Nothing can beat Bacon you create yourself. A great taste treat with our Maple Buttermilk Flapjacks as we featured them in Show #113.

Ingredients:

1 cup Michigan maple syrup grade "b"
1 cup french sea salt
1 pound pork belly
3 cups hickory chips, soaked in water

Method:

In a mixing bowl, whisk the syrup and salt together. Place the pork belly on a piece of plastic wrap. Pour the cure over the pork and wrap the pork belly tightly in the plastic wrap. Place the pork in a plastic zip-lock bag and seal the bag tightly. Cure the meat for 36 hours under refrigeration. Remove the bag from the refrigerator. Unwrap the pork and rinse off the cure. Pat the pork dry.

Place the cured pork belly in a smoker and following the smoker manafacturers directions add the drained hickory chips and "cold smoke" the belly for 12 -16 hours. Refrigerate the bacon and use as needed.

Yield: about 1 pound bacon