D.I.Y. Lamb Bacon

Everything you need for lamb bacon!

Hi guys so recently we were at a bacon festival and I gave a talk and demonstration on real bacon, the time it takes and the importance of doing it properely. I actually gave a demonstration on making real “Australian Lamb bacon” I also highlighted the importance of experimenting in the kitchen to keep life fun and open yourself up to new experiences.
So as promised here is my Wiltshire cure recipe it is important to use fresh meat from a reputable supplier, clean equipment and to keep the temperature cold. You will need,

​50g Smoked Salt*
40g Smoked Sugar*
1tsp Pepper
1 tsp Instacure 1**
2 litres water
non reactive container big enough to hold brine and meat
time
1 kg good quality meat lamb beef or pork
 
So to start your journey into making your own bacon, I have developed this easy to follow recipe. It involves procuring some ingredients you may not have used before. You can easily find Instacure no 1, from different online stores I have used Melbournefooddepot.com.au and smokedandcured.com.au before, both have been a great product and professional service.
You can do up to 2 kg of meat with this amount of brine.

Smoked salt and sugar brine

Then first day of cure

​Day 1

1. Chill water in fridge for 3-4 hours beforehand or alternately use 200g of ice instead of 200ml of water.
2. Whisk all ingredients together in non reactive container,
3. Place meat in container, cover with brine and leave in fridge

 
Day2-5

1. Each day turn meat over in brine and stir the liquid to mix it again and all the salt doesn’t concentrate in the lower half.

Day 6

1. Remove meat from brine and discard the liquid
2. Dry the meat with a paper towel and leave either hanging or on a wire rack on the fridge to optimize airflow around and give the meat time to dry out a little.

Day 7

1. Flip the meat over so that the other side is exposed leave overnight

 
Day 8

1. Your bacon is now ready to slice, fry and serve on soft white bread with butter and a little bit of tomato relish
2. This is known in England as green bacon as it is unsmoked.
3. This is also the time where you could smoke your bacon!

So there you have it a little how to guide of making your own bacon please email me with pictures and descriptions on how your bacon has come out!

Beautiful NSW Lamb straight from the farm

* If you don’t have access to smoked salt and sugar, just use regular or send me an email and we can try to arrange something.
**The standard nitrite percentage for this cure is 6.25%. When ordering please make sure that you have instacure no 1 as it contains nitrites and is designed for these shorter cures that need further cooking before they can be eaten, instacure no 2 contains nitrates, these react over time in the meat to be converted into nitrites and cure products that will be ready to eat after they have cured for long enough. Nitrite is important in curing it lowers the risk of botulism and creates the characteristic pink colour, flavour and taste associated with bacon.