Bacon Success

It's bacon!

This stuff is so good, that once again, I'm flummoxed trying to understand why people of a certain bygone generation ever let themselves be seduced away from Real Food.

I truly do not understand it. This was not even very hard to do, although I realize I have a refrigerator and an oven and plastic bags... maybe it was a little harder for our ancestors.

After its day of rest in the frig, getting nice and dry, I put the bacon in the oven, 200 degrees for about 2 1/2 hours. I tested it with a thermometer and took it out when it got to 150 degrees.









Then I started slicing. This takes patience...









Of course, as the Chief Cook and Bottle Washer, I had to fry some up and make sure it passed the Taste Test:







Isn't that gorgeous?






Here's the pile of sliced bacon:








I wrapped these in packages of four slices, since two each is the most we can have at one serving (proving I do TRY to show constraint). It all went into the freezer to await Saturday morning pancakes.

The taste was deep and rich. Next time, I will probably use less mixture - less salt and less sugar. I may even leave the sugar out and keep it savory, trying out various herbs. I definitely want to do this again!

The Bacon

The curing is done (I think) and now the bacon is drying:



The next step would be smoking, but I'm not going to be smoking it. I'm not clear on whether I must roast it to 150 degrees, or if I can just slice it and cook it up, at this point.

Does anyone know?

Since all the instructions I've found have said to either smoke it or roast it, I guess I'll roast it, unless someone can tell me otherwise. That will happen tomorrow.

Bacon Day 3

Here's what the bacon looks like after curing for a few days.




I think it's behaving just right, since by now it's supposed to be letting out lots of juice. A few more days of this still to go...

Making Bacon

Part of my share of the Berkshire hog was a side of bacon. Fresh meat that needs to be cured. I thought I'd chronicle my first attempt at making bacon.

Here's the slab of meat. Sorry, I don't know how much it weighs, but probably about 4 pounds:



Here's a mixture of kosher salt and brown sugar: I used about 1/3 cup of each.



Adding 1/4 cup maple syrup:



Here's the slab with the mixtuer rubbed all over it (showing meat side up):



The slab is placed in a plastic bag (I used a garbage bag since I didn't have anything else big enough). It goes in the frig for seven days, turing it over the first few days.




After that, I dry it and smoke it. Fun, no?