Bacon can be safely considered a universal snack. Moreover, it is possible - and necessary! - use in many dishes. True, the purchased product is very expensive. But if you know how to make bacon at home, you can not deny yourself anything. Moreover, the world knows several ways to prepare it. You can always choose the one that seems more acceptable.
How to make bacon yourself at home: a summer option
The first proposed option will require a barbecue. However, it is available in almost every household, even those who are not the happy owners of the cottages.
The brisket should be cut into wide layers. In water, you need to dilute the salt with sugar (proportions - like pickling, say, cucumbers). Submerge future bacon in brine and refrigerate for 10-12 hours.
Soak the sawdust well before actually smoking. Suitable hardwood waste - oak, alder, cherries. Then squeeze the sawdust and put it on the coals. Lay the bacon on a grill mounted on the barbecue and cover it with a lid.
Smoking will take 2-3 hours depending on the thickness of the meat. Make sure that the heat does not subside, and smoking does not stop. Add wet sawdust if necessary.
Salted bacon
This way to make bacon at home is good when the weather is not conducive to going outdoors. Cut the breast into slices (if bought with a whole slice). Mix salt, a mixture of peppers, dried garlic and dried herbs (especially elegant with wild garlic). The seasoning ratio is up to you. In a bowl or container on the bottom, put slices of fresh garlic, rub each plate of bacon with a mixture of spices and spread on top. Squeeze out one more clove of garlic: its juice must be sprinkled on top of the workpiece. Close the container with a lid and leave it on the table for a couple of hours.
The next step is to keep the product in the refrigerator for two days. Before serving the appetizer, do a test: if the plates are not too thin, it may be necessary to salt the bacon longer. As you can see, there is nothing complicated in making bacon at home.
Interesting offer
Those who like softer meat will be interested in the following way to make bacon at home. For its implementation, you need a brisket with unmade skin, up to 4 cm thick, weighing about one and a half pounds. Make holes in it from the meat side and stuff with garlic. Boil 4 liters of water, pour onion peel (a lot), put two peeled carrots, onion, dill stalks with parsley. Boil for half an hour, strain, pour 5 tablespoons of sea salt.
Rub the brisket over the meat with salt, roll the skin roll out, pull the twine. Dip in brine and cook for 40 minutes. Then add allspice and black pepper, laurel, juniper berries, coriander seeds and a spoonful of chili flakes. Turn off the fire immediately and leave the bacon to cool, then remove the pan for a day in the cold.
At the last stage, roll should be dried and put under oppression for 24 hours. After that, the bacon is finally ready for use. Experts believe that it is impossible to come up with a better snack.
How to make bacon at home: an oven recipe
Make a spicy mix first. For it, combine a quarter cup of salt and sugar, four tablespoons of ground pepper, one of nutmeg, 4 bay leaves (crumble), 5 garlic cloves (chop), 5 branches of thyme (chop). This number of components is enough for 2 kilograms of brisket.
Rub the mixture with meat, put it in a bowl and tighten it with cling film. The breast should stand in the refrigerator for 5 to 7 days. Turn it over daily so that the juices that are released are distributed evenly and the ambassador walks evenly. After a specified period of time, rinse the brisket, dry it, put it on a greased baking sheet and bake in an oven preheated to 180 degrees for about an hour and a half. Periodically check the readiness: if the piece is not thick, it can "finish off" earlier. When the dish has cooled, cut it into strips and store it in this form. Pork bacon prepared according to this recipe at home is good in sandwiches, in appetizers, and in salads. Moreover, it will appeal to even those family members who do not really like traditional, store bacon. You can give it even to children, if they do not have medical contraindications for the use of pork.