BuckBoard Bacon Curing Temp


 
J

Jay B

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Im making my first batch of High Mountain Buckboard bacon, sounds like something I have to try. I boned a 6.5lb butt, rubbed on the appropriate amount of cure, put it in a 2.5gallon ziplock bag in the beer fridge outside to wait 10 days before smoking. I read on the instructions that the fridge needs to be 40-45 degrees during curing. I have no idea what the fridge temp is, but I keep it cold for the beer. I put my stoker pit probe in there to check the temp. I let it stabalize for an hour, the fridge was 33'! After adjusting all night, I have to turn the fridge and freezer settings all the way to the lowest possible setting to get 41'.

I just want to verify with you guys that curing needs 40', for some reason this is making me nervous.
 
My beer fridge is at 34-36 and that's where I do my curing. Never had a problem with those temps. It's my understanding at lower temps you'll need more time to cure. I did a maple bacon last week and had no problems with it curing being at that temp for 8 days. Recipe called for 7-10 day cure time. I never used butt for the buckboard I always use loins. Those I cured for 10-12 days, since the loins are thicker than the bellies. HTH
 
Curing slows at temps below 36, slowing further as temps drop. It quits all together at just above freezing. The optimum temps for curing: 36-38. One risks spoilage much above 40 (though I've not seen that occur unless temps are crazy). It should be noted though that spoilage organisms thrive above 40.

How lower temps (but not too low) affect curing largely depends on the thickness of the item being cured, its fat-to-lean ratio, and the amount of cure used.
 
Went to take a peak at the butt this afternoon. Is it normal for the ziploc bag to be full of water at the bottom? Must be a cup or so of liquid in there.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Jay B:
Went to take a peak at the butt this afternoon. Is it normal for the ziploc bag to be full of water at the bottom? Must be a cup or so of liquid in there. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Jay, Yes. When you cure meat it pulls out alot of the moisture and that's why you see alot of liquid in the bag.
 
Ok, I pulled my butt out to soak in water just now, it has been 10 days. While I was washing it, I noticed a few areas that were not that "gray" color, mainly in the cavity where I deboned. That area is bright red in many places. I also noticed that the gray area seems to penetrate the meat about 1/4 inch or so. Is this normal? Or does this mean my curing didnt work right? I know I filled that cavity real good with the cure.
 
The only way to truly tell is to smoke the meat. Oxygen and light (amount, types and consistency thereof) affect meat color during curing.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by K Kruger:
The only way to truly tell is to smoke the meat. Oxygen and light (amount, types and consistency thereof) affect meat color during curing. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
I agree with Kevin but I do wonder about the gray. I've cured my fair share of meat and it always changes color to bright red/pinkish color. Never saw gray on cured meat, fresh yes, cured no. Did you get almost all of the air out of the bag? Did you overhaul it every day? If it's gray after curing it's most likely going to be gray after smoking.
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I see it happen all the time with beef, O2 and light will turn it gray as Kevin said.
 
@Jay: I just did my first buckboard bacon this last weekend and mine looked a bit like you describe with some pink/red spots in areas that were folded closed, etc. I just figured it was due to the fact that it wasn't exposed to oxygen the whole time like the rest of the meat. Like you, I know I put cure on everything.

After smoking, the outside was brownish-pink and the inside was pink. Maybe I just need to do a better job removing the oxygen from the bag.

Here's some pictures, start to finish:

Ready to smoke:
http://www.derrybryson.com/bbq/bacon1.jpg

Done smoking:
http://www.derrybryson.com/bbq/bacon2.jpg

Sliced:
bacon3.jpg


Note from Moderator: Changed inline photos to links due to filesize. See "Posting Photos" link on BB homepage for guidelines. Thanks!
 
Thanks for the replies guys. After reading your replies I understand it must of been a reaction with oxygen. I did not try to get all of the oxygen out, didnt realize I needed to. Im not sure what overhauling it everyday means, so I guess I didnt do that either!

This was my first try at curing anything, and my concern was that the gray color was what it was supposed to look like, and that the red in crevasses meant that part wasn't cured correctly. Well I now understand that was wrong because I smoked it and it was great! Passed out packs to family and friends and everyone loved it and wants more.

Here are some pics of how it looked after soaking in water for 2+ hours and before the smoke. The gray was darker and the pink was brighter before the soak.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a7/jrb03/food/SANY0324.jpg

The cavity was mostly pink.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a7/jrb03/food/SANY0325.jpg

The finished product was delish.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a7/jrb03/food/SANY0343.jpg

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a7/jrb03/food/SANY0347.jpg

Note from Moderator: Changed inline photos to links due to filesize. See "Posting Photos" link on BB homepage for guidelines. Thanks!
 
Jay, Pics look great, nice fat ratio in the Butt bacon. If you can get bellies in your area, try one the next time. FYI, The maple bacon recipe posted in the pork recipes forum is awsome. If no bellies to be had, use butts and do the maple cure, it's awsome.
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I think your 4000th post just rolled over on my bacon post....congrats!

I will look up those recipes and try them for sure. Curing this butt was fun and something Im sure we will do alot of in the future.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Jay B:
I think your 4000th post just rolled over on my bacon post....congrats! </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Dude, yeah, Thanks, I just went Plattynum.
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Anyway back to the bacon. I love doing cured meats. Have you ever tried the Pastrami recipe that Chris has posted in the cooking section? That's a good one if you like pastrami.
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Looks great Jay. Really good.

You don't need to worry about (or remove) oxygen--as you've discovered--just know that it can have an effect that, in the end, won't actually effect a thing. (Overhauling is just flipping the meat in the cure container so that curing is more even.)

Try bellies as well as Bryan suggesty. Between them and buckboard you'll never buy pumped commercial bacon again!
 
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