A while back I cooked pork belly burnt ends using the sliced pork belly from Costco.
The slices were about 1/4-3/8 of an inch thick. Although the flavor was spot on the texture was not.
Too much "Bite".
9:30 they went on the grill at 225*F, seasoned with SPG and Honey sweet rib.
10:50 spritz.
11:40 internet temp was about 170*F, stated the braze with Brown sugar, honey, apple juice,
13:00 internal temp was at ~203*F
I may not use sliced pork belly again due to the texture. But if I can get a softer texture, the best bite I will use them again.
This meat candy is a nice size but needs a nice bite.
Help wanted. The problem is rendering the fat without overcooking the pork.
pictures included. Pic of finished Candy bites after portioned out.
I have not used the Costco sliced belly, I usually cut it from slabs, the sliced should cook about the same though.
Only thing I can think of is maybe since the slices lead to a smaller cube it cooks a little different. Also, it could be you just got a tough piece of belly.
I have done pork belly burnt ends numerous times. I buy the whole slabs at Costco and break them down to about 2 - 2.5 lb slabs and vacuum seal and freeze. To make burnt ends I pull out one of the vac bags and cut into cubes.
My cooking process is the same except I cook between 250 and 275.
The last time I got a slab at Costco it was about 8-9 pounds in the Cryovac. They must be selling half bellies at your Costco, i.e. already broken down.
I don’t think you cooked them long enough. When you render the fat the meat is getting juicier and not drier, but our conditioning from cooking steak and chicken has us worried about drying out the meat. Keep smoking until a toothpick slides in easily.
I’ve smoked lots of stuff to 210° or higher that came out great.
If not cooking outdoors, I am cooking on the stovetop with my 14" carbon steel wok, 12" CI skillet, or in the oven with my two Lodge CI pizza pans, or two dutch ovens. I've also got a nifty Lodge carbon steel grill pan that rocks for veggies outdoors.
I think the issue is that 1/4 to 3/8 inch thick dimension. It's just not thick enough to hold up to the cook. I would buy a whole belly, and you can freeze what you don't need for future cooks. Cube it up into hunks an inch or so in size for making burnt ends. Aside from that, I think you outlined the process pretty good.
I don’t think you cooked them long enough. When you render the fat the meat is getting juicier and not drier, but our conditioning from cooking steak and chicken has us worried about drying out the meat. Keep smoking until a toothpick slides in easily.
I’ve smoked lots of stuff to 210° or higher that came out great.
That. You got to go until they get pull apart tender. I have no idea the internal temp of my last batch. But it took some time and as noted above, 250-275 gets things moving along better when you got to go HIGH on stuff like this.
I also think you should be using cubes of about 1-1.5”. With the slices you’re basically cooking slices of bacon. I use the recipe from Malcom Reed. Comes out perfect every time.
If you have any slices left, you might consider rolling them like a cinnamon roll to the appropriate size and then stick a toothpick through to hold the shape. That would allow more time to render safely. Of course, this process would be more work, but ya might get a better result.
Another thought - you could even sprinkle the slices with your rub before rolling for added flavor. And that makes me wonder how cinnamon sugar would work for this...
Equipment:
'88 Vintage Fire Magic gasser with over 4000 cooks to its credit
Large Big Green Egg
18 Inch Weber Kettle (Rescued from neighbor's trash)
Rotisserie for 18 inch kettle
Dyna Glo propane smoker
Pit Barrel Cooker
Smokey Joe with mini WSM mod
Garcima paella burner
Anova Sous Vide
Slaiya Sous Vide (gift)
LEM grinder, sausage stuffer and meat slicer (all gifts)
Can't help you with turning slices into burnt ends, but the slices are great for making the Danish dish Grilled pork belly with potatoes and parsley sauce.
Usually have pretty good luck with Pork Belly from Costco, I do like cutting the larger piece into planks about 5 inches wide and I also trim down the fat....
Comment