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Has anybody added Franco's Hickory smoke powder to either the Sweet bacon cure or the Organic bacon cure? Reason I ask is I have a reasonable amount of both, and whilst they both give nice results I would like to try some bacon with a smokey taste. I do not eat bacon too often due to being on a diet, and I don't want to buy the Smoked cure and have 3 lots of cure wasting away. The hickory smoke powder is recommended at 0.05 grms per kilo of sausage, would the same apply to adding it to a cure for bacon?

Any tips on amounts etc would be appreciated.

Regards, Paul Kribs

Never tried it - but personally, i'd make a dilution of powder in some water and brush it onto the meat, then rub in the cure as usual.

Thanks Oddley & Aris

I do generally use the top end of the scale for seasonings or mixes so maybe I will put 1.0 grm per kilo and see how it goes.

Regards, Paul Kribs

I tried this in the ordinary (traditional??) bacon cure. I used it at the rate quoted and it wasn't enough. I would definately double it next time, and even then I'm not sure if it would be enough or not. If you get a satisfactory result would you let me know how much you used please.

The guidelines for the use of the smoke powder were supplied by the manufacturer, I personally think that you need to use a little more to get a true smoked flavour. The powder is used at the recommended usage rate in the production of sauces and marinades for the food industry where only a hint of smoke is needed.

As it is a natural flavour there is no danger in using above the recommended usage rate.



Franco

Looks like it will be 1.5 grms per kilo then. Thanks for your comments.

Regards, Paul Kribs

Just tried it a 1g per kilo in some English breakfast bangers (Franco's Mix) and it gave a nice just noticeable flavour.

Thanks Wilf, I will go with 1.5 grms per kilo and see how it goes, and will probably make just 1 kilo and maybe try again at 2.0 grms per kilo. I will let you know. I do like a bit of flavour.

Regards, Paul Kribs

Flavouring behaves very differently when used in sausage mixtures, liquid cures and dry cures.
I never tried any artificial flavourings but common sense tells me it would have to be quit a bit more in liquid cures then the recommended amount, simply due to the fact that in liquid cure there is obviously a lot more liquid and therefore dilution then in sausage mixtures and dry cures.

Regards
Othmar

I bought a piece of pork loin and deboned it. It then weighed 1.25kg. I measured 50 grms of Francos Organic cure, and decided to use 2 grms of smoked hickory powder. Unfortunately I was tapping the bag of hickory powder and ended up with nearer 3 grms. I decided to go with it and mixed them together and applied it to the loin. I removed it yesterday and washed and dried it and having had 24 hours in the fridge to dry out I had to try it this morning. It smelled exactly as I remember 'proper' smoked bacon and is equally delicious. despite my fears it is in no way overpowering, and I feel my accident with the weighing turned out as good fortune.

I have yet to try the smoked hickory powder in sausages.

Having said that, I have now learned that I must weigh ingredients seperately in the future. On saturday I tried some Bratwurst made using Francos mix. The mix was put into sheeps casings and linked at 8". I hot smoked them using Ash chippings and all those present commended them.
I shall definitely be doing them again.

Regards, Paul Kribs

Paul, have you any idea how much that would be in terms of teaspoon measurement? I have a set of spoon measures that go down to one-eighth and much prefer to measure small ammounts this way rather than weighing.

Thanks.

deb

I don't possess any of those dedicated measuring spoons but have just used an ordinary teaspoon and a slightly rounded one of the smoked hickory powder weighed 2.7 grms... which was about what I inadvertantly used.

I don't think it would matter if you are slightly over or under, all depends on your personal preference. I was glad the powder was not as strong as I thought it might be, would have hated to waste that loin.

Regards, Paul Kribs

Cheers Paul, that's a great help.
As I said earlier in the thread I used the quoted ammount when I gave it a go and was dissapointed with the result. I'll have to try again soon.

deb

As I say it is all a matter of personal taste. It appears I have had a happy accident which turned out well and I will use those guidelines in the future. If my better half says the bacon is beautiful then the bacon is beautiful. Seems a bit odd that it needed 6 times the recommended dose, as I say, personal taste.

You actually had me looking at measuring spoon sets on Ebay today.. I resisted.

Regards, Paul Kribs