"Cured" Meat

[ESK]

I made the Canadian Bacon recipe from the Smokin Tex cookbook and it turned our really good with the pork loin. I did the entire 5 day cure with the Morton's Tender Quick, the 30 minute ice water soak, and cherry wood smoke. The loin came up to 149 degrees within a couple of hours, but took another 5 hours to get to 155 degrees. Good to know for planning purposes. I also monitored the internal oven temp with a separate probe. I set the oven to 200 degrees, but found the temperature varied from 185 to 255 degrees. Anyway, it turned our really well, but I wondered about the Morton's Tender Quick nitrites. What the heck do you need it for? Why not just smoke the loin without it? I plan to keep the leftovers in the freezer, so preservation should not be an issue.
Thanks!

[ESK]

Well I'm going to reply to my own question after doing a little Google research, but I didn't get a definitive answer. The Morton's Tender Quick is mostly sugar and salt, with miniscule amounts of both sodium nitrite and nitrate. In the recipe for Canadian bacon, you add even more sugar. I'm thinking the nitrates and nitrites are to only help preserve the meat for its 5 day cure in the refrigerator, and to give the Canadian bacon its distinctive pink color. It may also be true that the nitrites and nitrates might only be detrimental to health when high heat cooking is used, but I wouldn't swear to it. I can swear that the Canadian bacon (or "back bacon") is fantastic in flavor. After the first use in Eggs Benedict, I can't wait to try more recipes that use it.

[DReeves]

Thanks, ESK.

Great research, and good information to know!