58 



Plain Salt Pork. — " Rub each piece of meat with fine, common salt and 

 pack closely in a barrel. Let stand over night. The next day weigh out ten 

 pounds of salt and two ounces of saltpetre to each 100 pounds of meat and dissolve 

 in four gallons of boiling water. When cold pour this brine over the meat, cover, 

 and weight down to keep it under the brine. Meat will pack best if cut into pieces 

 about six inches square. The pork should be kept in the brine until used." 



To keep the meat under the brine use a loose-fitting wooden cover, and weight 

 with a heavy stone or several vitrified bricks. The cover should be made of some 

 hard wood, oak preferred. Such woods as pine or cedar will taint the brine. 



Sugar-cured Hams and Bacon.— "When the meat is cooled, rub each 

 piece with salt and allow it to drain over night. Then pack it in a barrel with the 

 hams and shoulders in the bottom, using the strips of bacon to fill in between or 

 to put on the top. Weigh out for each 100 pounds of meat 8 pounds of salt, 2 

 pounds of brown sugar and 2 ounces of saltpetre. Dissolve all in four gallons ol 

 water, and cover the meat with the brine. For summer use it will be safer to boil 

 the brine before using. In that case it should be thoroughly cooled before it is 

 used. For winter curing it is not necessary to boil the brine. Bacon strips should 

 remain in this brine four to six weeks ; hams, six to eight weeks. This is a standard 

 recipe, and has given the best of satisfaction. Hams and bacon cured in the spring 

 will keep right through the summer after they are smoked." 



The length of time the meat is kept in the brine depends upon the size of the 

 pieces. A large ham takes more time to cure than a small one. 



Dry-cured Pork. — " For each 100 pounds of meat weigh out 5 pounds of 

 salt, 2 pounds of granulated sugar, and 2 ounces of saltpetre, and mix them 

 thoroughly. Rub the meat once every three days with a third of the mixture. 

 While the meat is curing it is best to have it packed in a barrel or a tight box. 

 For the sake of convenience, it is advisable to have two barrel's, and to transfer 

 the meat from one to the other each time it is rubbed. After the last rubbing the 

 meat should lie in the barrel for a week or ten days, when it will be cured and 

 ready to smoke. To cure nicely it is desirable to have a cool and rather moist 

 place in which to keep it. This recipe should not be used where the meat must be 

 kept in a warm and dry place, as the preservatives will not penetrate evenly and 

 uniformly." 



Smoking. —" The smoke-house should be eight or ten feet high to give the 

 best results, and of a size suited to the amount of meat likely to be smoked. One 

 6 by 8 feet will be large enough for ordinary farm use. Ample ventilation should 

 be provided to carry off the warm air in order to prevent overheating the meat. 

 Small openings under the eaves or a chimney in the roof will be sufficient if 

 arranged so as to be easily controlled. A fire-pot outside of the house with a flue 

 through which the smoke may be conducted to the meat chamber gives the best 

 conditions for smoking. When this cannot well be arranged, a fire may be bui'.t 

 on the floor of the house and the meat shielded by a sheet of metal. Where the 

 meat can be hung six or seven feet above the fire, this precaution need not be taken. 

 The construction should be such as to allow the smoke to pass up freely over the 

 meat and out of the house, though rapid circulation is at the expense of the fuel. 



" Brick or stone houses are best, though the first cost is greater than if they 

 are built of lumber. Large dry goods boxes, and even barrels, may be made to 

 serve as smoke-houses where only small amounts of meat are to be smoked, but a 

 permanent place is much more satisfactory. 



