Smoking Fresh Pork Belly

[Rocklobster]

I have a couple of slabs of fresh pork belly I am going to smoke. I plan on giving them a rub (not cure) and then smoking them for a few hours. My goal is to let them cool and then slice and fry or use in various other recipes. Should my internal temp be 225? Or can I pull them earlier if I intend to fry them up later? Anybody want to share some pork belly wisdom?

[pacanis]

I have no wisdom when it comes to pork belly, but they are on my to-do list. I'm going to brine/cure mine then smoke it and turn it into bacon.
I was hoping you were going to make some bacon and be my mentor

[Andy M.]

Although I've never done this, it seems to me internal temp shouldn't be 225ºF! Smoker temp maybe. If you smoke the PBs for "few hours" they are pretty much going to be cooked through. Maybe not to the point of being really palatable but cooked to a safe temp and smokie.

[Rocklobster]

I was wondering if I should bring it up to a sufficient temp to kill bacteria. I guess as long as the outside is cooked to temp the inside should be safe if I fry it after slicing? I wasn't really looking to make bacon just fresh smoked pb. Thanks, fellers.

[Andy M.]

Well, I think if you smoke it at 225º for a few hours it should be over 145ºF. If not, it'd be close. And, yes, frying would finish the job.

[pacanis]

Originally Posted by Andy M.

Well, I think if you smoke it at 225º for a few hours it should be over 145ºF. If not, it'd be close. And, yes, frying would finish the job.

Frying right away, or after storing it a bit?
We're getting into that territory (that's been brought up before) if it's OK to precook something not quite to temp and finish later. General thought seemed to be you better cook it through the first time.
I'm sure Jennyema could chime in here.
I'm leaning towards Rock better cook it all the way through if he doesn't plan on frying and eating it all right away. But that's going by previous subject matter.

[pacanis]

And Just to say, 145F should be good with most pork, but low and slow and pork bellies has me wondering, too.

[Andy M.]

Originally Posted by pacanis

Frying right away, or after storing it a bit?
We're getting into that territory (that's been brought up before) if it's OK to precook something not quite to temp and finish later. General thought seemed to be you better cook it through the first time.
I'm sure Jennyema could chime in here.
I'm leaning towards Rock better cook it all the way through if he doesn't plan on frying and eating it all right away. But that's going by previous subject matter.

What I was trying to say is that smoking the PB for a few hours as Rock stated should get the internal temp to 145º F, which is the safe cooking temp for pork. Then he could refrigerate it until he was ready to finish the preparation (not the cooking) by frying it.

[Rocklobster]

I was planning on smoking it for later consumption. I would like to wrap it in foil, let it cool overnight and then slice it nice and thick on an electric slicer. Some for frying or adding to beans, and some to give away...

[pacanis]

Originally Posted by Andy M.

What I was trying to say is that smoking the PB for a few hours as Rock stated should get the internal temp to 145º F, which is the safe cooking temp for pork. Then he could refrigerate it until he was ready to finish the preparation (not the cooking) by frying it.

The part where you said it would be close and frying would finish the job threw me.

[Andy M.]

Originally Posted by pacanis

The part where you said it would be close and frying would finish the job threw me.

I could have been clearer. I intended that if it was close, you could keep it on the smoker a bit longer until it reached the minimum safe temp then frying would be the last step in preparing the dish.

I should reread stuff for clarity before I post.

[pacanis]

It was probably on the edge of my mind waiting to fall onto the keyboard because the topic has been brought up before. I may have read it to literally.

But at any rate, keep us updated, Rock.

[FrankZ]

Are you trying to make uncured bacon?

[Rocklobster]

Originally Posted by FrankZ

Are you trying to make uncured bacon?

I guess so. I'm not really shooting for bacon. Just smoked pork belly, that I can use for other recipes. I realize it's fresh and I can't let it sit around for long after the smoking process. Just experimenting.

[FrankZ]

Smoked pork belly without a curing agent, sliced thin, kinda sounds like uncured bacon.

That said, my sausage book suggest running the smokehouse about 135F until the surface is dry and then lowering the temp until you reach 128F internal.

I like hickory myself.

The downside of no cure is if it takes too long in the smoker at those temps you could be promoting bad bad things, but I don't suspect you will have this sitting for 10 hours or something like that.

[Rocklobster]

Originally Posted by FrankZ

Smoked pork belly without a curing agent, sliced thin, kinda sounds like uncured bacon.

That said, my sausage book suggest running the smokehouse about 135F until the surface is dry and then lowering the temp until you reach 128F internal.

I like hickory myself.

The downside of no cure is if it takes too long in the smoker at those temps you could be promoting bad bad things, but I don't suspect you will have this sitting for 10 hours or something like that.

This is one thing I was concerned about initially. It is pretty thin, so I plan on smoking it for a couple of hours with a spicy, salty rub. Then, directly in the fridge to chill. Then cooking it well when I go to use it.

[FrankZ]

A couple hours shouldn't be too bad. And really, I think people can be a bit overzealous about some things when it comes to food. Besides, smoking food was a way to preserve it.

[Rocklobster]

I am going to throw it on my boss's smoker. He runs it very hot so I will probably end up cooking it. Then I will be using smoked/cooked pork belly.

[buckytom]

Originally Posted by FrankZ

A couple hours shouldn't be too bad. And really, I think people can be a bit overzealous about some things when it comes to food. Besides, smoking food was a way to preserve it.

that's what i thought. smoking is a preservative.

can bad stuff live (or breathe as it were ) in smoke?

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

The reason sodium nitrates and nitrites are added to meats like ham, bacon, and sausages was to inhibit the growth of the organism that creates botulism toxin. It thrives in an anaerobic environment, but is destroyed by heat. if the temperature is above 40', but below 140, and is a low or no-oxygen kind of place, then the organism can thrive, and release its deadly toxins into your food. But it also needs moisture.

That's why canned goods are heated under pressure, to reach higher temperatures that will destroy the critter before the can, or jar is sealed. The same is true with meats, including smoked bacon. The pink salt makes the environment inhospitable for the little nasty critter, as does an acidic environment.

Ever notice the pink color of bologna, mortadella, most dried-cured sausages, that's caused by the the sodium nitrates, and nitrites in the meat. Without them, smoked or unsmoked, they could not be dry-cured. They would have to be cooked.

You could salt-cure your pork belly before smoking it, but then you would have smoked salt pork, and that would be a whole different thing.

There should be some good guidelines on line, like this one: Maple-Bourbon Smoked Pork Belly | she cooks...he cleans

All of the recipes I looked at say to smoke or cook the meat at temperatures between 220 to 240 degrees, for 2 to 4 hours. There are a bunch of online recipes. Just google "smoked pork bellies".

Seeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North

Hope this helps.