Smoked Beef Bacon

Directions

1. Trim the beef bacon as needed, looking for an even surface.
2. Combine the salt, sugar and pink cure in a bowl and stir unil well mixed.
3. Rub the beef belly on all sides with the salt cure mixture. Rub into the sides as well.
4. Place the belly in a vacpack bag, adding whatever cure fell off into the bag as well.
5. Vacseal and place in the fridge to cure.
6. Cure in the fridge for 5-8 days, or about 1 day per 500g. In this recipe that will take 6 days. Flip daily and lightly massage each time to help with even curing.
7. Remove the bacon fromt eh vacpack and rinse under cool water to remove excess cure and salt.
8. Pat dry with paper towel.
9. Place the bacon on a rack lined tray and back into the fridge overnight to dry out and form a pellicle.
10. Smoking day – Preheat your Pro Max or Classic to 180 degrees on the Smoke setting.
11. Season the bacon on all sides with rodeo rub and let it rest at room temperature while the smoker preheats.
12. Hang the bacon or lay on the smoker rack.
13. Fill a sawdust pan ½ full with sawdust and dampen with water. Place on the heating element.
14. Insert and meat probe into the bacon to monitor temperature.
15. Set dampers to 2/3 closed.
16. Smoke for 3 hours.
17. Remove sawdust pan.
18. Change setting to Cook and increase the temperature of the smoker to 225 degrees. Cook until the internal temperature of the bacon reaches 150 degrees.
19. Remove from the smoker and let rest at room temperature for 1 hours before placing into the fridge to cool completely.
20. Slice and enjoy!