This dish is the first I prepared with home cured bacon. It is therefore appropriate to focus first on the bacon and then on the artichokes.
I have been growing desperate with the poor quality of bacon I buy at the stores. Watery, tasteless, a complete waste! I therefore decided to prepare my own. I followed the recipe in the fantastic book “Charcuterie”, by Michael Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn.
Here goes (roughly) my interpretation.
Αυτο ειναι το πρωτο πιατο που παρασκευασα με το σπιτικο μπεικον που ετοιμασα προσφατα.
Μετα απο συσσωρευση αγανακτησης για το μπεικον που αγοραζω στα μαγαζια, αποφασισα να φτιαξω το δικο μου, εστω και αν δεν ειναι καπνιστο, και ακολουθησα τη συνταγη στο βιβλιο “Charcuterie”, των Michael Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn.
Τα βηματα ειναι τα ακολουθα.
1. Get a top quality cut from your butcher. In my case, Stathis (my butcher) gave me three cuts. Make sure the skin is on the cut. I paced them in a large container in a vertical position.
2.Prepare the brine, with coarse sea salt, crushed black pepper corns, bay leaves, a bit of garlic, and a pinch of brown sugar. Cover the meat with the brine, and let it rest for a few hours.
After it has rsted, place the meat (each piece separately in plastic containers, skin side up, cover with brine and place in the refrigerator. Leave it there for a week.
3. Remove the meat from the containers and wash in cold water. Place the meat in the oven skin side down, on a net, so that liquids can drip freely and let it “warm up” for a period of 2 hoursmaximum in a temperature of 90 degrees. If the cut is thin, reduce the time to 1 1/2 hours. Caution: do not exceed this temperature!
4. Remove from the oven, let it cool for 30 minutes and remove the skin.
5. After you remove the skin, let it rest for 1 hour and then cut and use, or refrigerate.
6. Take the cleaned artichokes and wrap a slice of bacon around them. Place in a baking dish with potatos and a sliced carot, season with pepper, but not salt. The bacon will take care of the salt. I remind you that the artichokes after cleaning need to stay in a bath of water and plenty of lemon in order to maintain its white colour! This lemon essence of the artichike will give plenty of flavour to the dish!
7. Bake for one hour, in 180 degrees Centigrade.
8. Serve and enjoy.