Homemade Maple Bacon

Who doesn’t love Maple Bacon!  Ever since I made homemade hickory smoked bacon, I have been addicted to home cured bacon.  It is simple, easy and most of all, DELICIOUS!!!  This time around I used a wet brine to make the best bacon I have ever eaten!  Maple bacon has a slight sweetness and a beautiful saltiness that come together to make pure perfection!  This is a must try if you love bacon!

Homemade Maple Bacon

In a bowl, combine the Kosher salt, maple syrup, dark brown sugar and Prague Powder #1 (pink curing salt).

You can purchase pink curing salt at most sporting goods stores and of course, Amazon!

Next, you need a pork belly.  These can be hard to come by, but I have found them at both Sam’s Club and Costco.  If you are not a member of a warehouse club, you can order them from your butcher.

I picked up a whole belly from Costco and cut it into thirds (roughly 3lbs each).

I made two types of bacon (you may see it peeking into some of the pics) and some Pork Belly Burnt Ends. My other recipe is Hickory Smoked Bacon.

Coat the belly with half of the cure and rub it in.  Then, flip and coat the other side.

Place the belly into a zip top bag, making sure to pour the remaining cure into the bag.  Refrigerate for 1 week, making sure to flip the bag every day.  Make sure to massage the meat each time you flip it.

After a week, remove the belly from the bag and rinse. Pat dry and then place on a rack and refrigerate for another 12 to 24 hours.  This will allow the meat to get tacky and allow for more smoke absorption.

The next day, start your smoker and set it to 190-225 degrees.  Add maple wood for flavor.  FYI – you can use whatever flavor wood that you want!  Try to keep it within that temperature.  I have a nice Traeger Smoker that allows for easy temperature control.  If you are looking for a nice smoker that is super easy to use, I recommend a Traeger!

Insert a probe thermometer and cook the belly until 150 degrees internal temperature.  I love my Thermoworks Smoke remote probe thermometer.

I used my Thermoworks Smoke to monitor the temperature remotely.  It is a solid thermometer that allows for remote monitoring.  This was crucial as it started pouring rain during this cook.  I was able to monitor the temperature of the pork belly from the comfort of my couch!  Thanks Thermoworks!

Once the pork belly is fully cooked, it is magically transformed into Maple BACON!!!!!  Hard to believe, but Bacon has never been so delicious!

Cool and store in a sealed container for up to one week in the refrigerator, or freeze for up to three months.  I sliced mine and then vacuum-sealed it for easy thawing and cooking later.  However, I feel as if I wasted my vacuum seal bags, because we ate it all within a week.  What can I say, it is totally delicious!