Dry curing bacon salt

[Frosty615]

Hi all,
I've bought this http://www.sausagemaking.org/acatalog/A ... _Salt.html and was wondering if it's ok to cure bacon with?
Cheers
Frosty

[captain wassname]

Does it give usage.Or percentages of salt,nitrite and nitrate.?
If there is ,as I suspect no sugar you will need some.
Yes will make bacon that will be in compliance with EU rules but not US rules which do not allow nitrate in bacon.
Nearly all bacon in the supermarkets do contain nitrate.

Jim.

[Frosty615]

Thanks Jim,
Now I've got near a laptop rather than my trusty mobile phone I've managed to search the forums and found a couple of discussions already on the topic:
http://forum.sausagemaking.org/viewtopi ... uring+salt
Which has sorted out the anxiety from this end!

Anyone else that has a view is more than welcome to post here though
The more info the merrier

Frosty

[Oddwookiee]

but not US rules which do not allow nitrate in bacon.

With an exception for specific sugar & nitrate free varieties, every bit of bacon I sell has nitrate in it, as per state and US federal regulation.

[wheels]

That's bizarre as p28 of this US Gov't document clearly says that it shouldn't have!

http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OPPDE/rdad/FSI ... 7620-3.pdf

"Nitrate is no longer permitted in any curing method for bacon."

Perhaps they have amended it?

Phil

[DanMcG]

Perhaps they have amended it?

Phil

Curious minds want to know! LOL
My next bacon will be cured with #2 i think. just cause I never have done it

[Wunderdave]

I thought you were posting about

[Oddwookiee]

Brain fart on my part. I went too fast, I meant nitrIte. Sorry about that.

I just went back and pulled the label off my curing salt box. "Salt, Sugar, Brown Sugar, Sodium Nitrite (0.84%), Maple Syrup" is how it reads.

The quick & dirty answer I got from the USDA just now is that producers were using nitrates as a color fixative, in addition to nitrites as an anti-botulism, and were getting higher then desirable end levels of nitrites when the nitrate decomposed. The person I talked to sounded a bit confused though, so who knows. Either way, 50 lashes with a wet noodle for me!

[DiyBacon]

http://forum.sausagemaking.org/viewtopi ... uring+salt
Which has sorted out the anxiety from this end!

The more info the merrier

Hi Frosty,
I've not been on the forum for a couple of days so when I read your first post I thort "must post him a link to my thread"
Good to see you found it already !

Just in the spirit of "more info" :
I would like to emphasize, for clarity, that I found the All Purpose Cure worked fine, by itself at the recommended 15g/kg, to produce good bacon - if you want to consume it reasonably quickly or freeze it.

For my own purpose I like to have an extended life bacon.
ie. I like to have a slab of bacon in the fridge from which I can carve a thin slice or a thick steak depending !
(I am very bad at organising my freezer and finding the thick or thin slices of bacon when I want them!)

So, I found that if I add _up_to_ 15g of extra salt then the bacon will keep longer in the fridge - up to several months, depending upon midnight raids !
I like a plain bacon, so I have not experimented with added sugar nor other herbs/spices etc.

hth.

PS. May I ask, what "E" ingredients are listed on your package ?

[wheels]

Brain fart on my part. I went too fast, I meant nitrIte. Sorry about that.

I just went back and pulled the label off my curing salt box. "Salt, Sugar, Brown Sugar, Sodium Nitrite (0.84%), Maple Syrup" is how it reads.

The quick & dirty answer I got from the USDA just now is that producers were using nitrates as a color fixative, in addition to nitrites as an anti-botulism, and were getting higher then desirable end levels of nitrites when the nitrate decomposed. The person I talked to sounded a bit confused though, so who knows. Either way, 50 lashes with a wet noodle for me!

That sounds just like something I'd do!

Phil

[Frosty615]

Wow,
Hadn't been on here in a couple of days and I see that it's produced some response!
Ingredients list DiyBacon: Salt, Preservatives E251 & E250
Best Before is May 2013. I've bought 2 Kilos of it. I best get making bacon!

[Oddwookiee]

I talked to my state dept. of agriculture inspector today, the state of Oregon defers to the federal rulings on nitrate usage. I emailed her the link to the pdf about nitrate and she's going to talk to the federal compliance officer and USDA chemistry lab to get an exact reason why. I'll post back when I hear back from them, it may be a few days to chase down a precise ruling.

[DiyBacon]

Ingredients list DiyBacon: Salt, Preservatives E251 & E250
Best Before is May 2013. I've bought 2 Kilos of it. I best get making bacon!

Thanks for info, that's good to know.

Yes, I got 1/2kg 3 years ago (makes one wonder about the "best before" date!), just coming to the end of it now. So that should keep you going for a while .
Enjoy !

[Frosty615]

Thanks DiyBacon,
Now, a serious (albeit noob ) question.....
My bacon has been curing for five days now but how do I know it's actually 'done'?

I still need to wash it and then dry it for a couple of days but at this stage is there any indication that the meat is cured?

Thanks

[wheels]

What is it you've got in it: belly? loin?

How thick is it?

Average bellies should be OK in 5 days, loins maybe 7 days.

Phil