Peameal Bacon
Bubba Durand

I first tasted peameal bacon in Canada, somewhere near Toronto, in 1983.
I fell in love with it instantly. Love at first bite.
I've never seen it in the US, so I had to learn to make my own.

3 quarts cold water
1 cup real maple syrup
2/3 cup Morton kosher salt
2 tablespoons Prague powder #1 cure
1 tablespoon peppercorns, lightly crushed
1 tablespoon mustard seeds, lightly crushed
1 bay leaf
Boneless lean pork loin
1 1/2 cups Bob’s Red Mill Coarse Grind Cornmeal

Trim all fat and silver skin off the pork loin. If the loin is really long, cut it in half.

In a plastic container large enough to hold both the brine and the meat, mix together the water, maple syrup, salt, cure, and spices. Stir until the salt is dissolved.

Suck up some of the brine into a brine injector, and inject the loin every inch or so. Place the loin in the container with the remaining brine. Cover and refrigerate for 4 days, up to 7 days.

Remove the loin from the brine, rinse and pat it dry. Roll it in the cornmeal. Put it on a rack over a sheet pan and place it uncovered into the refrigerator for 24 hours.


Slice it...


...and fry it in a skillet with a little bit of butter.





The Johnson Family Cookbook