Dry rub bacon cure no booster question
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Has anyone used the dry rub bacon cure and not add the bacon booster they recommend in the video? If so, what is your opinion?
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YooperDog Team Orange Masterbuilt Big Green Egg Dry Cured Sausage Sous Vide Canning Power Userreplied to hawktalon99 on last edited by
hawktalon99 I have used the dry rub cure with and w/o using the Bacon Booster and didn’t have any issues. I think the bacon boost is typically used in a pickle solution and maybe an injection process as it is supposed to increase the flavor profiles of pickled profile because they cure quicker, hence the boost. There is a bit of a flavor increase/change. In the past I have put together my own cures and flavor profiles and never used bacon booster, I have gone with Walton’s for the convenience. I prefer dry rubbed, but that is probably a throwback to the way I started doing it.
Jonathon Austin am I in the ballpark or somewhere in the parking lot?
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Another question. It says to put bacon in a meat lug and into the cooler. Should the lug be covered or open??
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YooperDog you’re dead on. The booster was designed to provide the classic taste of bacon (like dry rub) when using modern curing techniques. In fact, until recently I did not recommend adding booster to dry-cured or imitation bacon but then we played around with it and we were happy with the results. However, completely optional either way.
hawktalon99 I’d cover it with either a lid or some saran wrap like thing to prevent anything interfering with it’s taste and to prevent it from drying too much. You’ve got a lot of salt working on the meat and drawing moisture out, you don’t want that process to happen too quickly. -
Jonathon thanks for the info. If you can’t tell, it’s my first attempt at curing bacon.
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hawktalon99 No worries, we were all there at one point! If you havent already I would recommend you check out https://meatgistics.waltonsinc.com/topic/800/cured-whole-muscle-meat-104-bacon-basics and if you decide to brine then check out https://meatgistics.waltonsinc.com/topic/385/how-to-make-homemade-bacon-recipe that has some information on both. That was from early on so we hadn’t really hit our stride on videos yet but still has some good info!
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YooperDog Team Orange Masterbuilt Big Green Egg Dry Cured Sausage Sous Vide Canning Power Userreplied to hawktalon99 on last edited by
hawktalon99 a technique I use is to cut the pork belly in half, dry rub, put fat side to fat side and put them in a two gallon locking bag and then the fridge. I flip the bag daily, but not necessary. After about five days rinse and give them a good couple of soaks in water before moving on to the smoker. Good videos on meatgistics as Jonathan passed on. Good luck, keep some notes and learn from your experiences.
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Thanks! I’ve been keeping notes. I’ve been making my own sausage for about a year now, and have been trying to perfect my own breakfast sausage. Getting real close to what I want, but not quit there yet. I have to give credit to the notes I take. And of course to this forum. I’ve actually learned a lot on here, so thank again!
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YooperDog Team Orange Masterbuilt Big Green Egg Dry Cured Sausage Sous Vide Canning Power Userreplied to hawktalon99 on last edited by
hawktalon99 Don’t lose your notes. I lost my recipe book that I spent years tweaking, not a happy camper. I am still in the rebuilding stage for several years now but I am getting back to the beginning. I started using Walton’s mixes and adjusted from there on some. Some specialty ones you just have make yourself. Good luck and end the hobby.
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This something I read on the wed a couple of years ago and have been doing it and like the finished product.
Weigh your pork belly skin off.
Figure the amount of cure you will need.
Divide that into 1/3rds.
Rub 1/3rd of cure on both sides of belly. and wrap in plastic wrap.
Let it cure for 4 days. Open and put one more third of cure on the meat side and rub in and rewrap.
repeat after 4 more days.
after four more days unwrap and give it a quick wash under cold water and then soak in cold water for 20 to 30 min.
Let it air dry unwrapped in the fridge over night.
Then you can process it any way you like. I cold smoke about 4 hours or untill it gets a nice light smoke color.
Loosely wrap in parchment paper over night, then cool in the freezer and slice .
Works good for me and has a nice cured flavor all through the bacon.
