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Bacon to cure ratio

72K views 35 replies 14 participants last post by  phatch 
#1 ·
I am making the bacon recipe from Michael Ruhlmans Charcuterie book. The amount of curing salt mixture he recommends is kind of barely covering the meat. Will it just take longer or is it a problem with the finished product?
 
#3 · (Edited by Moderator)
I recommend that you use % of weight for your salt, cure, sugar vs 3 TBSP & 1/4 cup, etc. This method is much more accurate.

You need to have an accurate digital scale. Weigh your meat, convert that to grams. Your cure will be 2-2.5% of the meat weight in salt, .25% cure#1, 1.5% sugar. For my taste, 2% salt is perfect, 2.5% was too salty, just depends on how salty you like things. Example, for a 10lb belly there is 4536g. 2% salt is 90.72g, cure is 11.34g, sugar is 68.84.

Mix all together rub all over the belly and place in a zip bag or vacuum seal, turn it daily and massage the cure into the meat. Should take about a week. Rinse, let dry in the fridge on a rack uncovered for at least 24 hrs, this will let the smoke adhere better. Smoke low temp if you can, I do 150 for 4 hrs then bring it up to 175 or so for about an hour until IT hits 160
 
#11 ·
I use about 2.5-3 % salt and that works for me.
4% sounds way too high....

I did find Ruhlmans recipes a bit inconsistent in use of cure and salt.
If you want to do more curing and sausage making, I would advise to but Stanley Marianski's book: Home production of quality meats and sausages
 
#12 ·
@rpooley I use the same ratio from M. R.'s book
[product="6305"]Charcuterie The Craft Of Salting Smoking And Curing [/product]
What happens is it only takes a small amount of cure and liquid is pulled out and as you turn the bacon each day it cures. You can add more but be wary of over salting. The first few times I made it was completely paranoid of getting bacteria but if you cure it long enough and smoke it properly it is very easy. I make my own bacon regularly it is much better than store bought. Experiment with flavors I have added garlic and black pepper, maple and molasses, etc etc.
[article="29103"]Makin Bacon [/article]
 
#13 ·
o. m. g.

Big success, imho.   I took the large belly pieces out of the brine and made lots of slices to freeze for bacon and eggs, etc.  The trimmings will hide themselves in various concoctions of beans, sauerkraut, stews, etc.

But to test, I fried 3 slices.  Terrific.  I'm hooked.  A bit salty as I suspected form people's experiences shared here but nothing a quick blanche can't fix.

Thanks for all the input.
 
#14 ·
Just an fyi I've been making bacon for over eight years and the bellies I've gotten recently were BOAR TAINTED, made from UNcastrated hogs.   After the two week curing process they still tasted raw and untreated out of the frying pan.  The odor and flavor were "off".   This is just a warning/fyi.   A vendor told me that occasionally bellies from uncastrated hogs make it thru to the vendor.
 
#18 ·
Boar bacon is plain nasty. I got some and tossed 4 pounds because it was inedible.
My vendor is kind enough to work out an exchange with me and is seeking out another supplier. This isn't the first time he's sold something with boar taint. Also fwiw I contacted a major supplier in the area and the latter stated that occasionally a boar tainted belly comes thru.
 
#23 ·
Here you go: http://www.diggingdogfarm.com/page2.html
Salt levels are also spot on so that you don't need to soak.
That's great, so glad I stumbled onto this site!
New to makin' bacon. Just did my 1st belly last week. Used just some pink salt and brown sugar. Came out OK, but... Doing the 2nd one tomorrow. Going to coat the belly in maple syrup and use the calculator to determine the amount of cure (pink salt), reg. salt, and sugar to use. Can I use brown sugar instead of regular sugar? Or should it be in addition to regular sugar?
Learned a lot reading through here! The 1st belly was OK, the 2nd is going to be much better!
 
#21 ·
I recommend that you use % of weight for your salt, cure, sugar vs 3 TBSP & 1/4 cup, etc. This method is much more accurate.
You need to have an accurate digital scale. Weigh your meat, convert that to grams. Your cure will be 2-2.5% of the meat weight in salt, .25% cure#1, 1.5% sugar. For my taste, 2% salt is perfect, 2.5% was too salty, just depends on how salty you like things. Example, for a 10lb belly there is 4536g. 2% salt is 90.72g, cure is 11.34g, sugar is 68.84.
Mix all together rub all over the belly and place in a zip bag or vacuum seal, turn it daily and massage the cure into the meat. Should take about a week. Rinse, let dry in the fridge on a rack uncovered for at least 24 hrs, this will let the smoke adhere better. Smoke low temp if you can, I do 150 for 4 hrs then bring it up to 175 or so for about an hour until IT hits 160
If I use 2.5 or 3% salt would my sugar and prague #1 cure change as well ?
 
#24 ·
The amount of cure (nitrite) and salt are important to curing.
The amount of sugar can be totally adjusted to your preferences. You can put more if you like a sweet bacon, you can leave it out if you want (I hardly use any sugar. Don't have a sweet tooth at all)

Just one thing to beware off:
Check the percentage nitrite in your cure!!!!

The USA and UK mainly use a 6 %, Most of Europe is 0.6 % (Chloroso salt).
Me, I can only get an 8 % cure, so need to adjust accordingly.

If you want to go further in curing and making sausages/ham etc, I would advise to buy Stanley Marianski's book "home production of quality meats and sausages" and check their website and forum:
http://wedlinydomowe.pl/en/
https://www.meatsandsausages.com/
 
#27 ·
Thanks, that's why I like that calculator!
I'm using Insta Cure #1 which I believe is 6.25% nitrite. I can see how that is a important factor.
I went into doing the first belly pretty blind and didn't add any salt at all. After cooking (frying) in the skillet I was salting it on the plate. Was good, but certainly needed more flavor. I think I'll use brown sugar versus "regular" sugar on this next one. Once I get better at bacon we'll see if I move on the ham / sausage!
 
#25 ·
If you're using a brine you need to be careful of the sugar levels or you can end up with ropey brine (slimey, will kind of freak you out the first time it happens).

Good luck and happy curing.
 
#28 ·
If you're using a brine you need to be careful of the sugar levels or you can end up with ropey brine (slimey, will kind of freak you out the first time it happens). Good luck and happy curing.
I thought about using a brine, that's what the butcher where I get by bellies uses (he does a bunch at a time of course). After reading up a bit prior to my first attempt it seemed that dry curing would be easier for me. I may try a brine solution once I get better at this.
 
#29 ·
Thanks again for the replies, much appreciated...
I cut the 1/2 belly I just bought in half (~3.0 lbs ea.). I coated both with pure maple syrup. I utilized the calculator and used the appropriate amount of cure for each "slab". Added salt and brown sugar (a little more salt and a touch of pepper to one) and their in the fridge curing. Can't wait!
Thanks...
 
#30 ·
Sorry to bring up this old thread (again). Just wanted to say that the second bacon cure(s) came out great. Used the "cure calculator" provided by @apprentchef and it worked well. Split some differences in the calculator #'s and will do more in the future.
Thanks again...

Oh.. And I took the liberty of upgrading my Exp. from Rookie to Novice!
 
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