Homemade Bacon Dry Cured And Air Dried Recipes

HOMEMADE BACON

Steps:

• Rinse the pork belly and pat dry. Transfer to a resealable 2-gallon plastic bag. To make the spice rub, mix the kosher salt, pink salt, brown sugar, honey, red pepper flakes, paprika and cumin in a bowl. Coat the pork belly all over with the mixture.
• Close the bag and refrigerate 7 to 10 days, flipping once a day, until the pork belly feels firm. It should take 7 days for a thin belly that is about 11/2 inches thick, longer for a belly that's 2 to 3 inches thick.
• Remove the pork belly from the bag, rinse thoroughly and pat dry. Refrigerate the belly on a rack, uncovered, 48 hours.
• Set up your smoker according to the manufacturer's instructions using applewood chips, and set to 200 degrees F. Smoke the pork belly 3 hours, or until the bacon reaches an internal temperature of 150 degrees F.
• Remove the rind (optional), then slice and cook as desired. To store, wrap the bacon in plastic wrap and refrigerate up to 1 week or freeze up to 2 months.
• Pink curing salt is a mix of salt and sodium nitrite. It keeps the meat pink and protects it from bacteria. You can find it at specialty food stores or online.

HOMEMADE BACON (DRY CURED AND AIR DRIED)

Steps:

• Combine the sugar and salt. Generously rub the flesh side of the pork belly with the mixture.
• Rub the sugar and salt into the flesh some more.
• Did I mention you need to rub the 'ol pork belly down with the sugar and salt? The sides too. Make sure to get any pockets or under bits of fat - anywhere where water could accumulate. All of it, man.
• Stack the pork belly slab (or slabs) into the large plastic bin. Stick in the refrigerator and forget about it until the next day. Dump the accumulated liquid out of the plastic bin and rerub the flesh with the sugar and salt. Stack it all back in the tub and stick it in the fridge again.
• The next day, dump out any accumulated liquid and rub the sugar and salt mixture on any part of the pork belly where the salt and sugar has been completely dissolved. A thin layer will do. Repeat this process every day until liquid stops accumulating in the bin. Ours took about 10 days.
• Rinse the pork belly under water, using your fingertips to scrub off any remaining sugar and salt. Pat dry.
• Voila! Cured bacon. We ran meat hooks through ours and hung it up in the kitchen.