HOME-CURED BACON
About 5 pounds

If you plan to hot-smoke your bacon, please read about Barbecuing for instructions on setting up the smoker. If you want to add a smoky flavor to bacon but do not have access to a smoker, replace some or all of the salt with an equal weight of smoked salt. Feel free to improvise with the other seasonings in the cure. For a pancetta-like bacon, increase the black pepper by 2 tablespoons, and add 3 minced garlic cloves, 2 finely crumbled bay leaves, and 1 teaspoon dried thyme. Or, for a more breakfast-friendly variation, omit the brown sugar from the cure and add ¼ cup maple syrup or sorghum syrup (90g), or 3 tablespoons honey (65g) to the bag. Please read About Curing Meat.

Have ready:

  • One 5-pound piece pork belly (2,270g)

Sanitize a nonreactive brining container with a cover. Or have large plastic bags ready: Two-gallon zip-top bags work well, as do large-size oven bags—as long as the opening is cinched and facing up when the pork belly is placed in the fridge. The belly should fit snugly in whatever container or bag you are brining in. Depending on the thickness of the piece and the size of the container or bag, you may need to cut the pork belly into two slabs (it is okay to stack two slabs on top of each other during the curing process). Transfer the belly to a rimmed baking sheet. Thoroughly mix together in a small bowl:

  • ¼ cup table salt or ½ cup Diamond kosher salt (70g)
  • ¼ cup (60g) brown sugar
  • (2 tablespoons black pepper, red pepper flakes, or a combination)
  • ½ teaspoon InstaCure #1 or Prague Powder #1 (about 3g)

Distribute the mixture evenly over the entire surface of the belly, pressing any that falls onto the baking sheet into the sides and ends of the slab(s). Place the pork in the covered brining container or into the bag(s). If using bags, place them in a baking dish, broiler pan, or rimmed baking sheet to catch any leaking liquids. A pool of brine will begin to collect in the bottom, and it is important that all surfaces be equally exposed to this concentrated brine. Refrigerate for 5 days, turning the belly every day. If one piece of belly is stacked on top of the other, be sure they are flipped individually each time so that both surfaces of both pieces get equal time in the brine.

After 5 days, remove the pork from the bag or container, discard any liquid, thoroughly rinse off any cure that remains on the surface, and dry with paper towels. (Do not worry if some imbedded flecks of pepper or seasoning remain.) Now the bacon must be gently cooked through in the oven or a smoker. If smoking, place the pork belly on a rack set over a rimmed baking sheet and refrigerate overnight, uncovered.

To bake the bacon, preheat the oven to 200°F. Tightly wrap the pieces in foil and place on a rimmed baking sheet. Cook in the oven until the thickest part of the belly reaches 145°F, about 2 hours.

To smoke the bacon, heat a smoker or charcoal grill set up for indirect cooking to 200°F (preferably with a water pan). Add to the coals:

  • One small chunk of dry hickory, oak, or mesquite wood

Transfer the bacon to the cooler side of the smoker or grill and cover so that the top vent pulls smoke across the meat. Adjust the vents to maintain the temperature and smoke until the thickest part of the belly reaches 145°F, about 2 hours.


Salting, Drying, and Fermenting