How do you know if a pork belly has cured properly?


 
S

Steve Cole

TVWBB Super Fan
I've got a couple ~6lb bellies that have been dry curing, using the zip-lock bag method, for 6 days. Some sections are still soft. How firm is it supposed to be? What should I do if it's not that firm?
 
Sometimes they don't firm up a whole lot, it depends on the individual belly, some have more fat or more lean than others, some have more moisture, some have softer fat, etc.
It's good to not be in a hurry, give the cure some extra time, that works to ensure that the salt and cure are distributed and equalized more evenly throughout the belly and leads to the best quality in the end.

Cheers, peace and bacon grease,
~Martin

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One belly piece is firm most places but a little soft in a couple corners. The other is soft over a lot of it. Fridge might have been a little cool the first few days. They've been in fridge for 7 days. How many more days is it ok to wait? I expected to be able to dry them either tonight or tomorrow night and smoke them either Sat or Sun. If they're not ready to rinse and dry tomorrow night, how long can they wait in the fridge?
 
Slabs are 1"-2" thick. Not much liquid in the bags. What's the risk or downside of taking them out too soon? Smoking mid-week is going to be tough, but not impossible. I'd rather wait another week and have them cured right if there's no risk of them going bad or drawback.
 
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Steve - if you don't cure long enough, you may end up with a grey spot in the middle. Assuming you hot smoke to done then it should be safe to eat, but that grey spot won't be very appetizing. I'd do the whole rinse/fry a sample/soak if needed/repeat if needed/dry overnight process tomorrow and smoke Sunday.
 
Well, I went 8 days on the cure. The soft spots were fatty areas and irregular sections of side. Other than those areas the sides are firm. Drying it now. The whole family are bacon fiends and can't wait until it's smoked and ready to cook.
 
If your whole family is bacon fiends, you better start another batch right away. Store bought wont cut it after tomorrow.
 
I second Jon Des's suggestion! We run out of bacon and everyone gets cranky waiting for the next batch to cure. Luckily I'm retired so every day is a weekend for me. I can smoke anytime I have enough to do. I just put 5 pounds in the fridge to cure for a week so we won't run out until we do another "big" batch, maybe 8 or 9 kilos after the first of the month.
 
Steve Cole said:
I've got a couple ~6lb bellies that have been dry curing, using the zip-lock bag method, for 6 days. Some sections are still soft. How firm is it supposed to be? What should I do if it's not that firm?
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I let all my bellies regardless of quantity cure for two weeks but less than twenty days. Don't micromanage the stuff. Just turn the slabs over avery few days or so. On the day before smoking, rinse and allow to dry for twenty-four hours prior to insertion into the bullet! And FORGET the firmness.

FWIW my bellies weigh around fourteen pounds fresh/each and range up to two to three inches thick on occasion. But don't sweat it. But you can allow to cure for up to but not more than twenty days according to a person I know who's family has been involved with cold smoking for decades.
 
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I took my pork bellies out of the cure tonight and they both had a little bit of green coloration on a few areas of the fat side. Is this a cause for concern? They've both been rinsed and are currently in the fridge for a Tuesday smoke. Thoughts?
 
Gerry Ackerman said:
I took my pork bellies out of the cure tonight and they both had a little bit of green coloration on a few areas of the fat side. Is this a cause for concern? They've both been rinsed and are currently in the fridge for a Tuesday smoke. Thoughts?
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Sounds like a touch of nitrite burn.
Trim it off if you wish....if there's no other sign of a problem, the bellies are fine.

~Martin
 
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