The Toledo chronicle. [volume] (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1873-1924, 1874-11-05
Curing Pork and Beef.

The season will soon be at hand when
farmers will be thinking of killing and
packing their yearly supply of pork
There is always more or less complaint
about pork getting rusty or sour OF
tainted. There is no reason why these
complaints should be necessary, except
from causes that are easily obviated.
Pork will get rusty sour or tainted from
contact with the atmosphere, from being
kept too warm or from alterations of
heat and cold, especially if the salt used
be not of the first quality
Now, since a perfectly cool and
equable temperature is not available to
every farmer, and especially to that class
which is obliged to depend more than
any other Oh salt pork for their summer
meat, II is particularly necessary that
they use the best salt in the market for
curing their pork and other meat. If
this salt cannot be bought at the. county
town, and it is often difficult to 10 50, an
order should be sent direct to the nearest
commercial city. This may easily be
done economically by few farmers
clubbing together, each taking a barrel !;
or If there is a Grange or club the matter
then becomes still more simple. The
order only is to be sent to the agent.
While the price of the better grades of
salt is 80 little in advance of that Of the
common grades, every man who salts
meat of any kind should never risk the
curing with any but the best If he get
the coarse solar or diamond there will
be no trouble
When the pork has been killed, and
hung in a cool place for twenty four
hours, it should be sufficiently deprived
OF the animal heat to be safely laid down
in salt II not thoroughly deprived of
this heat il is liable to trouble, even
with the best salt Therefore. this is the
first and most important step in the cur
ing Of pork
Cut it into suitable pieces, and rub
each one separately with salt. hams,
shoulders, chops, bacon, and side meat;
stack it up SO that the blood may drain
for forty-eight hours. Then pack the
side meat on its edge, in sweet barrels,
as closely as possible, always keeping
the skin side next the side of the barrel.
and using one-half bushel, by measure,
OF coarse salt to each barrel When the
barrel is full, weight the meat with fat
stone, and pour on sufficient cold water
until bubbles cease to rise and the meat
is entirely covered, always remembering
that fat meat will not take up an excess
Of salt. II the barre. is to be headed up,
do this before the water is put in, and
pour it through vent in the top. If
thereafter you keep the barrels in cool
place, as the cellar, and, upon taking
from the barrel, are careful to keep the
meat submerged, it will keep one, two.
or three years, perfectly
For curing in the best manner, hams.
chops and bacon, after the
blood has been drained as previously |
recommended, should be packed in
suitable cask pretty tight; make a brine
# two pounds Of salt, one pound sugar |
md four ounces saltpeter to each gallon
# water; scald and skim this brine. and |
when cold pour over the meat; keep in a |
old place, but not so as to be frozen, for |
bout four weeks. Thus cured, meat
will not require any freshening and it
will retain its red color admirably. 1t is
most excellent way for cOrned beef Int |
will not keep during hot weather. The
Jams and bacon, however, will be all
light, for the smoking will tend to pre-
erve them.
Dry sailing is performed by rubbing
he meat with mixture 10 be used
YARN in the following proportions: -Four
'ounds salt, three ounces saltpeter and
ufiicient molasses to make a thick paste.
the meats packed In casks and the brine
flowed to form and saturete It, It Is then