The Porky Chronicles

[bluecat]

The skin of the turkey that I smoke is always really black and really bitter but that gets tossed and used just as a protective coating for the meat.

[bluecat]

Just winging it on my own. I could probably use professional help, though.

Just remember, you are not capable of being a success on your own.

[DParker]

DP--

This is your second attempt at bacon, right? Did you not use the same smoking technique this time?

Correct, this was my 2nd foray into homemade bacon. The first (which was successful) finished with a hot smoke (225ºF smoker temp) until the meat hit 150ºF internally. This was an attempt at cold smoking, with the goal being a more normal texture for the bacon, as opposed to the ham-like texture you get from the hot smoke due to the meat being cooked. Interestingly, I did not even achieve that result, so I've determined that the cold smoke is not worth a 2nd attempt, and will return to a hot smoke for subsequent batches.

I reported on here one of my projects where the meat tasted sour. I think it might have been a smoked pork loin. Not sure I've reported on anything else here, lately. It had turned, probably similar to what you are describing. I think I put it down to bad meat from the get-go. I'll have to pay closer attention to my post brine ritual now, though. Usually I just pat dry and into the cooker it goes.

In my case the pork belly was in good condition...no signs of spoilage at all...all the way up until I put it in the smoker. I'm fairly certain the culprits here were all post-cure.

So it there a take home message for us non-bacon smokers? Always smoke meats that are not wet? Is it that or the fact that the cure wasn't washed off or both?

It was not drying the bellies in the fridge overnight and allowing formation of a pellicle, combined with an excessive volume of smoke. The former fostered some sort of lactic acid-producing spoilage organism, and the latter created creosote on the surface of the meat. Nasty combination.

[Swamp Fox]

“Hush now, it’ll be over soon” pic.twitter.com/sSfPsjmt94

— Matt Dawson (@SaintRPh) February 7, 2018

[DParker]

The thermometer outside says 28°F and it's dropping like Brandon's approval rating. It's the perfect time to cold smoke some bacon.

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[bluecat]

Yes sir!

[DParker]

OK, so I now have 10 lbs of freshly smoked bacon, all of these chopped aromatics and a bag of dried split peas. Oh, and it's a cold Winter day. What to do, what to do...

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[bluecat]

Watch Packers and eat!

[DParker]

Watch Packers and eat!