Wasn’t sure is this should be it’s own thread or not. It is bacon though, shouldn’t it have it’s own category?
We typically cover bacon-making in the BBQ thread, but why not on its own thread?
I use Ruhlman’s recipe:
http://ruhlman.com/2010/10/home-cured-bacon-2/
There are many bacon threads. 
You can go as far and just use kosher salt and sugar if cure #1 isn’t available. Otherwise stick to the same proportions. In Salumi Ruhlman and Polcyn begin to depart from the use if nitrites. But I like what cure #1 brings to the party.
For discount-bacon prices one can end up with first-rate product and that is where the real savings come in. The increased quality makes it more than worth the time and effort which is minimal regardless. Haven’t bought any bacon since last May.
Look for an Asian market to find cheap pork belly.
Looks way better than the Doritos tacos.
Looks interesting. Wonder what is inside the baco?
Looking at the picture, I’d say scrambled egg. Would make a nice breakfast taco.
I just started my first batch of bacon-3.2 pounds of some nice looking pork belly using Rulhman’s recipe. It’s a good thing I’ll be on the road all week, I won’t be able to mess with it.
The meat is supposed to be flipped once a day while on the cure; but I left a slice of pork butt done with the same^^^ bacon cure for all last week without flipping and it turned out fine. I flipped it for the first day and the last several days so it must have been on the cure for two weeks. Cold smoked, then vac-sealed and poached (SV) at exactly 150F for 2 hours. Delicious. That’s how fine the line is between ham and bacon. ;D
You’ll love that bacon corky.
Made some last week. This was my second attempt and it turned out fantastic. It was a little extra time but well worth it, especially since I did 12 pounds and will seal it up and freeze it. I used Ruhlmans recipe for the most part.
That’s some mighty fine looking bacon there! How did you source that?
Homemade bacon is tops!!!
Try making some ‘buckboard bacon’ sometime too. Same cure & procedures, but using a well marbled pork shoulder butt (aka ‘Boston cut’) instead of the belly. Sometimes I’ll trim the butt down to flat rectangular pieces roughly the thickness of typical 'belly" bacon.
Truly delicious.
Some of my best ham and bacon has been off the butt. I have 4# bone end off a butt with a carton of OJ weighing on it right now in the fridge. Feels fairly dense so is probably ready to smoke, roast or poach. I’m leaning towards the smoke and poach method.
Found a butcher shop that sells their own homemade bacon and asked them if they will sell me some bellies. He said sure so I ordered 2 of them not thinking they were 12# each! I only made one belly while the other is still frozen. The nice thing was it was cheaper than the other butcher and they took the skin off for me. They also source their meat from farms within the state. I was surprised how meaty the belly was. Some like it with more fat but I like the meat.
+1. There’s a meat market in Indy that makes some of the best bacon around, and it’s very meaty. Doesn’t shrink to 1/2 its size like store bought. Makes a killer BLT.
I gotta give makin bacon a whirl!
OK, found this thread today while here at work. As fate would have it, today is the day the local organic farmer sets up a little stand in our lobby. And, they had a pork belly.
So I guess I’m gonna start a cure tonight.
You want all things homemade bacon.
Very nice and helpfully quick! Thanks! Bookmarked…
I wish there was a brining calc as doing thick cuts benefits from this approach to introducing the cure.
What exactly are you looking for brining wise? There are some basic measurements that are scalable to any size.