Great storage container for curing large amount of bacon


 
Monty House

Monty House

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In this post, I put up 28 lbs of pork belly for curing (in 12 two-to-three lb. pieces). My idea is to put the chunks in a rib rack, 6+6. I believe it'll all fit in my 18.5" during a single cook.

I was worried about curing, though. I purchased a Cambro plastic hotel tray with lid from a restaurant supply store. They're 6" deep, 12.75" wide and 20.875" long. (Model 16CW http://cool.cambro.com/Camwear_Pans_and_Lids_Food_Pans_and_Lids_Storage.ashx ). I put two chunks each in 2 gallon ziplocs; I was then able to get two ziplocs per layer, and three layers deep fit PERFECTLY into these cambros. (Trust me, it was luck!) Anyhow, the cambro ended up working out like it was custom made for this arrangement. It all fits nicely (with room to spare) in the bottom of my refrig.

I'm doing what is, for me, a huge one-time cook of bacon, because it seems easier than continually doing small batches. Twelve rashers of bacon won't last long with my assorted group of friends and relatives!

The only thing I'm worrying about now is how to find the room to dry all that bacon overnight. What about stacking drying racks--any suggestions?
 
Picture without lid.

cambro.jpg
 
it doesn't really need to be dried in the fridge. You can just leave it out and let it air dry at room temp. Once it's sufficiently cured, it can be hung and dried slowly over weeks, so leaving it out for 12 hours won't hurt it. I've found that hanging cold belly in a cold smoker leads to condensation forming on the belly defeating the purpose of drying them. I'm thinking that for winter smoking, I'll let the belly dry at ambient temps so it isn't going in cold.
 
You can dry it by putting it in a cold smoker before you add wood, too.

That container is much nicer than the kitty litter bucket I cured my ham in!
 
I agree, when cold smoking, you'll want the bacon to be dry and at whatever the smoker temperature will be to prevent condensation before you commence smoking.


~Martin
 
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