How to Make Homemade Sugar Free Nitrates Free Bacon

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You can make your own homemade smoky salty bacon without sugar or nitrites that is absolutely delicious!

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 3

Total Time 7

Servings servings @ 2 slices

Calories 260kcal

Author Brenda Bennett/Sugar Free Mom

If your pork belly still has the skin on it, you will need to remove it. Use a sharp knife to remove skin but leave as much of the fat on the belly as possible.
Mix salt, pepper and low carb sweetener together in a small bowl.
Place your pork belly in a deep dish like a turkey roasting pan, rub the dry rub mixture all over the top, bottom and sides of the pork belly.
Place in the fridge, covered for 7 days, turning the pork belly over every 1-2 days. After 7 days, remove pork belly and rinse under cold running water. Pat dry with paper towels.
Optional: Place pork belly on a wire rack, uncovered, in the fridge for 7-8 hours. The drier the pork, the better the smoke will "stick" to the bacon.

Preheat your smoker to 180 degrees F. Preheat for at least 5 minutes before placing pork belly in smoker.
Place pork belly on grill grates in smoker and close lid. Smoke until the internal temperature of the pork belly is 150 degrees F, about 2-3 hours.

Preheat oven to 180 degrees F.
Soak wood chips in water for 4 hours. Line a baking sheet pan with parchment paper. Spread wood chips on paper. Place a wire rack on top of the wood chips and then place pork belly on the rack. Cover with parchment paper.
Place baking sheet in oven for 2-3 hours until internal temperature reaches 150 degrees F.

Once bacon has been smoked, allow to cool then refrigerate until you are ready to slice it and store it.
You should have about a little more than 5 pounds of bacon. Use a meat slicer or slice thinly with a sharp knife. The thickness of the bacon will determine the amount of slices per pound you can yield.
For thick cut bacon, slice about a 1/8 inch (3.2mm) thick. You should be able to get 12-14 slices per pound. For thinly slices bacon, slice 1/32 inch (0.8mm) and you should be able to get 16-18 slices per pound.
Once sliced, store in a gallon ziplock bag, label with date. Refrigerate for up to 7 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place slices onto a large baking sheet pan, do not overlap. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove, drain bacon grease and place bake in the oven for 5 minutes more to get crispy.
Alternatively you can fry slices of bacon in smaller batches to fit in a frying pan and cook until crisp.

Oven Method- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Layer bacon on a baking sheet lined with parchment and heat for about 10 minutes, flipping halfway through. This way it stays crispy without getting rubbery.
Skillet Method- Warm a non-stick skillet over medium heat and cook bacon slices for a couple of minutes on each side. This method helps keep the crisp texture and heats evenly.
Air Fryer Method-Pop the bacon in an air fryer for 5 minutes at 350°F for quick reheating that keeps the crisp without drying it out.

8-pound pork belly yields about 5.2 pounds of cooked

For thinly sliced bacon: