Making bacon at home is insanely easy, requires minimal ingredients, and little time commitment. Long story short you should be making it, and I'm going to show you the easy way. All it takes is some pork belly, salt, sugar, and a little bit of patience for curing and maybe some smoking.
EQUIPMENT:
INGREDIENTS:
Large Batch of Dry Cure-
2 cups (400g) kosher salt
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
6.5 tsp (60g) pink curing salt (NOT himalayan pink salt. The link to the curing salt that I use is closer to the top of the description here.)
Curing the Belly:
At least a 3 pound (1360g) or more, skin on pork belly
Rosemary sprigs
Garlic cloves
Juniper berries
*The most accurate way of curing (my preferred method):*
Cure the pork belly at a 2.5 percent cure. Multiply the weight of your pork belly in grams by .025 and the number you get from that will be the amount of dry cure that you need to use on the bacon. So in other words a 1600g pork belly would require 40g of dry cure.
*The non gram scale version of curing:*
Basically sprinkle a generous layer of cure on a baking sheet (about 1/3 of a cup) and dredge your pork belly in it to thoroughly coat all sides. Less accurate, could result in slightly salty bacon, but it works in a pinch if you don't have a scale and don't plan on getting one.
INSTRUCTIONS:
Dry Cure Method:
In a large bowl, add your kosher salt, granulated sugar, and pink curing salt. Whisk together.
Bacon Method:
Find the right amount of dry cure for the pork belly.
Take the measured dry cure and spread it all over the entire pork belly. Once thoroughly coated, rub with crushed/bruised rosemary, crushed garlic cloves, and juniper berries.
Label bag with the day you started and place the cured belly into a 2 gallon ziplock bag, placing it in the fridge to cure for 7 days; flipping halfway through that time (so 4 days in).
Once fully cured, rinse off the cure thoroughly with water and pat dry with paper towels.
Using either an oven or smoker, cook the pork at 200 degrees Fahrenheit until the internal temperature reads 150 degrees Fahrenheit.
Once your pork belly is done remove from the oven/smoker. With the fat still warm, remove the skin using a sharp knife. Let the pork come down to room temperature and refrigerate it overnight or at least for 8 hours for the fat to solidify. This will help it slice easier.
