The recipe/method I use comes from Michael Ruhlman's book RATIO, and I've never done anything different. It starts with the basic cure (2% Kosher Salt + 1.5% brown sugar + 0.25% pink curing salt). This is the precision part because it's how you control your salt. Otherwise known as an "equalization cure" this method will ensure consistent flavoring regardless of the amount of meat or length of cure time. Alternatively, the "salt box" method is a way to salt the crap out of a piece of meat, then remove it in a time frame that won't let it get too salty. That method can get some pretty wild variations in salt content. Since my bellies are skin-on, I leave the skin on throughout, only removing it at the end. More on that later.....
So playing with a 5lb belly as an example, my cure looks like this:
5lbs. = 2,268g
2% Kosher salt = 2,268g x 0.02 = 45g Kosher Salt
1.5% Brown Sugar = 2,268g x 0.015 = 34g Brown Sugar
0.25% Pink Curing Salt = 2,268 x 0.0025 = 5.67g Pink Curing Salt
(SEE THE DIFFERENCE IN AMOUNTS? Sodium nitrite is poisonous in large amounts, so measure that out first. You might want to use a small bowl and a smaller capacity digital scale to make sure you don't get too much). You might have a cup or so salt & brown sugar, but only a teaspoon amount of pink curing salt.
For flavoring, I use about one clove of garlic per pound of meat. So for this, 5 large cloves of garlic, chopped.
I love tons of black pepper, and my forearms get tired from cranking it out. Usually about 10 grams of pepper is the right amount for my cure.
A teaspoon of red pepper flakes. This won't be enough to make it spicy at all. Leave it out if you're sensitive.
Use about 5 bay leaves if they're large, or 7 ish if they're small. My favorites come from Penzeys spices. Tear them up and mix it around.
Then just dump that across your piece of meat, and rub it around. Use the entire amount since you calculated it out. I usually cure for about 4-5 days, flipping the meat each day. It'll leach out liquid pretty quickly, so your goal is to get the meat as evenly in contact with the liquid as you can.
After 5 days, rinse it off in cold water to get most of the granular stuff off. The bay leaves like to stick, and since they're not good eats by themselves, make sure you get as much of those pieces off as you can. Let it sit on a rack in the fridge to dry overnight.
The next day, I like to roll smoke on about 250°-300° for about 2 hours. Pecan wood, hickory wood, and maple wood all are great for bacon. I usually use a mix. This is hot smoking, which will give you a fully cooked product, so you don't have the same meat safety concerns as with raw store bacon. After my first batch, I quit monitoring temperature of the meat since we're actually going to fry it later. 2-hours between 250 - 300 is just right.
Take it off the smoker and let it cool on a rack. But while it's still hot, use a fillet knife to slice the skin off. Goal here is skin only, leaving as much fat on the belly as you can. Save the skin for flavoring soups, beans, etc. I roll mine up and freeze them.
