Hillbilly Bacon Recipes

SPANK'N BACON HILLBILLY HARLOT

Steps:

• Fry 5 slices bacon in a skillet. Remove and set aside.
• Dice all peppers and onion and saute in bacon grease until cooked down a bit. Then stir in tomatoes, chili sauce, rice, brown sugar, Worcestershire, black pepper, pepper flakes and 2 1/2 cups water. Cover and simmer over medium-low heat, stirring it every so often, until the rice is done, about 25 minutes. Crumble cooked bacon and reserve some for garnish, then stir the rest into the sauce.
• Heat oil in a deep-fryer to 350 degrees F.
• Wrap your weenie in remaining 2 slices raw bacon. Flash deep-fry 1 1/2 minutes, then cook on flat top until bacon is crisp and weenie is plumped. Toast the top of the hot dog bun. Put weenie in the bun, then top with sauce. Sprinkle with remaining bacon bits.

CLASSIC TRADITIONAL AMERICAN BACON RECIPE

Steps:

• Skin it. If the skin is still on the belly, remove it and use it to make cracklins. It is sometimes hard to tell if it is still there. It is usually a darker tan color compared to creamy colored fat. You should be able to make a cut in fat with your thumbnail. Your thumbnail will only make a dent in skin. Leaving skin on causes problems for salt penetration, and when you fry it, the skin gets very hard and you probably won't like the texture. Removing the skin can be tricky. Sometimes you can grip a corner with your fingers and run a knife under the skin to peel it back by running the knife between the skin and fat. Sometimes you just have to shave it off with a sharp knife.
• Cure it. Pour everything except the meat into a zipper bag large enough to hold the belly. A 1 gallon (4 L) bag will hold a single 3 pound (1.4 kg) slab. Zip the bag and squish everything around until well mixed. Now add the belly, squeeze out the air as much as possible and squish some more rubbing the cure into the belly and coat all sides. Put the bag in a pan to catch leaks and place in the fridge at 34 to 38°F (1.1 to 3.3°C). The belly will release liquid so every day or two you want to gently massage the bag so the liquid and spices are well distributed, and flip the bag over. NOTE: If you use more than one slab in a bag it is crucial that the slabs do not overlap each other. Thickness matters!
• Rinse off the cure. Remove the belly from the bag, and throw the liquid away. Quick rinse it to wash off any thick deposits of salt on the surface. Most recipes tell you to let the slab dry for 24 hours so the smoke will stick better, but, as the AmazingRibs.com science advisor Dr. Greg Blonder has proven, smoke sticks better to wet surfaces, so this extra step isn't necessary.
• Fire up. If you are using a grill, set up for 2-zone cooking or fire up your smoker.
• Cook. Smoke over indirect heat at 225°F (107.2°C) until the internal temp is 150°F (65.6°C), about 2 hours. You can use any wood you like. Hickory is the tried and true. I'm partial to cherry and applewood. After smoking you should slice off the ends, which may be very dark and more heavily seasoned, and taste them right away. They will be more salty than the innards and the fat will be a bit stringy, but you'll love it all the same. Just wait til you cook up an inside slice!
• Cool. Now let it cool on a plate in the fridge. Cold bacon is easier to slice. Use on a slicer if you have one, or use a long thin knife to slice it. Try some thin and some thick slices. You can also cut bacon in cubes to make lardons and use them like bacon bits in salads, mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, baked beans, in sauces or to garnish chops, or roasts.
• Wrap it tightly with several layers of plastic wrap, and then a layer of foil, and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks or freeze for up to 3 months. Do not wrap in foil alone because it can react with the salt.
• Slice. Slice it across the grain. For evenly thick slices, a slicing machine is the best choice, but I rarely use mine because it is a pain to clean. Besides, I like to keep the slab intact and tightly wrapped in the fridge or freezer to reduce exposure to oxygen which can make the fat taste funny in a week or two. When I make bacon I usually shoot for hunks 6 to 8" (15.2 to 20.3 cm) wide across the grain to make sure my thin 9" (22.9 cm) knife and frying pan fit. If you put a slab in the freezer for 15 minutes or so it gets stiffer and easier to slice.
• Save the bacon drippings. While your bacon is cooking lay out a section of newspaper several sheets thick, and cover it with a layer of paper towels. As soon as the bacon is done, move it to the paper towel to drain. Let the fat in the pan cool a bit and then pour it in a glass jar and refrigerate. Hot bacon can melt a plastic tub, so be careful. Save the fat for up to a month and use it to fry. Broccoli and potatoes are especially good cooked in bacon grease.

HOMEMADE BACON

Steps:

• Rinse the pork belly and pat dry. Transfer to a resealable 2-gallon plastic bag. To make the spice rub, mix the kosher salt, pink salt, brown sugar, honey, red pepper flakes, paprika and cumin in a bowl. Coat the pork belly all over with the mixture.
• Close the bag and refrigerate 7 to 10 days, flipping once a day, until the pork belly feels firm. It should take 7 days for a thin belly that is about 11/2 inches thick, longer for a belly that's 2 to 3 inches thick.
• Remove the pork belly from the bag, rinse thoroughly and pat dry. Refrigerate the belly on a rack, uncovered, 48 hours.
• Set up your smoker according to the manufacturer's instructions using applewood chips, and set to 200 degrees F. Smoke the pork belly 3 hours, or until the bacon reaches an internal temperature of 150 degrees F.
• Remove the rind (optional), then slice and cook as desired. To store, wrap the bacon in plastic wrap and refrigerate up to 1 week or freeze up to 2 months.
• Pink curing salt is a mix of salt and sodium nitrite. It keeps the meat pink and protects it from bacteria. You can find it at specialty food stores or online.

HILLBILLY BACON

Steps:

• mix flour, sugar and pepper together.
• sprinkle on bacon slices.
• place bacon on baking sheet then bake at 400* for 10-15 minutes or browned and crisp.

HOMEMADE BACON

Steps:

• **REFER TO BLOG POST FOR A COMPREHENSIVE TUTORIAL AND STEP-BY-STEP PROCESS****You can vary the flavors according to your preferences (see Recipe Notes) but do not adjust the salt or Prague powder amounts**
• For the Wet Cure Method:Add all the cure ingredients together in a large bowl and stir. Place the pork belly in gallon ziplock bag or container that just fits the size of the pork belly and pour the brine over it. If using a ziplock bag, place the bag in a container in case there is any leakage. Place it in the refrigerator for 7 days, flipping the bag over (or the pork belly itself if curing it in a container) every 2 days to ensure both sides of the pork belly are equally cured.**A one-gallon bag will hold a 3-pound pork belly. If you're following the recipe to use a 5 pound pork belly and plan on using the wet cure method with ziplock bags you can cut the pork belly in half and divide the brine equally between the two bags.
• After 7 days the pork belly will have firmed up. Remove the pork belly from the brine and thoroughly rinse it off. Some people say you should let the slab of bacon air dry for up to 24 hours before you smoke it. But many experts agree there is no need to do this. These experts argue that in leaving it wet the smoke actually sticks to the bacon better than if it's dry. At this point if you like you can rub it down with some cracked peppercorns and, if you want it sweeter, some brown sugar, honey or maple syrup. Proceed to smoking (see below).
• For the Dry Cure Method:Place all the dry cure ingredients in bowl and stir to thoroughly combine them. It is essential that the pink curing salt is evenly distributed across the whole pork belly. We recommend using a spice/coffee grinder, a small blender or a mortar and pestle. Thoroughly and evenly rub down all sides of the pork belly with the dry rub. Place it in a ziplock bag or container (like a casserole dish), with the fatty layer side down, and cover it with plastic wrap. Refrigerate it for 5 days. Flip the bacon over, redistribute the liquid that will have formed (if it's in a ziplock bag simply turn the bag over and give it a massage), and refrigerate for another 5 days. After 10 days the pork belly will have become quite firm and stiff. Remove it from the the container or bag, rinse thoroughly, and pat dry with paper towels. At this point if you like you can rub it down with some cracked peppercorns and, if you want it sweeter, some brown sugar, honey or maple syrup. Proceed to smoking.
• To Smoke the Bacon:Preheat your smoker to 175-180 degrees F (do not exceed 200 F). (We use and love the Masterbuilt Digital Smoker). Smoke the bacon fat side up (as the fat renders it will run down over the meat) for 3+ hours or until the internal temperature of the bacon reaches 150 degrees F. (We use and recommend this instant read thermometer.) Add a handful of wood chips a couple of times during the smoking process. (Good options include hickory, apple or cherry.)If you're using a grill, set up it up for 2-zone cooking and smoke the bacon over indirect heat at 175-180 degrees F (don't exceed 200 F) for about 3 hours or until the internal temperature of the bacon reaches 150 degrees F.Once the bacon reaches an internal temperature of 150 degrees F, transfer the bacon to a plate and immediately place it in the fridge to cool down.
• To slice the bacon, slice it across the grain. You can use a large sharp knife or, for perfectly uniform/professional slices use a meat slicer.
• To store the bacon: If you plan on using the bacon within 2 weeks, wrap it in several layers of plastic wrap followed by an outer layer of foil and keep it refrigerated. If you're not going to use it within 2 weeks you can freeze it for up to 3 months. To freeze the bacon: You can either use a vacuum sealer like Food Saver or you can lay the slices out on wax paper in the same fashion as store-bought bacon and place another sheet of wax paper over it. Fold the sides around the bacon. Place the wrapped bacon in a ziplock bag. If you prefer the pieces not to stick together you can cut strips of was paper and place them between each slice of bacon. When you're ready to use it, simply remove the bacon from the freezer and let it thaw.