Advice on purchasing Pork Belly please

[bbqgeekess]

I went to my local Asian market (the best in Tulsa: Nam Hai) and noticed they had pork belly for sell at $2.79 a pound. They are cut up pieces.

I asked them at the counter if they got the pork bellies whole. They said that they did and that they cut them there. I asked if I could get a whole one for $2.79 a pound and they said yes I could special order one.

Any advice on purchasing a whole pork belly? I want to make sure I am getting a good deal and not paying for a lot of excess fat or whatever else at $2.79 a pound. I never bought one before so I am clueless.

With the price of pork butt being over $2 a pound now and being able to get this for $2.79--it seems like a good time to try home cured & smoked pork belly bacon.

 

[ggee6688]

That's is where I can get uncured pork belly regularly. I don't have too many bucher shops around here and don't want to drive 45 minutes for one. They are cut into sections. It'll work for me

 

[c farmer]

That is a good price. I pay 3.59 a lb.

Are they skin on or off?

You want all the fat on the belly.

We removed the skin and it was ready.

 

[ButtBurner]

I would just buy a lb or 2 from them and cook that so you can get the process down.


just look for a good fat to lean ratio, like when you are buying bacon

from the Asian store I go to they are skin off

 

[IamMadMan]

I agree wit ButtBurner, use smaller pieces until you have successfully completed the curing process.

The bellies are usually aprox a ratio of three parts fat to one part meat, whereas the side belly is one part fat to one part meat.

Because of this, the sides are slightly higher priced because they are much leaner, and they also appear to be thinner when compared next to each other.

 

[bbqgeekess]

I would just buy a lb or 2 from them and cook that so you can get the process down.

just look for a good fat to lean ratio, like when you are buying bacon

from the Asian store I go to they are skin off

I agree wit ButtBurner, use smaller pieces until you have successfully completed the curing process.

The bellies are usually aprox a ratio of three parts fat to one part meat, whereas the side belly is one part fat to one part meat.

Because of this, the sides are slightly higher priced because they are much leaner, and they also appear to be thinner when compared next to each other.

Oh sorry I didn't mention I already know how to cure. I've made a lot of buckboard bacon and it's always turned out great:

Thanks for the info, so no wonder the pork belly is so cheap there. It did seem quite fatty what they cut. So it's not worth it after all at $2.79/lb.

 

[Okie Sawbones]

I buy whole pork bellies from the butcher, skin on, and cut them in quarters. Then I cook a quarter section to pull, with sliders. Yum!

 

[ButtBurner]

pork belly is quite fatty

thats just the nature of it

look at store bought bacon.

thats why I am suggesting try a small piece, see if you like it or not

 

[SmokinJohn]

I get the bellies skin on, because I can cure the skin and crisp it up using Pitmaster T's recipe.

Dammit, now I want some pork bellies..

 

[Bender]

I think the $2.79 is a fair price. It all depends on where you're located and the supply/demand thing. I just bought 5 lbs. of skin on belly at $2.50/lb. from a butcher shop here in town.

 

[landarc]

Take a look at the cut pieces, they will tell you the quality of the bellies you will likely get. They are always something of a gamble, as you can never really tell how lean or fat they are, until you clean them up for slicing. Forutnately, cured bacon fat has many uses, so even if it is fat, you can find uses for what you have bought.

Side meat, that is a good alternate, as it is generally more lean. The folks in the know prefer side meat for many applications. Also, if possible, I prefer to see the belly, not take it in cryo, so I can see that the fat is white and hard. The skin will be tannish, but, the fat should he white, hard and crack a bit. That means the belly is still rather fresh.

 

[IndoorOutdoorCook]

You can guess a lot about leanness based on the weight. Market hogs 180-190 lbs will probably have the fat content you want. Based on the weight of the belly alone, you want something like 12 lbs for a whole belly (off half a pig).

I have a hint from my recent pork belly bacon making. If your belly comes with skin, leave the skin on and smoke it. When you're done, let it cool just enough to handle, but still warm. This is when you want to cut the skin off. It should be easy to stick close to the skin and leave as much fat as possible.

Also, you get left with smoked pig skin. I add it to dishes like a ham hock.

 

[Big George's BBQ]

That sounds good to me Get the rind taken off

 

[CSchieck]

Me and a friend picked up 26 lbs. of pork bellies late last week and started the curing process over the weekend. This is our third attempt at making bacon. 1st attempt was less than stellar, 2nd attempt was VERY good, and we are hoping to replicate results with this large batch. We have our local butcher order them, and we paid $2.79/lb. the first two times we ordered, he remove the skin but weighed/charged us for the whole. This last time, he weighed/charged after removing the skin. Likely did not make that big a difference from a cost standpoint, but I KNOW I did not want to deal with the hassle of removing the skin from 4 bellies.

 

[oifmarine2003]

I have done them both skin off and skin on. No real difference either way. If you decide to do skin on, cut the skin off right after smoking and it comes off super easy.
The biggest advice on belly is watch the thickness. A lot of places tend to have very skinny bellies. They still work for bacon, just give you skinny slices. Try a packing house. We have them in Chicago and you can get bellies for under $2 with the skin and like $2.29 with the skin off.

 

[filiphoto]

Where can I buy pork bellies in the Philadelphia area?
Thanks,
Al