Makin' Bacon!

[MrsLMB]

Last year I bought two packages of thick cut house brand bacon. I used to eat it all the time. Hickory smoked, not a lot of fat and delicious.

Now I am going to say something really bad. So block your ears if you don't want to hear nasty words.

For some reason, I no longer eat bacon. The last two packages I bought I gave to Spike. I just have no taste for bacon any longer. Well at least I didn't throw them away. And Spike can eat a whole pound by himself in one sitting. Even Teddy loves it. Spike hates to share it with him, but who can resist those eyes.

I know get out the soap. I will wash my own mouth with it.

Something has happened to my appetite and taste buds. I can only eat very small amounts and a lot of my favorite foods have no appeal to me. Like bacon. I don't even like egg sandwiches with runny yolks anymore.

It's ok Addie .. think of as you are doing a public service to all the rest of us out there who need more bacon .. you aren't hoarding it !

I've found that the store brands are often time better tasting than the name brands and obviously much much less expensive. The slices aren't as uniform but it's bacon .. so who really cares !!

 

[Caslon]

How about fruit? For your appetite, kiwi's and strawberries ?

 

[Addie]

It's ok Addie .. think of as you are doing a public service to all the rest of us out there who need more bacon .. you aren't hoarding it !

I've found that the store brands are often time better tasting than the name brands and obviously much much less expensive. The slices aren't as uniform but it's bacon .. so who really cares !!

When they are cooked down, they are all the same. Delicious!

 

[vitauta]

they keep coming up with new things to do to bacon. I just saw a news story about a pig farmer in Washington state (where pot is legal) feeding marijuana to his pigs during their last few weeks of life. they were also getting vodka to drink. reportedly, they were some mighty happy (and high as heck) pigs. not surprisingly, this pot bacon is highly addictive.
pac, what is pa's position on pot? what is your latest pig project? got anything in the works for july 4th?

 

[pacanis]

PA's position on pot? Beats me, lol. And I couldn't care less one way or the other (anymore).
Latest bacon fix is going to be a whole pork loin trimmed, cut and turned into Canadian bacon. I just need to get up the gumption to get going on it. I just bought it yesterday, so have a day or two.
hmmm, July 4th... maybe blow up some tannerite. I hear Ohio is making it illegal and to tell the truth, I'm surprised it wasn't already. I imagine it's only a matter of time before other states follow, and they probably should. The stuff is LOUD! I didn't realize how loud until I heard the cop next to me shooting some. It had me coming out of the house.
I still have most of a case of it left. I try not to shoot it too often because people have said they thought my gas well blew up... don't need anybody calling the fire dept to come over.

 

[Mad Cook]

My first attempt at making my own bacon
I will start this week long process by showing the pics from last night.

The pork belly.
The rub, or cure.
Sugar- 1/2c + 3TB
Kosher salt- 2TB + 2tsp
Pepper- 1/2tsp
Pink curing salt- 1-1/2tsp
View attachment 17817

Placed in a lasagna pan and rubbed all over.

And then placed into a ziploc bag and back into the pan.
This will now be cured for seven days in the refrigerator.
During this time it is supposed to prodice liquids which will be "massaged" back into the belly so the cure stays evenly distributed.

To be continued...

The 'fridge bit is interesting. In my (admittedly fairly ancient - 1970s) book on meat preserving it says that if the conditions are too cold the meat won't cure properly and thus won't keep well. Mind you, if it's only sitting for 7 days it's probably only being cured for taste not preservation.

Meat preservation was traditionally an autumn activity - again a temperature thing. If the ambient temp was too warm the meat would go bad.

I find the whole food preserving thing fascinating - everything from bottling to meat. It's quite boring now that the most we do in that line is to chuck the remains of a casserole into the freezer until next week.

I'm interested in the American "canning" process. Does it use actual metal cans or glass jars? In the UK, bottling of fruit in glass jars using heat from the oven or a water bath used to be a popular (and useful) thing but with the arrival of domestic freezers it almost died out. I've done it once but it was to much of a fag and the results not fantastic enough to bother again.

I don't salt beef and pork any more as I no longer live in a house with a cool cellar. However, I have a cupboard in the garage with a shelf full of jars of Seville orange marmalade, gooseberry jam and apple jelly. Good for small gifts as well as well as my own consumption and when I'm feeling hacked off because life is going pear-shaped I like to go and look at it and feel all's well with the world after all. (Sad or what? )

 

[pacanis]

Mad Cook, I can't remember if it was in this thread or the second one, but I posted a link on what you've touched upon on meat preservation through curing. This method has nothing to do with olden time preservation of meats. It does not remove enough moisture.

 

[Andy M.]

...I'm interested in the American "canning" process. Does it use actual metal cans or glass jars?...

No cans, glass jars and waterbaths.

 

[ahoymatey2013]

Wow, I read this from the beginning & since I'm in NE Pa it won't take me all that long to drive over & have some bacon with you! I'm on my way

 

[chopper]

Wow, I read this from the beginning & since I'm in NE Pa it won't take me all that long to drive over & have some bacon with you! I'm on my way

I doubt if there will be any left. He has been eating it for lunch every day!

 

[pacanis]

Yep. And dinner, too.
Last night I had bacon wrapped mushrooms and today I had two streaky bacon mcmuffins for lunch with the leftover thawed bacon.

 

[Whiskadoodle]

Pac, you is a lucky man.

Today I had bacon, eggs and 2 pancakes at a nbhrhood cafe. Electricity out at home following last night's storm. No coffee no toast (and no bacon in the house regardless). It was a treat. O yeah, I had 2 cups coffee which is the excuse I used for going out early.

 

[Zagut]

"with the leftover thawed bacon. "


And here I am sitting at the post office every day waiting for my SASC to arrive and you've got leftover bacon.

Now I know those postal workers have bacon breath.

 

[pacanis]

"with the leftover thawed bacon. "


And here I am sitting at the post office every day waiting for my SASC to arrive and you've got leftover bacon.

Now I know those postal workers have bacon breath.

I'm trying to get it mailed out, but I'm running into difficulty when I go to lick the envelope

 

[MrsLMB]

I'm trying to get it mailed out, but I'm running into difficulty when I go to lick the envelope

 

[Zagut]

I guess I shouldn't have sent such a large crate.

I figured it would be easy for an 18 wheeler to pull it to Friendship.

You must have used some really fat pigs.

I understand because my kitties are really pigs disguised
as cats.

Don't worry because I'll be sitting at the PO. until it arrives.

 

[Mad Cook]

Mad Cook, I can't remember if it was in this thread or the second one, but I posted a link on what you've touched upon on meat preservation through curing. It does not remove enough moisture.

Sorry, only just found this when looking for something else.

" This method has nothing to do with olden time preservation of meats". What do you man by "this method"? My method? The methods I use for curing meats (ie preserving meats for future use) are similar to but slightly more scientific than those used by our farming predessessors. Of course it removes enough moisture if it's done properly. I didn't used to smoke the meat after salting, etc., because I didn't have the facilities but meat doesn't have to be smoked for preservation.

If your problem is with the term "curing" it does refer to various methods of longterm meat preservation

 

[pacanis]

Sorry, only just found this when looking for something else.

" This method has nothing to do with olden time preservation of meats". What do you man by "this method"? My method? The methods I use for curing meats (ie preserving meats for future use) are similar to but slightly more scientific than those used by our farming predessessors. Of course it removes enough moisture if it's done properly. I didn't used to smoke the meat after salting, etc., because I didn't have the facilities but meat doesn't have to be smoked for preservation.

If your problem is with the term "curing" it does refer to various methods of longterm meat preservation

What do I mean by "this method"? Beats me. What do you mean what do I mean by "this method", because I did not use that term at all. I have no idea why you put it in quotations Nor do I remember something that was posted so long ago to even care

 

[chopper]

Pac, I saw your post and thought you were making bacon again! Dd you eat it all yet?

 

[pacanis]

Nope. I still have plenty left.
All that Canadian bacon really helped bolster the bacon section in my freezer.