Bacon in April 2012

I just finished my first batch of bacon for 2012 and thought I'd post some pics of it. To the left are pics of this batch from one hog belly, except for the two hunks I'd taken out of the smoker earlier and forgot to include in the pic. On the far right you can see the inside of the bacon because I cut into one hunk for supper.

The house is still full of the smell of smoking bacon, and that's great. This batch was done with apple wood, and I liked the smoke from the larger chunks of apple wood more than the smoke from the little chips of hickory you buy in the stores.

Since I'm still in my first year of curing my own bacon, each time is a learning experience. Hopefully I'll get it all together and post a final post on making bacon. The first time I learned not to pile the salt on like you're baking a fish in a salt dome. So this time I salted lightly and appropriately. However, I put the bacon in salt on March 20, 2012, and didn't get it smoked until April 8, 2012. That's too long in the salting process. The bacon didn't end up salt pork, but it was a close call.

The second thing I've decided is that I want to cure the bacon in larger slabs. For some reason, maybe because it's what I'm used to buying, I keep cutting the slabs into pieces about the size of what I'd buy in the grocery. I decided that's really not the way to go with it. I'm going to keep the slabs in the largest pieces possible on the next batch. Once they're cured and smoked, I'll cut them into sizes appropriate for storing.

The third thing I've decided is that I need a different smoker. I bought a propane Char-Broil Smoker and thought that would work for the bacon. However,  I've decided it's simply too hot for the way I want to smoke bacon. Everything I've read recommends a cool smoke for curing bacon, and after this last batch I think I'm going to try that route. A bit ago I saw a smoker with the bin on one side, and the racks for the meat in a different chamber. I want to try that for curing the bacon.

This time I had all three racks full of bacon, and after about two hours I noticed grease pooling on the patio around the legs. When I checked on it, enough grease from the bacon had dripped into the pan holding the wood that I was worried about overflow of grease and blow up from the grease spilling into the propane flame.

Ah, no problem, thought I. I'll just get my ladle and scoop some of that grease out. Don't try that if your ladle isn't stainless steel. Otherwise, you'll simply melt your ladle.

The last thing I've learned is that you really have to shop and search for a place to purchase the hog belly. The first I bought from the good meat market in Memphis, Charlie's, and it didn't cost more than $35. The second I ordered from a local grocery in Carlisle County, and that price was $120 for not much different poundage. I ordered one from a butcher near Paducah, but they never ever called me to let me know the order was in. What? Did they think I wasn't serious about the order? So Max agreed to take time from work to drive over to Charlie's in Memphis and get this last one. Again, 30-something pounds of hog belly for about $35.00.

Don't ask me what's up with the meat market. I can't figure it out.

Smoke-Cured Bacon

Yay!  I finally smoked my own homemade bacon. Lemme tell ya, the smell of the house is still making my mouth water.

With a little trepidation, we got a propane smoker  - would it have the same great taste? You betcha. So far it beats the charcoal smoker hands down. It's going to take a bit of learning to get used to it. It gets a lot hotter a lot quicker than the charcoal smoker.

Not having to buy and deal with charcoal makes me a cleaner, happier camper. "How about that smoky taste," you ask? Fantastic. Half of a small bag of wood chips in the drawer above the burner supplies more than enough smoke for a short smoke. This one took 2.75 hours, but it should have gone slower than it did.  I used the whole bag, but it wasn't necessary.

On first use, I'm tickled pink. I'll post later results of different meats as I use and learn it.

Today I smoked two slabs of bacon and a chicken. Both turned out darker than I would have wished, but as I said, it got far hotter far quicker than I expected.  The taste, however, is incredible. My dad even ate two pieces of chicken at one meal, and he's not done that since I've been staying with him.

This is a pic of the bacon. On the bottom is one with a lot of pepper on it. On the top is a simple salt cure. The pepper cure is now frozen for Max. Dad and I will rip into the salt cure tomorrow. Hopefully, I'll learn how to slow the process down and get less black on the next batch.

If one looks into the economy of making bacon, it can't be beat. The cost of the pork belly was $21.90 for 20 pounds. The cost of the salt was likely $ .35. The cost of the propane was perhaps $1.50, if that. The whole tank was $14.00. The cost of the wood chips was, I think, $1.89.  That works out to about  $1.28 per pound. The cost of the smoker was $139.00. That will pay for itself in a short time.

I foresee smoked ribs, roasts, and salmon in our future. I'm not one much for the salmon, but we've a friend we take some to every now and then. I foresee a big fish going on a rack the next time we go to Oak Ridge. Does tuna smoke well?  I've not heard much about it. There's nothing better for Thanksgiving than a smoked turkey. If I find a local hunter that gets a deer this fall, I'll be glad to trade smoking privileges for a roast. Hint, hint, locals!

Now I'm wondering if I can control it enough to do jerky. It might be difficult. It would certainly take a day without wind. Today was terribly windy, and once when I turned it to the low setting, it simply went out. Something to look into, mmmm.

Well, one can tire of too much smoked meat in too short a period. This new smoker with its ease of use and economy means we'll be using it more frequently than the twice a year we used to use the charcoal smoker anyway.

Restaurant and Getting Back

Ooo, la la.  We did the lunch at Red Lobster. I was in heaven.  Rock lobster, Maine lobster, shrimp and langostino. Of course, it was so much that I'm still eating on it, and that was Sunday. I have one meal left - that would be the rest of the Maine lobster and the shrimp.

Of course, I didn't do all the things I thought I would while in Memphis, but at least got an appointment to get my hair cut and dyed in two weeks when I'm home again. Argh. It's beginning to look pretty shaggy and scary.

On Saturday we went to, sigh, WallyWorld, and got a smoker. Yay! Can't wait to try it out on the homemade bacon. I brought it (the smoker) up to west Ky. since I'm now here more than in Memphis. I oven cured the batch from last week so Max could try some while I was there to learn if he liked it.  I think I have a convert. Got a good pic of him cooking it for brunch.

Now I have to wait for a nice strong young man to help me move the smoker from the car to the back of the house. These out-of-condition, too-old muscles of mine can't manage it. I suppose two of us girls could do it, but nice strong young men are so much more fun to watch.

Bacon

Today we had to open a package of store-bought bacon because we're out of homemade bacon. Wah! I discovered I spoiled myself on one batch of bacon. The purchased bacon was not the best brand nor the cheapest; it's a thick cut, hickory-smoked bacon. A month ago, I would have thought it just fine. Not anymore. I've created a monster in me.

Time to Slice the Bacon

It's time to slice the bacon I've been trying to make. On the left you can see the three different cures I'm trying. At the bottom is a salt and pepper cure; in the middle is a rosemary, mustard and salt cure. On the top is a plain salt cure.

These were all cut from one slab of pork belly.  The salt one is smaller because we've been eating from it. It's delicious.

These slabs were the ones that I left at my parents' house last Monday. They were salted on Saturday and Sunday, and then put in the freezer Monday afternoon because I forgot them and couldn't tend to them.

When I came back the next Monday, Feb. 21, 2001, I defrosted them that day. I cured them the following day, Tuesday. Dad and I ate the salt cure for breakfast both Tuesday and today. The slices Dad and I had before cooking were just as delicious as the ones after cooking. Today they've been sliced, packaged and put in the freezer.

Back in Memphis

Oh, it's so nice to be home. This has been my sit and recoup day. I've done nothing but read news, email, blogs and played solitaire while listening to "Off Armageddon Reef" by David Weber. That man can sure get caught up in descriptions of arms and battles. Except that's it such a nice long audio book, I could do without a couple hours of that stuff.

I stayed home, as the maintenance people were supposed to come change the filter on the heater. If you have pets you're supposed to lock them up in a bedroom if you're not home. Like my killer cats are going to ravage them, purrrrr. Take a litter box, food, and two cats in a bedroom? I don't think so. Like I can't change a filter? Gimme a break. Only they never showed up. Dammit. Wasted a whole day. Amazingly, I actually had plans to go out today, which is against pattern on 1st-day-back day. I was going to go out and pick up the knitting needles and stop by the hair salon to see if I could get a trim.

Just as I pulled into the parking lot yesterday, I realized I left my cooler back in Ky. Grrrrrrr. Had to call the sitter to get her to put everything up. It was especially galling as I was so excited about Max tasting the, err, salt pork I made, and I also had another batch started that would hopefully not turn out to be salt pork. It's supposed to be in the freezer now. Maybe that won't spoil the process. Will just have to see.

Salt Pork

That's what you get when you put too much salt on the pork belly you're trying to turn into bacon. Delicious salt pork, but salt pork nonetheless. Sigh, well, we now have enough salt pork to last, um, about 3 years. That's because we try to keep our consumption of it down to about 2 or 3 times a year.

I fried up a few slices of the plain salt and the salt, mustard & rosemary cures.  The salt, mustard & rosemary was so salty there was no way I could detect the flavors of the mustard or rosemary.  I don't know if they enhanced the salt uptake, but this cure was far saltier than the plain salt cure. I'll have to have Max test the salt and pepper cure.  He's the black pepper eater.

There are three more hunks of the same cures going again. This time with far less salt.

What went on today

Lessee - it snowed again today. Beautiful. About 1.5 inches for a total of 4.5-5 inches. After noon, I decided it was time to go the grocery store, either we really roughed it out if it continued, or peace reigned if I went to the store. I slipped and slid at 20 mph to the store.  Thank TBTB for small towns and grocery stores a quarter of a mile away. An hour after I got home, I think the plow came by on the road. And also it quit snowing.

I had to put off the hissy fit if no ice cream bars were in the house for Joe. They have to be doled out by 2 a day to prevent accidents of the really smelly kind.  We hide them in the freezer in the fridge in the basement and reload the upstairs freezer every day. But Joe, not being of sound mind, although not totally stoopid on things of import to him at the moment, realizes there's no box of ice cream bars in the refrigerator. Every now and then his demands to go to the store have to be actually answered to preserve the illusion.

Travel Day Turned to Snow Day

What a surprise. I woke up at 9 this morning to a winter wonderland, or the beginnings of one. Since Paducah was supposed to be hit harder than we, I called the parents' house, and learned, yes, it had been. One of the sitter's husband took an hour and a half to get work.  That's sooo not normal.  Chicken that I am, and really feeling my mortality, I didn't travel today.  Like, I really don't wanna get in an accident and have to mend broken bones.

It was nice to be able to be at home. I got to finish up stuff.  The followers for the cheese press finally got cut and sanded. Clean up got done - all  most of the tools left out from making the cheese press got put away.  Max can again eat supper on his end of the dining table.

The bacon experiment is coming along nicely. Every evening I've been draining the baggies, rinsing them and wiping dry; patting the slabs dry with paper towels, and adding a bit of salt and seasoning. There hasn't been a lot of liquid collecting, by that I mean tablespoonsful, but more along the lines of a teaspoonful. The plain salt slab has released the most liquid. The largest difference I've noted is that the slabs originally fit in the gallon-sized freezer bags only vertically, and now they fit horizontally. I can push them down to the end of the bag, roll it up, and zip it. This means they've shrunk in length by a half inch at least.

Tonight I made a batch of Lebanese Garlic Sauce. Since I stopped at the Arabic Market next door to Charlie's Meat Market when I bought the pork belly, I have a couple of lovely bags of homemade pita bread. That called for a near eastern sauce. I adapted a recipe from DedeMed.

Sunday Wrap Up Day

Today is Sunday, and that means the last day I have at home before the travel day of Monday. Presently, I'm living with my elderly parents every other week. Tomorrow I travel back to my parents. Sundays are the wrap-up days - I try to wash all my clothes for the next week, finish off home tasks, etc. I always have great plans for going to the grocery store in this larger metropolitan area for my parents, but in reality I'm so happy to be "in" my home that the day can easily pass without me getting out.

Unfortunately, this will all be changing soon.  At the end of the month, due to financial reasons, I'll be moving in with my parents and will only get home every other weekend. That will require a ton of changes, and I must admit I'm not looking forward to them.

Today I'm hoping to finish up a cheese press I've been working on, wash my clothes, organize some paper work, and do some housework. Also, I've been thinking about this blog, getting one on blogspot, for a while and decided today was the day to give it a try.  Internet connection at my parents is via Verizon wireless right now, and it's slow as mud. So today is the day to do it whilst I still have fast internet connection.

Yesterday I picked up my pork belly from Charlie's Meat Market. What a hoot! Six slabs of uncured bacon at approximately 3 pounds each. I froze 5 and started on the curing of the sixth. I cut it into 3 parts and am using 3 different cures on each. One is simply salt. One is salt and pepper - that's for Max. One is salt, mustard and rosemary - that's for me.

One site recommends 7 days curing. Another site says they prefer only 5 days. I'll have to learn which one suits our tastes. I'm excited about trying this and looking forward to the results. After all I bought 20 pounds of pork belly for $21.90.  When's the last time anyone got bacon for a little over $1.00 a pound? The curing only takes a few minutes each day - initial seasoning and a pinch more each day thereafter. The salt isn't expensive, and the other seasonings are usually on hand. Hopefully, it'll be a win.