If you can get your hands on some pork jowls, this recipe is a great way to them justice.
Serves: 10-14
Prep Time: 10 days
Smoke Time: 4 hours
Tip – Use fresh jowls if possible, if none are available frozen will do just fine.
Ingredients
- Maple Smoking Chips
- 2 Hog Jowls, 5-6 lb. total weight, skin removed
- ½ Cup Kosher Salt
- 1/3 Cup Light Brown Sugar
- 1 tsp. instacure #1 (Pink Curing Salt)
- 1 Tbsp. Lemon Zest
- 3 Bay Leaves
- 1 Tbsp. Black peppercorns
Method
- Rinse the jowls and pat dry.
- Place the lemon zest, bay leaves, and peppercorns in a spice grinder and grind to a paste.
- Add the paste to the salts and sugars, combine well to create a grainy mixture.
- Rub the mixture generously over the jowls and vacuum seal. If you don’t have vacuum sealer, wrap the jowls tightly in plastic.
- Refrigerate for 10 days. If they are not vacuum sealed just remember to turn them over every couple of days to ensure even curing.
- After 10 days, remove from the packaging. Rinse and pat dry.
- Load a smoker (I used an electric smoker) with some maple chips and preheat to 180°F.
- Place the jowls on the rack and smoke for 3-4 hours or until you reach an internal temp of 160°F.
- Allow to cool, wrap, and refrigerate.
- To serve, slice very thin and cook like bacon, or dice and render until crisp.