A few months ago I was reading around the internet and discovered that there’s a whole subculture of people who are taking “homemade” to a whole new level: making their own bacon.  I have always wanted to know about how some of the foods we take for granted are made so I decided to embark on my own bacon making experiment.   The process of making bacon is quite simple: take a pork belly, add salt, sugar and sodium nitrite, stash in the fridge for 7 days, rinse, then smoke the belly until it hits 150 degrees inside, cool and slice into rashers and fry up into awesomeness.

My first attempt, probably back last October, was a complete failure.  First, the pork belly did not look very good.  I had bought it from a local butcher and had asked him to remove the skin.  What I received was a mutilated mess with parts that were barely a quarter inch thick.  I also used a Foodsaver vacuum bag and it sprung a leak halfway through the curing process which made the belly not cure correctly.

The second attempt I tried a different recipe and bought the pork belly from a regional grocery store called Shoppers Food Warehouse. I did not put the belly in a bag at all, but rather on a plastic rack in the fridge.  It came out fine, but I did not use “pink salt”, also known as curing salt or prague powder #1, so I’m paranoid that it’s got botulism spores.  I did eat some and haven’t died yet, so it’s probably good.  I still have some in the freezer, even.

My third attempt was perfect.  I used a recipe from http://www.ruhlman.com, using a normal 2 gallon ziplock back and I finally tracked down pink salt at, of all places, William Sonoma. I went through that bacon quick, giving out half-pound packs for christmas and eating it as often as I could.  I used a 6lb belly and it lasted maybe a week.

I’ve started on my fourth belly and this time I remembered to take pictures during the process.

So, here we go!

The recipe:
7.5lb pork belly (about half a belly, Michael Ruhlman recommends at least a 5lb belly, so this recipe has been increased to compensate for the larger belly)
3 ounces kosher salt
3 teaspoons pink curing salt ( from William-Sonoma or American Spice Co)
6 tablespoons coarse black pepper
6 bay leaves, crumbled
3/8 cup brown sugar
7 cloves of garlic, smashed

Steps

1. In a large bowl add the kosher salt, curing salt, black pepper, bay leaves and brown sugar
2. Peel and smash the garlic with the flat side of a knife and then coarsely chop
3. Add the garlic to the bowl and mix very well, making sure the salts are well blended
   
4. Lay out the pork belly on a large flat surface and liberally coat with the mixture on all sides.  This time I put some on one side and then slide the belly into a 2 gallon zip-lock bag and applied the rest, making sure that you thoroughly rub the mixture all over the meat.
   
5. Seal the bag up and place it in another 2 gallon zip-lock back and place in the the refrigerator for 7 days, flipping each day.
6. After the 7 days are up, remove the meat from the bags and rinse thoroughly to remove as much of the salt as possible.  If you wish, you can sprinkle a bit more black pepper on it.
7. Heat up a wood smoker to 190-200 degrees, add some hickory or applewood and once there is smoke add the meat.  Smoke until the deepest part of the meat registers 150 degrees on a meat thermometer.  Now is a good time to carefully remove the skin if you are so inclined.
8. The bacon is done, but it’s much easier to cut it after refrigerating it for a while.  Let it cool down and then place it in a plastic bag and put it in the freezer until if firms up, but is not frozen.  Slice using a sharp knife or a meat slicer and store in plastic bags until ready to fry. If you are not going to use it quickly it’s best to freeze the slab until ready to use.  You can also freeze the slices as well.