Started cold smoking another batch tonight. 20 lbs this time, cured for 15 days with bourbon, brown sugar, salt and curing salt. Its about 25 degrees outside, great weather for cold smoking. Planning on 8-10 hours of smoke with hickory pellets. Using the cure recipe originally posted by BuckRage...always turns out great!

Dang that looks good.

Would Very nice work right there.

Ill take a little of that turkey on the side too

Thanks guys, homemade bacon is awesome and I almost enjoy making it as much as I enjoy eating it. Its 27 degrees this morning, I just started round 2 of the cold smoking. I want the bacon to pick up a bit more color, and smoke flavor of course. Should be done smoking around 1-2pm, then I'll let it chill down and get the Berkel slicer sanitized and ready.

...And I might have a little turkey over ice while I wait

I finished the cold smoking yesterday and let the bacon hang out in the fridge until this morning, then I transferred it into the deep freeze while I prepped the slicer and sanitized it. Got it all sliced and vacuum sealed and back into the freezer, except for one package which went into the fridge.

Some pics from today...

In the freezer

The slicer




The Vac sealer

Finished product sealed and ready for the freezer

Cost per pound excluding labor?

I paid $2.89/lb for the pork belly at Costco. I already had the remaining ingredients for the cure, but in total I used 2 cups of brown sugar, 1 cup of salt, 4 teaspoons of pink salt and 8 oz of bourbon.