Bacon means “smoked bacon.” It is made from pork ribs through shaping, curing, smoking, and other processes, so it is also called smoked ribs. Bacon is an uncooked semi-finished product. The skin is oily, golden yellow, the cortex is hard, the lean meat is dark brown, and the flesh is bright after cutting. In addition to its palatable salty taste, its flavor also has a strong smoky aroma. It is a meat product that is widely used in Western food, and is generally used as a raw material for a variety of dishes to enhance flavor and color. Sometimes it can also be fried.

According to the raw materials used, bacon can be divided into three types: large bacon, rib bacon, and fat bacon. Although the selection of materials is different, the processing methods of all kinds of bacon are basically the same.

1. Reference Formula

100 kilograms of raw meat, 8 kilograms of salt, 50 grams of sodium nitrate.

2. Processing Flow

Material Selection → Deboning → Shaping → Pickling → Soaking → Reshaping → Smoking → Finished Product.

3. Operation Points

3.1. Raw Material Selection

Bacon has higher requirements for raw materials, and all kinds of bacon materials must be lean white-haired pigs. This type of pig has two characteristics: First, it has full muscles, more lean meat, less fat, and thinner fat on the back and abdomen; Smoked, there will be no black spots on the translucent skin, which does not affect the appearance of the product. Due to limited conditions, when using black pigs as raw materials, fine-skinned white pigs must also be selected, otherwise, the product quality will be affected.

The raw material of large bacon is taken from the middle section of white striped meat of pigs, which starts from the 3rd to 4th sternum ribs, and ends at the middle part of the sacral vertebrae. The raw material for the rib bacon is taken from the pork ribs, with skin, and without skin, and boneless. The raw material of the fat bacon is taken from the pork square meat, that is, the large ribs are removed. And there are two kinds, one is with skin, and the other one is no skin, both are bones removed.

3.2. Deboning

All kinds of bacon must be deboned. It is a highly technical process. The basic requirement of the operation is to keep the skin intact, and the whole raw material basically keeps its original shape, so that there is no meat on the bone and no broken bones in the meat.

The specific operation method is to hold the meat picking knife in the right hand, and press the meat block with the left hand. According to the position of the bone, align the cutting edge of the knife to the center of the bone, and then slowly move the knife tip to cut the thin film on the surface of the hard ribs. Open, stop the knife at the intersection of the hard bone and cartilage, then use the tip of the knife to open the periosteum to the left and right, so that the end of the ribs are separated from the flesh and slightly upwards, and finally pull it diagonally upwards, and the ribs will naturally separate from the flesh. Cut off the vertebrae together with a knife close to the surface of the bone.

3.3. Trimming

Cut the boneless meat with a knife to make the surface and surroundings neat and smooth. It determines the size and shape of the product. The bacon is rectangular, and you should pay attention to whether each side is in a straight line. If there are irregular sides, you must use a knife to cut them into a straight line. Repair the broken bones, broken oil, fascia, blood clots, scrape off the remaining hair on the skin, and cut off the excessively high and thick fleshy layer. Pay attention to cut off the psoas muscle on the large bacon and the row of bacon with a knife, so that the finished bacon does not have the psoas muscle. Fatty bacon should be cut off the diaphragm and breast meat. After shaping, the weight of each rectangular piece of raw meat is 8-11 kg for large bacon, 2.5-4.5 kg for rib bacon, and 2.5-5 kg for fat bacon.

3.4. Pickling

Pickling is an important process in bacon processing, which determines the taste and quality of the finished product. Bacon curing is divided into two processes: dry curing and wet curing.

3.4.1. Marinating Equipment and Temperature

The pickling equipment is mainly pickling tanks, and cement pools and stainless steel pools are used abroad. The curing process needs to be carried out in cold storage at 0~4℃, with the purpose of preventing the growth and reproduction of microorganisms and causing the deterioration of the meat.

3.4.2. Marinade Preparation

Preparation of Dry Marinade: Weigh salt and sodium nitrate according to the formula standard, and then take half of each for mixing. Because the amount of sodium nitrate is very small, in order to stir evenly, it is necessary to dissolve sodium nitrate in a small amount of water to make nitrate, and then add salt and mix evenly to make the marinade.

Preparation of Bittern: Pour half of the table salt and sodium nitrate into the jar, add an appropriate amount of water, stir continuously with a stir bar, and add the amount of water until the bittern concentration is 15 Baume degrees.

3.4.3. Marinating Method

Dry curing: This is the first stage of curing. Apply the prepared dry marinade to the surface of the meat material and rub it gently. It must be rubbed evenly without any omissions. When the salt grains are combined with the moisture in the meat and begin to melt, shake off the salt grains piece by piece, and put it in a vat Marinate in the freezer for 20 to 24 hours.

Wet pickling: This is the second stage. The method is to pour a little bittern into the tank first, and then layer the meat material into the tank one by one, each stacking 2-3 layers, add a little bittern until it is full. The last layer of leather is facing up. Press stones or other heavy objects on the meat, add bittern until the top layer of the meat is submerged, and the ratio of the total amount of the added bittern to the weight of the meat material is 1:3. Because the raw material after dry curing contains salt, the concentration of bittern will increase after entering the vat. If the concentration exceeds 16 Baume, it needs to be diluted with water. During the wet curing process, the vat is turned once every 2 to 3 days, and the wet curing period is generally 6 to 7 days.

3.4.4. Judgment of Pickled Mature

It is inaccurate to use the marinating time to measure whether the material is marinated. There are many factors that affect maturity, such as the type of chromogenic agent, operation method, cold storage temperature, management quality, etc., all have a certain impact on the time required for pickling to mature. Therefore, the color change of the meat quality should be used as the measurement standard. Method to identify the color: cut the lean meat to observe the flesh color. If it has a bright rose-red color and is not sticky to the touch, it indicates that the marinating is mature; if the interior of the lean meat is still the original dark red, or only partially The bright red color and a sticky feel to the touch indicate that it has not been marinated and matured.

3.5. Soaking

All kinds of bacon need to be soaked and washed with fresh water after being out of the tank to remove dirt. And at the same time, it can reduce the saltiness and avoid white salt flowers on the surface after smoking and drying, which will affect the appearance of the finished product. The soaking time is generally 30 minutes. If the marinated material is too strong, the soaking time can be appropriately extended. The soaking water varies depending on the climate. Use cold water in summer and warm water in winter. After soaking, the saltiness of the raw material can be measured. One small piece of lean meat can be cut and tasted with the tongue, or it can be tasted after being cooked.

3.6. Reshaping

Although the material has been shaped, it has changed slightly after the above process, so needs to be reshaped. Trim the edges of the meat that are not in a straight line neatly, and shave off the residual hair and oil on the skin. Then pierce 3 small holes at the end of the meat material close to the breastbone 2 cm away from the edge (the bacon pierces 2 small holes). Thread the string, and hang it on a wooden stick or bamboo pole. Keep a certain distance between the slab and the slab, drain the water, and wait for it to enter the drying room for smoking.

3.7. Smoking

Smoking must be carried out in a closed smoking room. The smokehouse is made of bricks, with doors but no windows, and the floor is covered with brick or cement. The top of the smokehouse is provided with 2 to 3 holes to facilitate the discharge of residual smoke. There must also be 1 to 2 holes at the foot of the wall and the bottom of the back door to prevent indoor fireworks from being extinguished.

Smoking method: According to the size of the smokehouse, pile up several piles with firewood, burn them with fire, and then cover with sawdust to gradually generate smoke; you can also directly use sawdust to separate piles for burning. The former can increase the temperature of the smokehouse and is widely used. After the firewood or sawdust is piled up and burned, the drained billet is moved into the smokehouse, so that the product will be less dusty. The temperature of the smokehouse is generally maintained at 60~70℃. During the smoking process, the upper and lower positions of the meat material in the smokehouse should be moved in time to make the smoking even. Smoking generally takes 10 hours. When the skin of the raw material is golden brown, it indicates that the smoking is completed and it is the finished product.

4. Finished Product Specifications:

LargeBacon: The finished product is golden yellow, the lean meat is brightly colored after being cut, and each piece weighs 7-10 kg.

Rib Bacon: The finished product is golden yellow, with no hard bones on the skin, neat knife work, and not scorched. Each piece weighs 2 to 4 kilograms, and the yield is about 82%.

Fat Bacon: The finished product is golden yellow, without hard bones, neatly crafted, and not scorched. The weight of each piece with leather is 2~4.5 kg; the weight of each piece without leather is not less than 1.5 kg. The yield rate is about 82%.