• Cooking Time: 180-ish
• Servings: Many
• Preparation Time: 30
• Ingredients:
• 8 - 10 lb. fresh pork belly (skin off)
• Cure:
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup kosher salt
• 3 teaspoons curing salt (AKA "pink salt")
• 1 1/2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
• After curing:
• 2 cups cracked black pepper

1. Combine all the ingredients for the cure and mix well.
2. Cut the pork belly in two equal pieces.
3. Rub the cure equally over all sides of all pieces (use all the cure mix)
4. Place each piece of pork belly into a 2-2 1/2 gallon zip lock bag, remove as much air as possible and seal them.
5. Place them in a pan and then into the refrigerator.
6. Turn them every day for seven to 10 days (depends on the size and thickness of your pork belly).
7. After the curing time is done, remove your pork belly from the bags and rinse them well.
8. Pat them dry.
9. Pack the cracked black pepper on both sides of both pieces of cured pork (press them in firmly, much will fall off while cooking).
10. Place them on cooling racks on sheet pans and place them in the refrigerator for three hours (to dry the bacon a little)
11. Preheat your oven to 200 degrees.
12. After three hours, place in the oven for approximately three hours or until a 150 degree internal temperature has been achieved.
14. Let the bacon cool before slicing and cooking.
16. If you like your bacon smoked, use your smoker instead of your oven and add whatever wood you prefer for smoking.

Because...pork...because...bacon :) Note: Preparation time does NOT include curing time! This is a "dry cure"