244 



FARMER'S CYCLOPEDIA OF LIVE STOCK 



dry salt before putting in pickle. Pork 

 may be pickled by using for eacb 80 

 pounds of meat 1 pint of salt, 4 pounds 

 of sugar, 1 quart of molasses and 3 

 ounces of saltpeter. Tbe meat is well 

 rubbed with salt and left in the pickling 

 cask for 15 days, draining off the fluid 

 from time to time. When meat is sim- 

 ply laid in brine, it requires some time 

 for the salt to penetrate. The process 

 may be greatly hastened by introducing 

 the brine directly into the meat by 

 means of syringes and pumps. 



Effect of pickling — Attempts have 

 also been made to introduce brine 

 through the blood vessels and by the aid 

 of an electric current. Salt preserves 

 meat by reason of its drying effect in 

 extracting water and by checking the 

 growth of bacteria. In order to have 

 the latter effect, it must be used in solu- 

 tions of 20 to 23 per cent or more. Salt 

 decolorizes meat and saltpeter is added 

 to the brine to prevent this. Sugar also 

 acts as a preservative. The proportion 

 of these substances commonly recom- 

 mended is one part saltpeter, three or 

 four parts sugar and 32 parts salt. Meat 

 loses considerably in nutritive value by 

 salting or pickling, much more by pick- 

 ling. Within a month 2 per cent of the 

 protein and 50 per cent of the phosphoric 

 acid are extracted. Salt and sugar are, 

 of course, harmless and the amount of 

 saltpeter commonly used is too small to 

 injure the consumer. Moreover, the salt- 

 peter gradually disappears by transfor- 

 mation into nitrous acid and ammonia. 



Curing various meat products — 

 Windpipe meat is packed in a mixture 

 containing one part saltpeter to 20 parts 

 salt and held at a temperature of 37 to 

 40° F. Tongues of beef are hung from 

 both ends to keep them from stretching. 

 After cooling, they are put in strong, 

 simple brine for 24 hours, and in the 

 salt-saltpeter-sugar pickle for 30 days. 

 They may then be smoked. Small 

 tongues are commonly canned after pick- 

 ling. Livers do not keep well. The gall 

 bladder should be carefully removed 

 and the liver thoroughly dried. If the 

 liver is to be kept long, it may be frozen 

 and kept near a zero temperature. 

 Sweetbreads improve in flavor and tex- 

 ture by being kept in cold water over 



night. If not eaten at once, they may 

 be kept in cracked ice. The packers util- 

 ize beef hearts chiefly in the manufac- 

 ture of sausage in a fresh or cured con- 

 dition. Beef tails are handled with care 

 to prevent their becoming stained and 

 are kept at a freezing temperature till 

 used. Inside, outside and knuckle rounds 

 of beef are used to cure into beef hams. 

 The curing solution for beef hams 

 contains 30 pounds of sugar, IOV2 

 pounds saltpeter, and 2^ pounds borax* 

 per 150 gallons of 80 per cent brine. 

 The process of curing requires 75 to 80 

 days. Various beef trimmings such as 

 plate cuts, rumps, briskets, etc., may be 

 cured in good condition by placing in 

 a pickle containing 1 pound of saltpeter 

 to each 15 gallons of the strongest brine. 

 Molds may be prevented from develop- 

 ing on fresh meats by dipping the meat 

 into a solution containing per gallon of 

 water 2 pounds of a mixture containing 

 7 pounds of salt, 25 1 /2 pounds sulphate 

 of soda, 55 pounds of borax and I2V2 

 pounds boracic acid. Tripe, is made 

 from the walls of the first and second 

 stomachs. The contents are removed 

 and the stomach thoroughly washed, 

 after which it is scalded in water at a 

 temperature of 140 to 160° F. The lin- 

 ing loosens within a few minutes and 

 may be easily skinned off. This is bet- 

 ter than to allow the stomach to lie 

 for 24 hours or to use lime, as is the 

 practice of some housewives. After 

 scraping and cleaning, the tripe is ready 

 for pickling in full strength vinegar. 

 Tripe may be bleached to whiteness by 

 boiling a few minutes in 5 gallons of 

 water to which 2 ounces alum has been 

 added. It may then be rubbed with salt 

 to preserve it. Tripe is a nutritious 

 product, and is well worth saving when- 

 ever a beef animal is slaughtered on the 

 farm. 



Lamb tongues — Mutton tongues are 

 washed, chilled for 24 hours, and then 

 pickled in brine with saltpeter added to 

 the extent of 1 ounce for 16 pounds of 

 tongue. The skin may be removed from 

 lamb or sheep tongues by scalding. A 

 good pickled tongue is then obtained by 

 boiling thoroughly and preserving in 

 vinegar. 



Curing bacon— I n Sweden, Denmark 

 and Canada the auto-cure method is 



•Under the new meat inspection law the use of borax is forbidden in inspected abattoirs except in meat for 

 export to countries which do not object to its use. Reference to borax in the following paragraphs is to be under- 

 stood accordingly. 



