Keto Canadian Bacon
Course: BreakfastCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Medium
Servings
90
servingsPrep time
20
minutesCooking time
2
hours30
minutesCalories
87
kcalTotal carbs
<1
gramNet carbs
zero
gramsFat
4
gramsProtein
12
gramsNot only does this taste infinitely better than those Canadian bacon circles you get at the store, you can make it for a fraction of the cost.
Ingredients
1 cup of kosher salt
1/2 cup sugar free “maple” syrup
Juice from one lemon
1/4 cup brown sugar substitute
2 TBS pink curing salt
1 TB lack peppercorns
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
4 bay leaves (fresh or dried)
4 to 6 sprigs of fresh thyme
2 quart of water
1 whole pork loin (approximately 8 lbs)
Directions
- Add all ingredients except pork loin to a large pot and bring up to a simmer, stirring until the powdered ingredients have dissolved.
- Allow brine to cool to room temperature (this can be accelerated by tossing a handful of ice cubes into the brine).
- While the brine cools, trim the pork loin of fat and slice it in half so that it will fit into a jumbo (2.5 gallon) Zip-Loc bag.
- Place both halves of the pork loin in the Zip-Loc bag and then pour in your brine (this may be a two person job). Squeeze as much air out of the bag as you can then zip it shut. It is not a bad idea to double bag your loin and brine.
- Refrigerate for three to five days, flip it over and massage the brine around the meat.
- After the meat has cured (ideally five days), rinse it, pat it dry and place it in a smoker set to 240F, and smoke with a mild wood (apple, maple, or peach).
- Smoke until the internal temperature of the loin is 150F (this will take about 2-3 hours).
- Allow your smoked tenderloin to chill, ideally over night, then slice with a knife or deli slicer.
- You are going to have A LOT of Canadian bacon, so I recommend using a vacuum sealer to package and freeze it into portions.
Recipe Video
Notes:
- Macros are based on a serving size of 2 slices
Is there a way to just bake it instead? No smoker here.
I imagine you could bake it for the same time/temp I smoked it, but you won’t get nearly the same flavor.
This is 2 tbsp cure for 8 lb pork loin and the bacon is 2 tsp for 10 pounds pork belly…these are both correct measurements right? Just want to make sure I am not shorting my bacon curing in the fridge? Thanks in advance steve!
That is correct. I’m not sure why the difference, but I hypothesize that it has to do with the thickness and density of the pork loin vs the belly.
Hi Steve, another super fun video! What is the brand of your smoker? I’m shopping for a smoker for my son as a house warming gift. I made him watch your bacon video and he was super excited to try it. He likes the style of your smoker!
It’s a Masterbuilt. This is the model: https://amzn.to/3jBE0JQ
Hi Steve,
We are starting this Canadian Bacon recipe tomorrow. If it’s as good as the pork belly bacon…I’ll be hooked, lol
Deb
Hi mine came out very salty not sure what I did wrong, any suggestions?
It’s hard to say without witnessing you make it…
There must be a way to do this without the pink curing salt?