Peameal Bacon


 
M

Maxwell G.

New member
Hello, I'm curing a 4 lb pork loin with the intention of smoking half to make Canadian bacon and rolling the other half in fine corn meal to make peameal bacon. I've never eaten or made peameal bacon before. Any tips about applying the cornmeal to the cured loin? There is some discussion in various places on the board here but no real description of how the coating is made to adhere to the meat.

Any advice appreciated.

Thanks, Max
 
pour cornmeal over the cured loin and wrap in plastic wrap. I spread the meal out on the plastic and roll the loin and plastic together, trying to keep a nice layer surrounding the loin. Toss it in the fridge for 24 hrs or so. The meal in contact with the loin will kind of rehydrate and be sticky. You won't get much to stick, but you'll get a thin layer.

peameal is great on the grill and makes an awesome blt
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This "peameal bacon" is new to me.
What's the point, which flavor or texture is added?
Corn meal does not taste much?
 
meal was used as a method of preservation. since the loin is cured but not smoked, peameal (now cornmeal), was packed onto the surface. My guess is the dry meal effects the water activity at the meat's surface and can be bacteriostatic.

I nice layer of cornmeal on the edge is certainly an important part of the flavor of peameal bacon.
 
I did a peameal bacon thread a long time ago that is lost in the Barbecue Forum - Back Bacon. One thing I noted was I didn't soak it thoroughly enough after curing. It left a "hot" salty taste that was not appetizing.

Jim
 
Originally posted by j biesinger:
meal was used as a method of preservation. since the loin is cured but not smoked, peameal (now cornmeal), was packed onto the surface. My guess is the dry meal effects the water activity at the meat's surface and can be bacteriostatic.

I nice layer of cornmeal on the edge is certainly an important part of the flavor of peameal bacon.
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OK, I understand the answer, but how can something as tasteless as cornmeal contribute to the taste of something as rich in taste as bacon? Cornmeal is basically just starch?

I recon I'll just have to try.
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as tasteless as cornmeal
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I think you might be underestimating. Between the texture and subtile flavor it is most noticeable. And yes there is a difference between corn meal and pea-meal!
 
Originally posted by Marc:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">oak it thoroughly enough after curing.
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Jim, how did you cure? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Marc,
I followed the recipe at The Dizzy Pig. I blogged about my experience here. My favorite peameal bacon is still the stuff I bought in Ontario.
Jim
 
think you might be underestimating. Between the texture and subtile flavor it is most noticeable. And yes there is a difference between corn meal and pea-meal!
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Do you prefer the pea meal or corn meal coating?
 
I followed the recipe at The Dizzy Pig. I blogged about my experience here. My favorite peameal bacon is still the stuff I bought in Ontario.
Jim
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Jim, I've made peameal at least 5 times now and I never brine for more than 48 hrs.

I use this as my starting point:

5L water
440g salt
50g cure #1
450g sugar

I'll add a few bay leaves, peppercorns, juniper berries, pinch of pickling spice, depending on what I feel like.
 
Do you prefer the pea meal or corn meal coating?
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Actually, the cornmeal. I only did the pea-meal once and I didn't grind it fine enough. That said, I'd give it another try in the future.
 
I've made peameal at least 5 times now and I never brine for more than 48 hrs.
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That's how I first started doing basically all brine cured bacon but I wasn't happy anytime I was trying to infuse some flavor. Last couple of batches of Cd & belly have been done in a 4.5% brine for around ten days... At that strength everything can sit a several days if my schedule changes.
More importantly seems like I'm getting a lot more transfer of flavor from my brine ingredients.
 
That's how I first started doing basically all brine cured bacon but I wasn't happy anytime I was trying to infuse some flavor. Last couple of batches of Cd & belly have been done in a 4.5% brine for around ten days... At that strength everything can sit a several days if my schedule changes.
More importantly seems like I'm getting a lot more transfer of flavor from my brine ingredients.
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Hmm, I should check my percent in my posted recipe*, I'd be curious to see how close it is. I prefer my bacon at about 3-3.5% but that's just salt applied directly to the belly. I'm wondering how it would translate to a brine.

Anyways...sure a longer brine will transfer more flavor. However, I like my CB mildly flavored and most of my runs have been only salt/sugar brines. I've had problems with pickling spice, and in a mere 48 hr having clove and allspice dominate the flavor profile.

The CB I know isn't flavored at all, so you enjoy the cured pork and cornmeal.

*edit: 4.4%
 
*edit: 4.4%
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Figuring just salt to water, wouldn't your brine be @ 9.8% ? 490g (440g Salt + 50g #1)/5000g water.
My last "long cure" was 182g (140g salt+42g#1)/3785g water.
 
Figuring just salt to water, wouldn't your brine be @ 9.8% ? 490g (440g Salt + 50g #1)/5000g water.
My last "long cure" was 182g (140g salt+42g#1)/3785g water.
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right. I somehow got 5 and 10 mixed in my head and just moved the decimal without doubling.

It makes sense though, since I like my bacon at 3-3.5% salt and some people have commented on that recipe being far too salty for their liking. Its not if timed right, but if they over did it time wise, then it would be.
 
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