How To Make Bacon
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Learn how to make bacon at home with this step-by-step guide for how to cure and smoke homemade bacon. Following this simple recipe will give you the absolute best bacon you’ve ever had in your life. I lovingly refer to this homemade bacon as “bacon gold”!
Table of contents
It was the year 2019 and my husband looked up at me and said “we should make our own bacon”. Being the bacon-lover that I am, I immediately was into this idea. After some research and testing our techniques over the next few years, I’m excited to share our tested and perfected homemade bacon recipe!
While it does take some advance planning to make your own bacon at home, it’s well worth it. This is literally the best bacon I’ve ever had in my life. It literally melts in your mouth like liquid gold!
We usually purchase a 9 pound pork belly when making this bacon recipe at home. We split it in half and make two different flavors, a maple bacon and a toasted fennel bacon. The maple is a classic, while the toasted fennel is here to surprise and delight you! It makes the absolute best BLT sandwich that you’ve ever had!
The bacon can be stored whole or sliced in the freezer for up to a year. We make this recipe 3-4 times a year, and always have some in the freezer for when we’re craving the “bacon gold”! I highly recommend doing the same!
Ingredients
For the full ingredient amounts, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- To cure bacon you’ll need:
- Pork belly – I’ve always purchased these at Costco because I know that I want a large pork belly that’s 8-10 pounds in size. Talk to the butcher at your local grocery store, and they may be able to cut one in this size for you. You can also try other warehouse stores in your area, like Sam’s Club or Smart and Final.
- Premium curing salt #1 – also called prague powder #1 or curing salt, I’ve always ordered this ingredient online, but you might also be able to find it at some specialty meat and butcher shops.
- To make maple bacon, you’ll need:
- Maple syrup – always use real maple syrup, not pancake syrup or imitation maple syrup. We want the real stuff to make the best flavored bacon!
- Brown sugar
- Kosher salt
- Ground black pepper
- To make fennel bacon, you’ll need:
- Fennel seeds – you can find these on the spice aisle at any major grocery store.
- Brown sugar
- Kosher salt
- Ground black pepper
Instructions
I’ve included step by step photos below to make this recipe super easy to follow at home. For the full detailed recipe instructions, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Cure the bacon
- For the fennel bacon, start by toasting the fennel seeds. Add the fennel seeds to a small dry skillet on the stove over medium-high heat. Continually toss the seeds in the skillet for 5-7 minutes, or until they become lightly toasted and smell fragrant. Remove them from the heat and add them to a small bowl with brown sugar, kosher salt, black pepper and curing salt (prague powder #1).
- For the maple bacon, combine maple syrup, brown sugar, kosher salt, black pepper and curing salt (prague powder #1) in a small bowl.
- Place two pork bellies (or a pork belly cut in half) in two separate vacuum sealer bags. Add the maple seasoning to one bag, and the toasted fennel seasoning to another bag. Add ice cubes to each bag. The ice cubes will melt in the bag in the refrigerator and become water. This method works better than adding water to the bag because it’s hard to vacuum seal a bag with too much liquid. If you’re using a large plastic zipper bag, rather than a vacuum sealer, feel free to go ahead and add the water.
- Vacuum seal the seasoned pork belly. Use a vacuum sealer to remove all air from the bag and seal it shut. If you don’t have a vacuum sealer, simply push all of the air out of a large plastic zipper bag before sealing it shut. Place the seasoned, sealed bags of pork belly in the refrigerator, fat side down. Each day, for 10 days, flip the bags, so that the fat side is up one day and down the next. I always like to massage the seasoning in the pork each day when I flip them over.
- After 10 days, remove each pork belly from the bag. Pat them dry thoroughly. I don’t like to rinse them, because then you rinse off all of the delicious seasonings. Instead, I simply use paper towels to pat them dry without removing too much of the spices.
- Leave the pork belly uncovered in the fridge for 24 hours to form a pellicle. Place each pork belly on a wire rack on top of a foil-lined baking sheet. If you don’t have enough room in your fridge to store them separately, you can use our very advanced system of stacking two wire racks in between shaker jars, so one pork belly can sit over the other without them touching.
Smoke the bacon
- Smoke the pork belly at 225°F with the fat-side up. Insert a temperature probe, or use an instant-read meat thermometer to check the temperature of the pork belly. Remove the pork belly from the smoker when it reaches 150°F in the thickest part of the middle of the pork. Smoking is more about temperature than time, but this should take about 2 hours. Once the pork belly reaches 150°F internally, remove it from the smoker and let it rest on a cutting board for 30 minutes.
- Refrigerate the bacon. After the pork belly has rested for 30 minutes at room temperature, wrap it tightly in foil and place it in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours before storing it or cooking it.
Store or cook the bacon
- To store the bacon, I like to slice it into 1-2 pound blocks, so that I only defrost up to 2 pounds at a time. Either vacuum seal the slabs of bacon, or place them in freezer-safe zipper bags. Always label them with the date and flavor of the bacon. Freeze for up to 1 year.
- To cook the bacon, slice it as thick or thin as you’d like. For this “bacon gold” I like a thick-cut bacon, that I cook at a lower temperature than traditional store-bought bacon. This way, the fat in the bacon renders perfectly, while the outside crust doesn’t overcook. For homemade bacon, I recommend cooking the slices in a single layer on an aluminum foil lined sheet pan at 350°F for 15-20 minutes. Always make sure to watch the bacon in the oven, so that it does not overcook. Burning homemade bacon gold is the saddest thing ever! The bacon can also be fried in a large pan on the stovetop over medium-high heat for 5-6 minutes per side, or until you’re desired level of crispiness is achieved.
Pro tips
- Use ice cubes, instead of water if vacuum-sealing the pork belly to cure. I have to give credit to my husband for this idea. It makes it so much easier to vacuum seal the bag without liquid! Approximately 20 ice cubes = 1 cup of water.
- Don’t forget to flip the pork belly in the bag every day for 10 days. This will ensure that both sides of the pork belly are well cured before it goes on the smoker.
- Remember to smoke to temperature, not time! If you don’t have a meat probe, or wireless meat thermometer, like the MEATER, to watch the temperature of the pork belly without opening the lid of the smoker, I recommend starting to check the internal temperature of the pork belly with an instant-read meat thermometer after 1 hour. Depending on the size of the pork belly, it could take anywhere from 1-3 hours to reach 150°F in the thickest part of the pork belly. Continue checking the internal temperature every 15-20 minutes, until it reaches 150°F.
- I recommend using apple pellets, or wood, to smoke the bacon. Applewood smoked bacon is popular for a reason. It’s delicious! The mild flavor of the apple wood pairs perfectly with the flavor of pork. You could also use maple, peach or cherry wood, or pellets.
Storage instructions
- Uncooked homemade bacon, whole or sliced, can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. After that, I recommend transferring it to the freezer.
- Cooked, homemade bacon should also be stored in the refrigerator. It’s best when hot and fresh out of the oven, but it can also be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 5 days after it’s been cooked.
- Uncooked homemade bacon, whole or sliced, can be stored in a freezer-safe bag for up to one year. I do not recommend freezing homemade bacon after it’s been cooked.
Ways to serve the bacon
I love this bacon so much that I almost always eat it straight off the baking sheet, standing over the kitchen island, as soon as it comes out of the oven. What I meant to say was, after I transfer the cooked bacon to a plate and sit down at the table, like a civilized adult. Wink, wink.
But seriously, this bacon is so delicious, it makes the most wonderful addition to a breakfast plate with scrambled eggs or omelettes, toast or pancakes, and a Bloody Mary. You could also serve the bacon as part of a Bagel Bar, or in any of these delicious bacon recipes.
- Pasta Boscaiola – Creamy Mushroom and Bacon Sauce
- Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf
- Chipotle Bacon Guacamole
- Bacon Wrapped Pork Loin
- Maple Bacon Brussels Sprouts
- Spinach Frittata with Bacon
- Green Beans with Bacon and Blue Cheese
- Bacon Tomato Avocado Grilled Cheese
- Blue Cheese Salad – Chopped Wedge Salad
Tools you’ll need
- Vacuum sealer – I use this FoodSaver vacuum sealer at home almost every week to store both cooked and raw meats in the freezer.
- Vacuum sealer bags – to fit the large pieces of pork belly, you’ll either need extra large bags, or purchase vacuum sealer rolls, so that you can make the bags any size you’d like. These are what I recommend for this recipe.
- Smoker – this is the Traeger Pro Series Grill I have at home and used for this recipe.
- Wood or Pellets – I recommend Traeger Apple Pellets for this recipe.
- Thermometer – on the Traeger, I use the probes that come with the smoker. If you do not have a smoker with a meat probe, I recommend this wireless meat thermometer.
- Heavy-duty foil – for wrapping the bacon after it’s smoked.
More recipes on the smoker
Busting out your smoker to make homemade bacon? Throw some of these other popular recipes on the smoker with it!
Homemade Bacon
Learn how to make bacon at home with this step-by-step guide for how to cure and smoke homemade bacon. Following this simple recipe will give you the absolute best bacon you've ever had in your life. I lovingly refer to this homemade bacon as "bacon gold"!
Ingredients
- 9 pound pork belly, sliced in half to make two different flavors
Maple Bacon Cure (for 4.5 pounds pork belly)
- ⅜ cup maple syrup
- 4 ½ tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 ¼ tablespoons salt
- 2 ¼ tablespoons ground black pepper
- ¾ teaspoon Prague powder #1, also called curing salt
- 1 ⅛ cup water, or 24 ice cubes
Fennel Bacon Cure (for 4.5 pounds pork belly)
- 3 tablespoons fennel seeds
- 9 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 ¼ tablespoons salt
- 2 ¼ tablespoons ground black pepper
- ¾ teaspoon Prague powder #1, also called curing salt
- 1 ⅛ cup water, or 24 ice cubes
Instructions
To cure maple bacon:
- Combine maple syrup, brown sugar, salt, black pepper and curing salt (prague powder #1) in a small bowl.
- Add a 4.5 pound pork belly to a vacuum sealer bag, or large plastic zipper bag.
- Add the maple syrup mixture from the bowl to the bag.
- If using a vacuum sealer bag, add 24 ice cubes, so that it's easier to vacuum seal without too much liquid. If using a large zipper bag, simply add 1 ⅛ cups water.
- Use a vacuum sealer to remove all air from the bag and seal it shut. If you don’t have a vacuum sealer, simply push all of the air out of a large plastic zipper bag before sealing it shut.
- Place the maple seasoned pork belly in the refrigerator, fat side down. Each day, for 10 days, flip the bag, so that the fat side is up one day and down the next.
To cure fennel bacon:
- Add the fennel seeds to a small dry skillet on the stove over medium-high heat.
- Continually toss the seeds in the skillet for 5-7 minutes, or until they become lightly toasted and smell fragrant.
- Remove them from the heat and add them to a small bowl with brown sugar, salt, black pepper and curing salt (prague powder #1).
- If using a vacuum sealer bag, add 24 ice cubes, so that it's easier to vacuum seal without too much liquid. If using a large zipper bag, simply add 1 ⅛ cups water.
- Use a vacuum sealer to remove all air from the bag and seal it shut. If you don’t have a vacuum sealer, simply push all of the air out of a large plastic zipper bag before sealing it shut.
- Place the fennel seasoned pork belly in the refrigerator, fat side down. Each day, for 10 days, flip the bag, so that the fat side is up one day and down the next.
To form a pellicle on the pork belly:
- Remove both pieces of seasoned pork belly from the bags and pat them dry thoroughly. I do not recommend rinsing them, or you will rinse off all of the seasoning. A thorough pat dry will be enough.
- Place each pork belly on a wire rack on top of a foil-lined baking sheet, and into the fridge for 24 hours.
To smoke the pork belly:
- Preheat a wood or pellet smoker to 225°F.
- Place the pork belly on the smoker with the fat side facing up.
- Smoke the pork belly until the internal temperature reaches 150°F.
- It could take anywhere from 1-3 hours to smoke the pork, depending on the size of the pork belly, how many times the smoker lid is open, and many other factors. I recommend using a wireless thermometer or meat probe to monitor the internal temperature of the pork belly as it's on the smoker.
- If using an instant-read meat thermometer, begin checking the pork belly after 1 hour, then every 15-20 minutes, until it reaches 150°F in the thickest part of the pork belly.
- Remove the pork belly from the smoker and let it rest on a cutting board for 30 minutes at room temperature.
To refrigerate, freeze or cook the bacon:
- After the pork belly has rested, wrap it tightly in foil and place it in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours before storing or cooking it.
- The bacon can be stored in the refrigerator, whole or sliced, for up to 2 weeks.
- To freeze the bacon, I recommend cutting it into 1-2 pound blocks, so that you're only defrosting up to 2 pounds at a time.
- Either vacuum seal the 1-2 pound slabs of bacon, or place them in freezer-safe zipper bags. Always label them with the date and flavor of the bacon. Freeze for up to 1 year.
- To cook the bacon, slice it as thick or thin as you’d like, using a sharp knife, or electric knife.
- Place the slices of bacon on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake in a 350°F preheated oven for 15-20 minutes. Always watch the bacon after 15 minutes, as oven temperatures vary and how thick the bacon is sliced will determine how long it will take to cook in the oven.
Notes
- The nutritional information provided is for 1 pound of bacon. If the bacon is thick-sliced, this will equal about 10-12 slices of bacon. For a thinner sliced bacon, one pound will equal 16-20 slices of bacon.
- The recipe instructions above are divided in half to make both maple bacon and fennel bacon. You can double the ingredients for either, if you’d like to make only one flavor of bacon.
- I recommend using apple pellets, or wood, to smoke the bacon. The mild flavor of the apple wood pairs perfectly with the flavor of pork. You could also use maple, peach or cherry wood, or pellets.
- Cooked, homemade bacon should always be stored in the refrigerator. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days after it’s been cooked.
Nutrition Facts
Calories 2469kcal (123%)Carbohydrates 30g (10%)Protein 43g (86%)Fat 241g (371%)Saturated Fat 88g (440%)Polyunsaturated Fat 26gMonounsaturated Fat 112gCholesterol 327mg (109%)Sodium 4033mg (168%)Potassium 968mg (28%)Fiber 2g (8%)Sugar 26g (29%)Vitamin A 64mg (1%)Vitamin C 2mg (2%)Calcium 94mg (9%)Iron 3mg (17%)
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