Hickory smoked paprika and maple bacon recipe

If you like your bacon pokey and smokey - this is the pig for the gig.

Similar to the smoked maple cured bacon recipe here https://www.dinnerdinnerfatman.com/blog/smoked-maple-bacon-recipe, this recipe uses hickory smoke rather than oak (hickory imparts a stronger flavour) and some smoked sweet paprika, giving it a little edge. Easy to slice and freeze for later use, and unbelievably good in bacon sandwiches. Slice thickly for maximum decadence.

The recipe does require a smoker, but i’ll shortly publish recipes that don’t!

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• 1 kg pork belly
• 50 g salt
• 130 ml maple syrup
• 1 tsp black pepper, ground
• 2 tsp smoked sweet paprika
• 2.5 g Cure No 1

• Mix all the cure ingredients together and put in a zip lock freezer bag
• Add the pork belly to the bag and make sure it is covered in the cure all over
• Leave this in the fridge for 7 days, turning it over every day (this is important)
• After 7 days take the belly out of the bag and rinse it and pat dry
• Leave the belly in the fridge on a plate overnight
• Preheat the smoker and slowly smoke the belly with hickory wood / chips until it reaches an internal temperature of 68c
• Allow to cool and then chill and slice
• Slices can be cooked or vac sealed and frozen for later use!