How to make Turkey Bacon


 
Turkey bacon? Good question; I've never made turkey bacon. Here's my thoughts:

Cure the dark meat with a wet cure. Essentially a brine with pink salt and whatever flavorings you might want to add.

Smoke meat over very low temp <170 so as not to over cook the meat. Smoke to about 140. Use a mild wood.

Chill meat, then remove from bone and grind.

Then shape into 'logs' and flatten between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and chill once more to hold shape. You're after that cut bacon shape.

Fry up in skillet.

Probably missed something, but that's what comes to mind. The curing and smoking process will give it the basic flavor profile of bacon. Using turkey, it may come out more on the ham side than bacon flavorwise.

Paul
 
Try Paul's suggestion.

If you are trying to recreate commercial turkey bacon it won't work (commercial turkey bacon is made from blended, highly formed meat) but that should not stop you from giving it a go. Paul's suggestion will get you much closer.

What you might have missed, Paul, is that most contain some additional fat (but not much) and some breast meat (but not much). Not hard to include - but get the process down first.

One other thing: Grind on the coarse side - more like chopped well.
 
Yes. Take 3/4 of the meat and 1/4 of the meat and partially freeze both. Cut with a knife into even pies, say, 1-inch.

Evenly distribute the 1/4 meat that you've chopped in the processor bowl then pulse on and off, scraping the bowl sides when necessary to an even and rather fine (ground) finish. Remove to a bowl.

Distribute half of the 3/4 meat in the processor and pulse, but only go to 'finely chopped', not 'ground'. Remove the the bowl. Repeat with the remaining meat. Mix all together very well and then form as Paul suggests. (The point of having a little finely 'ground' is that it will help hold it all together better when mixed.)
 
The point of having a little finely 'ground' is that it will help hold it all together better when mixed.
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I wasn't sure how well the meat would hold together. A ribbon of ground meat would be somewhat delicate to handle I assume. A thicker slab well chilled would help, but I could see myself getting frustrated handling this. Perhaps the commercial products use a little help like transglutaminase (meat glue)?

Paul
 
I think you're going to have a problem in that it is too lean. It may hold together on the "forming" board but once you start to cook, it may just fall apart.

Maybe add an egg and some finely ground dry bread crumbs?
 
I am not suggesting 'a ribbon of ground meat'. The more finely ground should be mixed in with the less finely ground - the finely chopped.

Formed, wrapped, well pressed and chilled, the proteins should hold it together just fine.
 
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