The amounts below are for 450 grams of pork belly, approximately one pound. You will need to increase the ingredients proportionately if the pork belly is larger. Measurements are critical with the salt and Prague Powder. If you are making a larger quantity, a small electric coffee mill can be used to grind the spices. Just be certain they are finely powdered before mixing with the salt.
Weigh out the ingredients, increasing the amount in proportion to the weight of the pork belly.
Finely grind the juniper berries, peppercorns, allspice, and cloves in a mortar or small electric coffee grinder.
Juniper berries
Black peppercorns
Allspice berries
Cloves
Combine the ground spices with the nutmeg, shredded bay leaf, garlic, salt and Prague Powder #2.
Bay leaf
Garlic
Canning and pickling salt
Prague Powder #2
Mix well.
Place the pork belly in a non-reactive container with a tight-fitting cover.
Rub the cure over the meat, massaging it in.
Refrigerate the pork belly, tightly covered, turning every 2-3 days for 7-10 days, until it is of a uniform firmness. Some liquid will leach out of the pork.
Rinse the cured pork belly to remove excess cure.
Pat the cured pork belly dry.
Season the pancetta with a generous amount of coarsely ground black peppercorns.
Weigh the cured pork belly and write down the weight and the date.
Put the cured pork belly fat side up on a non-reactive rack over a shallow tray and refrigerate, uncovered, until it loses 20-25% of its weight, approximately 4 weeks.
Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate approximately one week to allow it to evenly hydrate. Even so, the edges will be drier than the middle.
If you are not using the pancetta within a few weeks, cut it into pieces and freeze, tightly wrapped.