"Everyone likes bacon. It's fun to tell people you smoke
and cure your own bacon.They like the fact that it contains
curing salt, brown sugar and pork. Nothing else.
I prefer fresh pork and ask my butcher to let me know
when he is butchering. Slabs are usually 7-10lbs each.
Roughly 2 tablespoons of brown sugar and 1 tablespoon
of Morton's Tender Quick curing salt per lb.
Stab the meat about every inch or so on both sides with
forks. It seems to me the cure flavor gets deeper when
I do this.
Rub the slabs on both sides with the mixture, pushing it
into the meat and put in them in large plastic bags
sealed tight with twisties and rubber bands to help
prevent leaks. I get the bags from my butcher.
Place in the fridge and flip once daily. The rub quickly turns
into more of a marinade so flipping is helpful.
After 2 weeks I drain the bags and give the slabs a very
brief rinse. Very brief. If I rinse too much it seems like
I lose a lot of the salt taste on the finished product.
Lightly pat dry with paper towels and let dry on racks
to a dull haze.
