Homemade Smoked Bacon
Once you make your own bacon, store-bought tastes like cardboard. Takes a week of curing but the actual work is maybe 20 minutes total.
Ingredients
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1/4 cup table salt
- 3 tbsp coarsely ground black pepper divided
- 1/2 tsp pink curing salt
- 1 bay leaf crushed
- 1 4-pound skinless pork belly
- 5 3-inch wood chunks
- 1 13 by 9-inch disposable aluminum pan
Instructions
- Mix brown sugar, salt, 1 tbsp pepper, pink curing salt, and crushed bay leaf.
- Rub cure mixture thoroughly into pork belly in glass dish.
- Wrap in plastic, refrigerate 7-10 days, flipping every 2 days until firm but pliable.
- Rinse pork under cold water, pat dry, coat with remaining 2 tbsp pepper.
- Arrange 60 charcoal briquettes in double-stacked C-shape around grill edge.
- Place wood chunks on charcoal 2 inches apart, starting 1 inch from end.
- Set aluminum pan with 6 cups water in center of grill.
- Light 15 briquettes in chimney, add to start of charcoal C when partially ashed.
- Place pork belly fat side up over water pan.
- Cover, position vent over meat, smoke 1.5-2 hours to 150°F internal.
- Cool 1 hour at room temperature.
- Wrap in plastic, refrigerate minimum 2 hours until cold.
- Slice bacon 1/8 inch thick as needed.
- For crispy bacon: Bake at 400°F for 20-25 minutes or pan-fry over medium heat 10-14 minutes.
- Drain on paper towels, serve hot.