• General food and cooking questions, discussion, and recipes. To blog your food or to create (or post in) a community food thread, please post in Post Your Eats!

smoking Canadian Bacon

I went to bass pro on Saturday especially for Prague. No such luck. Only jerky cure etc. I'm gonna give that a shot.

Prague has what? 6.8 % nitrite? This jerky cure has like .86% so.....I'm gonna rig something up.
 
Dry cured for 4 days then 1 day in the fridge uncovered to dry out.
 
20151127_122003.jpg

 
 
On the smoker with apple and oak, just a few chunks since I don't want an overpowering smoke.
 
20151127_122058.jpg

 
 
Cooked at 250-260 and it took a little less than 2 hours to reach the final temp 145 internal. Off the smoker to rest for a while.
 
20151127_140955.jpg

20151127_140945.jpg

 
 
Money shot.
20151127_144413.jpg

 
 
End result, tastes exactly like ham/ Canadian Bacon, but is super lean and juicy. A little salty, but isn't most ham?!?
 
I'll do it again, and again, and again.
 
Dry cured for 4 days then 1 day in the fridge uncovered to dry out.
 
20151127_122003.jpg

 
 
On the smoker with apple and oak, just a few chunks since I don't want an overpowering smoke.
 
20151127_122058.jpg

 
 
Cooked at 250-260 and it took a little less than 2 hours to reach the final temp 145 internal. Off the smoker to rest for a while.
 
20151127_140955.jpg

20151127_140945.jpg

 
 
Money shot.
20151127_144413.jpg

 
 
End result, tastes exactly like ham/ Canadian Bacon, but is super lean and juicy. A little salty, but isn't most ham?!?
 
I'll do it again, and again, and again.


I need to do this, I love that shit!
 
I bought my curing salt at Rural King, but know that they are not well known outside the mid-west.
CuringSalt_zpstoivsyxv.jpg

 
Started a 6# Pork Loin yesterday.
Canadian%20Bacon_zpsk0pvzcne.jpg


Bass Pro has this:
LemCure_zpsm6ecegwq.jpg

 
Cabela's has this
speedcure_zpsln4r5csm.jpg
 
grantmichaels said:
Jeff H -

Have you developed a preference for Tender Quick vs Prague #1? ...

I have both, and want to give this a shot imminently!

Thanks!

:cheers:
Click to expand...
 
Grant, I've searched in vain to find Prague #1 locally so I've just been using Tender quick. Just did a whole 10# loin a couple of weeks ago. Working great so far. One of these days I'll order some Prague but TenderQuick works so well I haven't been motivated to try. A couple changes/updates below since I've made this a few times since I posted the thread.
 
The recipe that Mortons gives on their website for loin is one 1TBSP TQ and 1 tsp sugar per pound. I found that 1TBSP sugar gives it a better , more of a honey baked ham taste. Let it DRY cure for 3-5 days then soak it for hours/overnight to get rid of the excess salt.
 
Smoking it at 275ish makes the cooking portion go pretty fast. Pull it at 145 and let it rest, then fully cool in the fridge before you slice it.
 
Okay, cool.

FWIW, Amazon has P#1: https://amzn.com/B008X6KE0E

So, I'm going to unwrap a section of 1/3 pork loin, apply a mixed 3 tbsp ea TQ and sugar dry rub, place in the fridge for 3-5 days, then take it out and soak out the saltiness a bit overnight, and then air dry it in the fridge on a rack the next day, and then smoke it at 275-325F (RibGuy) the following day, yanking at 145F internal.

Looking forward to it! Will have to pull out the slicer for this one - think I'll smoke turkey breast at the same time ...
:cheers:
 
I love this thread.   just finished a cure on a pork loin  Bought a bone in one this time and trimmed it out which meant I got a good piece of tenderloin too.  cover and injection brine then , I did peameal with the large piece and smoked the tenderloin piece for backbacon but it didn't work out so well.  It seems that  tenderloin is too tender and texture of the backbacon ended up  meally.    It was a one off why the heck not on my part but next time I wouldn't bother trying to cure it. I wonder if a dry cure would address that or if tenderloin is just wasted on the process. 
 
Jeff H said:
Note they don't smoke it, they let it sure and then cut and pan fry.
 
Different strokes.
Click to expand...
 
Hmmm ... I could do that, pan fry, and then chamber vac the pieces ...
 
I happen to have 2x 1/3 tenderloin ... and I do love me a good side-by-side experiment! =)
Ashen said:
I love this thread.   just finished a cure on a pork loin  Bought a bone in one this time and trimmed it out which meant I got a good piece of tenderloin too.  cover and injection brine then , I did peameal with the large piece and smoked the tenderloin piece for backbacon but it didn't work out so well.  It seems that  tenderloin is too tender and texture of the backbacon ended up  meally.    It was a one off why the heck not on my part but next time I wouldn't bother trying to cure it. I wonder if a dry cure would address that or if tenderloin is just wasted on the process. 
Click to expand...
 
The places talking about this are careful to mention not using pork tenderloin, but pork loin because it's considerably leaner ...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top