Apple Cider Cured Bacon Recipes

SCRAP IRON CHEF'S BACON

Steps:

• In a large non-reactive pot, bring half the water, 1 cup of sugar, salt, and 8 ounces molasses to a boil. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Pour into a large container with the remaining water, and the apple cider. Place in the refrigerator and cool to 40 degrees F.
• Press the black pepper into the pork belly. Once the brine has cooled place the peppered pork belly into the mixture until completely submerged. Refrigerate for three days.
• After three days have passed, remove the pork from the brine and pat dry with paper towels. Lay on a rack over a sheet pan and place in front of a fan for 1 hour to form a pellicle. Lay the pork in the protein box of a cold smoker and smoke for 4 to 6 hours. Chill the meat in the freezer for 1 hour to stiffen for easy slicing into strips of bacon. Slice what you need and keep the remainder in a freezer safe bag in the refrigerator or freezer.
• Place the strips of bacon onto a sheet pan fitted with a rack and place into a cold oven. Turn the oven to 400 degrees F and cook for about 12 to 15 minutes, depending on how crispy you like your bacon. Remove from rack and drain on paper towels. Enjoy.

HOME-CURED BACON

Steps:

• Place the pork belly in a large Ziploc bag. Add the salt (and pink salt if using) and the cure additions. Rub the cure into the pork belly, turning the bag over and over and pressing the cure into the flesh. Close the bag, squeezing out all the air and refrigerate for seven days. Each day, flip the bag over. Some liquid will begin to gather in the bag.
• After seven days, wash the cure off the meat, rinsing thoroughly. Pat the bacon dry with paper towels and set it on a rack over a baking sheet. Allow the bacon to air-dry in the refrigerator for 6 to 24 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 225 degrees. Roast the pork belly in the oven to an internal temperature of 150 degrees for about 90 minutes. Chill the bacon well, then slice thick or thin, to preference. Any bacon that doesn't easily slice may be cut into chunks, for starting a pot of beans or soup. Wrapped in parchment paper, then wrapped in plastic wrap or foil and placed in a Ziploc bag, the bacon will keep for three weeks in the refrigerator and three months in the freezer.

WILTED SPINACH SALAD WITH WARM APPLE CIDER AND BACON DRESSING

Steps:

• In a large skillet cook the bacon over moderate heat, turning it, until it is crisp, transfer it to paper towels to drain, and discard all but 2 tablespoons of the fat. In the fat remaining in the skillet cook the shallot and the apple over moderate heat, stirring, for 1 minute, add the vinegar, the cider, and salt and pepper to taste, and boil the mixture, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes, or until it is reduced to about 1/2 cup. Whisk in the mustard, the oil, and salt and pepper to taste. In a large bowl toss the spinach with the warm dressing until it is just wilted and sprinkle the salad with the bacon.

APPLE CIDER MOLASSES HONEY CURE FOR MAKING HAMS OR CANADIAN BACON RECIPE - (4.6/5)

Steps:

• MEASURE OUT ALL INGREDIENTS AND POUR INTO LARGE NON REACTIVE CONTAINER ( THINK FOOD GRADE PLASTIC ) MIX THOROUGHLY LET SET AND REMOVE FOAM AT TOP,.REPEAT. THIS CURE TAKES 7 TO 8 DAYS TO CURE A PIECE OF MEAT DEPENDING ON THE SIZE OF MEAT, 1 DAY IS A 24 HOUR PERIOD OF TIME