Best Wood to Smoke Canadian Bacon

[Epicurohn]

Since my traditional bacon (US style) won't crisp after many attempts, I'll give it a go at Canadian Bacon which is not supposed to be fried to a crisp. Any suggestions for the traditional wood to smoke Canadian Bacon? Savory spices besides the Cure? Amount of smoke?

Thanks,

David

[Big Guy]

For slab bacon I put the hog belly into a brine for about a week. Then remove and hang to dry in a cooler for a day or so. then heavy smoke at 150 F with Sugar maple wood for about 6 hrs until internal temp reaches 137F. Hang for another day in a cooler eat or vacumm pack. My brine is 1 cup brown sugar, 3/4 cup coarse salt and 20 cups water and 1/4 tsp. sodium nitrate.

[Epicurohn]

Hi Big Guy,

Thanks for your recipe. I can't get Maple Wood down here. But I can get Maple Sugar. What do you think? Maybe I could do a 50:50 Brown Sugar/Maple Sugar and then smoke with Oak?

You don't use a stockinette, muslin, fibrous cassing, netting or other media to support the meat when drying and smoking?

Thanks,

David

[sausagejoe]

I plan on smoking some Canadian bacon tomorrow. I plan on using some apple and cherry for the smoking. I will also make some into pea bacon (i.e. Not smoked just rolled in corn meal).
If any one has some smoking ideals for smoking the bacon I would like to hear from you.
I just finished the bacon with a light smoke of apple and cherry and it came out great.

[Epicurohn]

My Canadian Bacon came a bit salty but very tasty:

5 # Pork loin
2 Lts. Water
175 grm Salt
60 grm Brown Sugar
60 grm Maple Sugar
18 grm Cure1
2 Garlic Cloves
2 tsp Sage, rubbed
� tsp Thyme, whole leaf (Dry)

Cure 6 days in fridge. Rinse well and soak 1 Hr. Drip dry overnite. Place in fibrous casing and dry in 130�F smoker with wide open vents. Apply medium Oak smoke @175�F for 3 Hrs. Keep cooking 'till internal 150�F.

Very juicy, subtle smoke, slightly savory flavor. You can taste the pork. Just want to reduce the salty flavor without affecting the curing capacity of the brine or avoid adding so much sugar it would burn if fried. Any comments?

[sausagejoe]

I would soak the meat in fresh water for a few hours before smoking. This will draw some of the salt out but you still will have the flavor.

[Ken D]

Hi, folks....If you can find a fruit wood in your growing area, better than oak....oak is very strong, but if that's what you like, then that's what you use.
Either use the oak sawdust, or pull the bark off your own scantling oak.
Any of the broadleaf trees can be used, but the bark is usually not the greatest. I have used willow, birch, alder, maple, cherry, apple, saskatoon, dogwood, aspen, cottonwood, all de-barked. I have purchased meqsuite, hickory, and 'gourmet' mix sawdust.
Alderwood and aspen are my top guns. When the wood first begins to smoke off, the smoke is blue/grey. As the embers develop, or the sawdust wanes, the smoke goes to white to pure heat. The blue smoke is the sweetest, and the white is the harshest. I try and get to the smoke chamber to add and subtract wood, as the colour change occurs.
Works for me..... your milage may vary.....during a hot smoke format, from atmospheric , to about 60 C.
Best, Ken D
Smithers, BC, Canada.

[jon]

I know im new .but i smoke my own bacon and im from Canada .I use apple wood and mesquite mix .im by many.its the best they ever had.the brine i use is brown sugar .rock salt /apple cider vineager/water.wonderful

[wittdog]

I like a mix of hickory and cherry wood to smoke CB...the Cherry gives it a nice color