pork belly

I have some curing in the fridge now and plan to cold smoke them on Monday then slice into bacon. They are also great braised in the oven (3 hrs or so at 300 degrees). You could probably do them on the smoker, as well, in a pan with some liquid until the almost fall apart.

I just handed out 50lbs of cold smoked pork belly for Christmas gifts. It's one of the most fun easy to use pieces of meat. But then again I look at all meat that way.

jestridge said:

In Korea they BBq pork belly like we would a pork butt. I have never tried this.

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I do this fairly regularly. Actually - no I don't... not like a pork butt. I slice pork belly slabs into 3/4" thick strips then marinade them in a combination of asian vinegar, hot chilis, soy sauce, fresh garlic, pepper, and lime juice. Then I grill the strips on my weber kettle over lump or a combination of charcoal and any cooking wood. This can be quite difficult because as the strips continue to cook and render their fat you can get one gell of a grease fire going to the point that it gets pretty nasty especially if you loaded up the grate with a bunch of meat. Ideally you need more space between your grate and the fuel source for cooking this way. I'd say 8"+ and my Bandera firebox used to work 'ok' for this, at least better than the kettle. So you continue to cook these until much of the fat is rendered and the fat becomes golden brown and crispy - just like bacon, right? Anyway, once cooked I then cut into 1/2" strips cross-wise and serve with a spicy dipping sauce that is similar to the marinade. Serve it with steamed rice if you wish. I like eating it the way it is with cold brewskies.

I've heard that curing pork bellies to make "bacon bacon" is mostly the same as curing butts to make "buckboard bacon", but since they are smaller/thinner, less curing time is needed.

Do any of you know how to modify the buckboard bacon curing instructions if you're using bellies to make bacon?

Makin' Bacon!!! Here's a few articles...

http://extension.missouri.edu/explore/agguides/ansci/g02528.htm
&
http://www.theingredientstore.com/generalstore/product_details/832.htm

I tried copying and pasting on another post, but didn't work out too well...sorry.

Not to steal this thread but I just posted to another forum about the idea of using a cure like buck board on a slab of spare ribs. Anyone here tried this? I called them bacon bones and suggested, bacon bones and eggs with a side of hash browns.
Dave

I have done pork chops and it makes a small nice piece of ham.

augie said:

Do any of you know how to modify the buckboard bacon curing instructions if you're using bellies to make bacon?

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I've gone to just TQ and Fresh Black Pepper in the brine I use. Soak the req'd amount days, rinse well/soak, dry until pellicle forms, cold smoke up to 130* internal and a final rinse & dry before packaging.

IMO...any other flavors you want to add to the bacon (BBQ rub, spices, maples syrup, honey, etc...) can be added in the skillet.

jestridge said:

There is no wrong way to cook bacon

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'Cept maybe when you're naked! Oooo...Ouch......OUCH.........HOLY FARK.........HONEEEY!!!

I havn't but i'll tell my dad if he could tell me!

Score the skin, salt it heavyly and cook it at 250-275 for a couple of hours until it looks like this and the skin is crisp





DM