily. Third weekend, cold smoke on Fri., Sat., Sun., or Sat., Sun., Mon. resting uncovered in fridge between smokes. Forth weekend, slice and vacuum pack for the freezer. Also known as BLT weekend.

[GUS]

Thanks Guy's

That I can really get my head around & work with to the letter, shame then I have already frozen my last bacon, I should have had it out another day or two longer, ah well, more in the pipeline.