My first attempt at cottage bacon, buckboard bacon, bacon or whatever you wanna call it...

Fareway had pork butts on sale for 99 cents a pound last week, so I figured I am not out much if it did't turn out. I picked up this 9 pounder and had them de-bone it (he looked bored and saved me the trouble)....



Got out my brisket knife and filleted it out best I could to get a uniform thickness....



Then I put on the rub, the recipe I used...

9lb pork butt boneless
5 tablespoons kosher salt
1 cup white sugar
4 tablespoons restaurant ground black pepper
3 teaspoons paprika
3 teaspoon pink curing salt



I rolled it back up, it looks good already, lol.



I then wrapped it tight in plastic bags, and put it in the fridge...



The recipe for the rub (which I modified slightly to my taste) called for a 7 day rest in the fridge for pork belly, but this is a little thicker so I left it for 10 days in the fridge, turning it daily then I rinsed it off well. It looked like this after that, patted dry...



I then left it uncovered like it is and put it in the fridge for 24 hours.

Today I smoked it at 200 degrees until it was 150 degrees internal temp with fruit wood pellets, apple & cherry. It came out like this after cooling in the fridge for several hours after smoking...



Then to the slicer....



And finally a sample, it was very good and tastes like bacon. If someone blind folded you you'd swear it was bacon, so I must of done it right.



The 9 lb pork butt yielded just over 7 lbs of finished product. I was happy about that considering the bone was included in the 9 lbs from the store. I figure all in, spices, meat, pellets, etc.... maybe cost me $1.35/lb.

I love it when a plan comes together.

Heck yeah looks great

Looks really good

I never heard of cottage bacon til a few years ago. My in laws get hogs done at a locker frequently and they gave us some. Amazing stuff-id rather have it over regular bacon.

It looks good and you definitely can't buy bacon for $1.35 a pound.

Keith

That looks great thanks

I have one in the frig now. I looked at a three pound pack of Cloverdale bacon the other day in the store it was $21 + change. Over seven dollars a pound. That was what got me making what ever you call it.

It's called Irish Bacon.

Looks like (Boco ) Canadian Bacon ,when you sliced it. But if it looks like bacon and tastes like bacon…it must be bacon. Bettah than 5.99 lb

It looks real good.

What slicer you running now?

I cut those pork shoulders into steaks and just freeze. Also grind them and make sausage. High as meat is getting you would think more people would be doing it. i just buy high mountain spice kits. including their bacon kit. I bought one of those small apartment type fridges several years ago for curing bacon or whatever in. Works great.

Good job,ADC.

Very nice! A also have a pork loin in the fridge as we speak beginning the brining process. I'm doing half with Tenderquick, the other half with a homemade recipe. I did a sample on some thin pieces overnight and fried it for breakfast. It may be the best pork I ever ate.
I'm tired of digging through bacon in the store looking for a package that a little meat along with the fat.

U the man

I think people just don't know these days how to butcher a big piece of meat down into smaller cuts. A lot of people pay $1 lb more for cut up chicken vs. whole chicken. I buy a lot of big pieces of meat like roasts, briskets, pork loins (bone in sometimes), pork butts, whole chickens and turkeys etc.... Almost always cheaper to cut them up yourself and the home made ground meats are always a lot better and less fatty than what you buy pre-ground. If the whole meats have extra fat, I cut it off and freeze it to add to venison as well. I could afford to buy the stuff already cut up or ground, but I enjoy butchering it up.

looks good. I tried making some last week but it didn't turn out. Way to salty , going to try it again but with a different recipe. Got to insulate my smoker better before I do the next one.Couldnt get it over 180 and its getting colder outside.

After I started making my own bacon (buckboard), we haven't bought any from the store in almost a decade. Leaner, heathier, and you know exactly what's in it.

I like thick cut, heavily peppered bacon. And the stuff you buy in the store just doesn't compare. Not to mention, When I get the pork on sale, it comes out to a little over $1.10/lb





did you soak it after you were done with the cure? I always soak mine for 1-3hrs after I take it out of the cure, in cold water. It really helps remove the salt.

Here's the money shot.

that's worth the effort! well done

I like Potato pancakes !

We call em hashbrowns. I make them from scratch too. I wish I'd had a loaf of home made bread baked for the toast but it was all real good. I can't make homemade eggs better than a chicken does though! lol

I make potato pancakes with shredded onion,potato, 1 egg…all beaten together …salt pepper….and fry in oil. Is that how you make your hash browns ?

No, I wash then shred the whole potatoes, then rinse them real well in a strainer, let em drain and squeeze out the rest of the water in a kitchen towel, then in a skillet with a little oil and butter, don't move them around at all until they are golden brown, salt and pepper, like you see in the picture, then I invert a plate on top of them, flip the skillet so they are on the plate and slide them back into the skillet to finish cooking on the other side. Makes for a great presentation.

You were one of my inspirations. Thanks for fielding that question too. I'd certainly defer to you on the bacon questions, I'm certainly a novice on it!

What kind of vacuum sealer do you use? I had a couple different ones but they never worked worth a hoot.

That looks really great Jayme!

I use the foodsaver, some sportsman model. It does OK for what I need it. I let the bacon rest over night in the fridge, and slice the next day. Package in 1# packages, and put all the scraps, and end cuts in separate bags for beans or cabbage meals. I've made just short of 100# of bacon this year so far. Now, I'm waiting for pork butts to go on sale again.

ADC…..mine will blow those away !….lol

While I'd agree, my wife wouldn't. lol

I'm waiting for another sale myself.

I have tried food saver brand but had bad luck getting it to seal well. However I was trying wetter things like cut corn. The bacon being dryer would likely work better. I just used freezer ziplocs, it won't be around long enough to get freezer burn. lol

My luck with Foodsavers has been hit and miss. I had a really fancy, top of the line one and it croaked in less than a year. The one I have now is basic... but it seals good. It's a model V2460.

I sealed 200 ears worth of corn with it this summer lol.

Thanks for all the info. I’m going to try making some. What’s the best slicer for the money?

I have a pretty cheap one like I gave drifter the link to above. It works pretty good for me, if I use it everyday or something I could justify a more expensive one but for a couple times a month, it gets the job done.

Show off. Mine was cut off the cob and was kinda wet so the juice ran up and didn't let it seal well, I think. Had similar luck with meat juices as well. I freeze most stuff in freezer bags or plastic freezer dishes. But I FIFO it so it doesn't get freezer burnt or go bad in the deep freeze. I don't store anything more than a few days in the refrigerator freezer.

Mine was cut off the cob also and it sealed good. My husband said I couldn't seal pumpkin puree because it was too liquidy. I said hide and watch, lol. It sealed that fine too.

Oh course it would. I think even appliances are in on the whole "anything to prove your husband wrong" thing.

ADC, for vacuum sealing wet stuff like turkey breast or other meat, I fold a paper towel 3-4 times and lay it on the top of the meat and seal it right then. The paper towel absorbs just enough moisture to allow for a good seal. I don't know how it will work with something as wet as corn. It does well with meat and poultry.

I appreciate the tips!

On the foodsaver issue a guy at work told me he lays his fish fillets on a cookie sheet and sets it in the freezer for awhile then transfers them to the bag and it takes care of the liquid problem. I wonder if putting the stuff like corn or pumpkin in the bag then the freezer for awhile before you seal it would work on that stuff?

I'll keep that in mind! Thanks.

makin bacon
I've a bunch of pepper flakes still on the cured meat after rinsing and drying. is that OK?
It don't look like Jayme's.
just

I’ve never had a problem with leaving flakes on the meat actually when I do jalapeño bacon I want the seeds stuck to it for a little extra kick.

Looks Awesome ADC

That looks great Jayme! Where do you get your pink salt?

Wal Mart has pink salt. Probably any grocery store.

just

Is it the curing pink salt or just salt that is pink? I’ve seen the large grain regular salt that has a pink tint but it’s not the curing pink salt.

Just emailed this to myself, gotta try it.

My Walmart has Himalayan Pink Salt not Prague #1 pink curing salt. Big difference. Not saying your Walmart doesn’t have it just be sure what you are getting. Google a search for “ curing salt, where to buy”

So I used Himalayan pink salt. Haven't smoked it yet. Whats the difference gonna be?

That's what I did , otherwise you ruin a food saver , as there's a lot of juice that plugs the machine.
Ruined a machine thinking the tray would hold the juice .

If you used Himalayan pink salt it's not cured. The pink salt ADC was talking about is a cure. The difference is going to be that you will have a pork roast, not bacon.

That’s a common misconception but salt IS the cure. Pink curing salt is 93.75% table salt and 6.25 sodium nitrite. The sodium nitrite is there as an added measure to help prevent botulism and once it converts into a nitrate it gives it the pink color you see in the store. I cure hams every year with only kosher table salt and I assure you they are cured hams when it’s done not pork roast. Himalayan pink salt has 84 trace minerals, which could influence the taste on the cure but it will still be cured.

I ordered it online Shawn, several years back so I have no idea where, sorry.

Here is some...

https://www.walmart.com/ip/The-Saus...Salt-for-Meat-and-Sausage-4-oz/643732973

I would think that any place that sells sausage seasoning and supplies should carry pink curing salt. Morton makes a product called tender quick that is the same thing. Grocery stores may carry it.

People were making bacon and hams for centuries before there was curing salt.

If bacon comes out to salty it needed more time soaking in fresh water before smoking.

If to salty after smoking all is not lost just open the package and soak the slices in fresh water for 15 minutes to an hour. This has saved my bacon in the past.

Thanks mister.

I fried some before smoking. Tastes ok.
I did a lot of studying about curing after I read Angela's post and found that the salt is what does the curing.---it removes the water.
Thanks all for your comments.
just

Well I guess I learned something today. I thought the nitrites found in pink prague powder was a required ingredient in cured meats such as sausage, ham and bacon.

No more of it than it takes and as cheap as it is, I'll stick with the pink curing salt. I never even heard of the Himalayan salt before this thread.

I have heard of Himalayan possum that some folks here eat, just never heard of the salt.

It's been done for hundreds of years without sodium nitrite .
Much like a lot of things , money talks.
You need all these things now days , because USDA says so .

These ^^^ . . . plus, nitrates may be a concern if you have any heart or vascular conditions.

I’m giving it a try. Used Hi mountain bacon cure. Hopefully have some bacon at the end of next week

So I took my supposed cured pork butt out to let it soak and the wife says it smells off! I used Hi Mountain bacon cure and used 1/3 more than it called for to be safe. Question is does cured meat smell funky before smoking?? It cured 8 days. My sniffer has never worked so I can’t describe it. Thanks

It should not smell tainted. Let her smell it after you soak it in water a couple hours before you smoke it.

Thanks Danny. If it’s tainted I’m not sure where I went wrong

If its been in a frig I bet its fine. Probably just not a smell she is used to. I made some chili verde with a pork shoulder. Instead of removing the bone I just chunked up the meat on the bone and did this with the boneless part. I have done it before and never had any problems using hi mountain cure. We like it. When I butcher a hog its what we use on the side and pork belly.

Jayme you always make some good looking food. I am going to have to give that a try. I don't have a smoker but my boy does. I can do the prep and send it over to him to do the cook time.

Ok Danny mystery is solved. I prepared a brisket Thursday night and threw the bloody bag in the trash can. I was soaking it next to the trash can. Now I’m in trouble for the blood in the trash

Got it smoked. Thanks for the info guys. Much appreciated

How did it turn out Pawnee? I’m going to try this.

Thanks Jayme for the detailed post!

John

Too much cure and its too salty. Dont use plastic to cure the meat in. Use glass. Otherwise you will taste the plastic. The meat will absorb the cure in a short time. That doesnt mean it needs more. Empty the little bag the cure comes in into a bowl and mix it good before you apply it to the meat.

It tastes good. I like it smoked longer than the directions say if you can "coldsmoke" I heat it to 140 like it says but I let it sit in the smoker 8 hours or more. About three chunks of charcoal and a nice piece of wood on top of it to smolder after the meat reachs its temp. Probably dont even need to hit 140.

Can we talk the BOSS into creating a new category and adding it to the top of the Home login page that covers these excellent food posts. These are too good to misplace and not find again.

Wife and the boys say I hit a home run. Thanks again for all the wisdom that was shared.

There's a recipe section in the archives. Need to hit wolfdog up to put this post into it.

Well, it's started. A butt and a hunk of loin. If it don't turn out good I'm holding you personally responsible Jayme, lol.