Jowl Bacon
User Reviews
5
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Prep Time
5 mins
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Cook Time
4 hrs
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Total Time
4 hrs 5 mins
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Servings
10
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Calories
160 kcal
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Course
Main Course
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Cuisine
American
Jowl Bacon
Description
The process begins by measuring the jowl and applying a cure consisting of 2% regular salt and 0.25% curing salt by weight, optionally mixed with brown sugar. The seasonings are massaged into the meat thoroughly to ensure even curing. The jowl is sealed in a vacuum bag or tightly wrapped and refrigerated for a full week, with daily turning if not vacuum sealed.
Post curing, the jowl is rinsed and dried overnight in the refrigerator to prepare for smoking. Smoking is done at near 165 degrees Fahrenheit, maintaining temperature to fully cook and impart smoky flavor without drying out the meat. The result is a smoky, rich bacon with a distinct texture coming from the jowl cut.
This preparation requires patience and careful temperature control but yields a unique bacon variation suited for frying and adding robust flavor to dishes. Slicing thickness can be adjusted after smoking to suit serving preferences.
Ingredients
- 1 hog jowl
- salt (see below)
- Instacure No. 1 (see below)
Instructions
- Weigh the jowl in grams. Now weigh out 2% of that weight in regular salt, and then 0.25% -- that's a quarter of 1 percent -- of curing salt. Very roughly speaking, this should be about 4 tablespoons of regular salt and a quarter teaspoon of curing salt. Mix these salts together. If you like sugar in your cure, mix this in as well. I like a half cup of brown sugar sometimes.
- Massage the salts (and sugar, if using) into the jowl well. Put the jowl in a vacuum bag and add any stray salt. Seal the bag and put in the fridge for a week. If you don't have a vacuum bag, put the jowl in a sealable plastic bag and set that in the fridge for a week. In this case, flip the jowl over every day.
- When the jowl has been cured, remove it from the bag, give it a quick rinse and pat dry. Set it on a rack in the fridge overnight.
- Get your smoker ready. Set it at as close to 165F as you can, and you can go a little hotter and a lot cooler if you have that ability. Take the jowl out of the fridge and set it in the smoker. Smoke for at least 3 hours, and up to 8 hours if your smoker is below 120F. I like 4 hours at 165F.
- Remove the jowl bacon and set in the fridge to cool completely before storing. It will last a few weeks in the fridge, or more than a year vacuum sealed and in the freezer.
Nutrition Information
Show DetailsNutrition Facts
Serving: 10Serving
Amount Per Serving
Calories 160 kcal
% Daily Value*
| Calories | 160kcal | 8% |
| Protein | 3g | 6% |
| Fat | 16g | 25% |
| Saturated Fat | 6g | 30% |
| Cholesterol | 22mg | 7% |
| Sodium | 10mg | 0% |
| Potassium | 57mg | 1% |
| Vitamin C | 1mg | 1% |
| Calcium | 2mg | 0% |
| Iron | 1mg | 6% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5
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