Independent Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1842-1844, 1842-12-03
AGRICULTURAL.
TO CURE HAMS, &c.

A writer in the Ledger gives the follow,
ing directions for curing hams, shoulders
rounds of beef, tongues, &c, for drying
which he saws he has followed successfully
for twenty years, and that hams thus cured
were sold this last spring for ii cents pei
pound to sell again, when, as we all know
thousands were bought by the grocerS for
6l-i cents. Now with this difference in
price, between a good and an Indifferent
article. is il not well worth while for all en-.
gagged In its preparation, to secure to them
selves, BY their and skill, good remunera.
ting price, and leave tho halfpriced article
to be furnished by the careless, the unskil.
iul, and the unthriftyl The directions are
as follow: H. M.
ITO one gallon Of water, add eight
pounds of coarse rock salt, one pint of mo-
lasses, and two ounces of saltpetre (nitre,
mix the ingredients in these proportions
well together, and let them remain until
dissolved, say twelve hours, and then as
sort your hams so as to have them of the
same or similar sizes in the same tubs,
packing them either end downwards, bat
not flat or horizontally, until The cask is
full, then pour the brine as above prepared,
over them, and your work is about done
Hams of about ten pounds weight should
remain in this pickle about four weeks, and
larger ones in proportion and no longer,
six weeks in commDn being quite long
enough for pretty large hams or they will
become too salt, great fault indeed for
this article. All the various laborious and te.
dious methods we hear Of, such as dry rub
bling with saltpetre, sugar, &c. may be very
good indeed, but quite unnecessary, mas.
much as precisely the same end is attained
by the above process, with comparatively
Little trouble. After the hams have lain a
sufficient time in pickle, take them out and
let them drain for day or two, before
hanging them up to smoke, for which pur-
pose hickory wood is much the best; and
when brought to proper color, they must
be packed in casks of any size, in dry
sawdust, in medium coarse salt, Gas they
will take no more sllt,) or any compact ar
ticle, or they may be packed without any.
thlag, if not intended for export; in which
case it is better to interlay them with some.
thing to keep them solid and compact, and
to keep out flies.
The above recipe is unsurpassed for Gu
ring rounds Of beef, beef.tongues, &c. for
drying; but they must not remain in the
pickle more than ten days; then to be ia.
ken out, washed and hung up to dry. | do
not profess to be acquainted with the best
mode of putting up beef for shipping Bat
pork seems simple enough; cleanliness,
despatch, and plenty of salt, are the princi-
pal requisi es. BY despatch mean, tina.
The meat should not be suffered to remain
so long as to become partially
tainted before being sailed. 1t is thought
by some, that it is sometimes let to lay too
long in bulk before sailing, which accounts
for 81 mu h unsafe bile meat received from
the interior. To obviate all this, let the
pork remain as short time as convenient
after becoming perfectly cool, before it is
cut up into proper sizes and begin to pack
in sweet casks, by first putting in the bot
tom, salt TO the deptl of two inches; then
begin tDput down layer of pork, in cir
cular form round next the slaves, with the
skin next the wood, and so on, filling up
the middle last, until you have solid mass
of meat six or eight inches deep, then
throw sufficient quantity of salt to fill all
the intersticeS, andto cover them partially;
after which take a wo )den hammer and
ram the meat down for some time; It would
be well TO pllce carpet on the meat be.
fore commencing this process; after which,
put in as much more salt as will cover the
Eyer about two inches and half in depth,
and then lay on another l.yer of pork and
proceed as before, by alternating the lay.
ers of The sclt and pork until the cask aud
Tub is full, letting some two and half or
three inches Of salt remain on the top. (but
in no aase use any other than the best
rock salty then let the meat stand thus for
a week or ten days, after which our in as
much pure clean water as will nearly fill
The cask; and if we'll hooped and headed
it may be sent to Calcutta and back again,
and be as good on its return as it ever
was. SIS.
Farmers Cabinet.