The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1878-01-10

hung on poles placed acros the cell |
ing; and IN two months Il IS cured |
enough to eat, but Is bettsf in three |
months Early in the spTtng it is
sewed up In cotton cloths, and brushed
over with a thick whitewash, TO pre-
serve it from flies.
In France they pursue a different
plan, and there bacon is also the chief
food of hundreds of thousands Of the
Inhabitants. They never scald the
hog to remove its bristles, but SINCE
them OFF. A large bed of straw is
prepared, and the carcass is laid upon
it. Fire is set to the windward. Az
ter singing it on one side, the pig Is
turned over on the other side Tor a
few minutes, and if any bristles re-
main, they are singed of with wisps
of straw. The carcass is then brushed
thoroughly and washed in cold water
and shaved off with sharp knives.
Meat thus treated is supposed to keep
in a better condition than If scalded.
For hog weighing three hundred
pounds they use forty pounds OF rock
salt, ten pounds of brown sugar, three
ounces of ground pepper and six ounces
of ground allspice and cloves, mixed
half and half. These ingredients are
mixed together and rubbed into the
pork for an hour or two. II is then
packed tightly in a salhng tub, and
each layer is sprinkled with it, and all
that remains is laid over the top of the
meat. In three or four weeks it has
become sufficiently sailed to dry or
smoke.
Hams and bacon are usually smoked
in houses built for that purpose, hut
they can also be smoked in large, old
fashioned chimneys, by burning corn
on the cob in the fireplace. In Ham
burg, Germany, the smoking is done
in upper rooms of large buildings, and
the smoke is carried through tubes
from fires in the cellar. The smoke
being dry and cool when it enters the
room, the meat is of much superior
flavor than when hung near the fire.
The celebrated Westphalia pickle Is
made with six pounds of rock salt, two
pounds of powdered loaf sugar, and
three ounces of saltpetre, dissolved in
three gallons of water and boIled till
all scum is removed. Whenquite cold
it is poured on the meat. and every
part must be KEEP. under the brine. In
four or five weeks the hams are ready
for the smoke house. This pickle can
be used several times, by boiling it
over to remove all scum and adding q
small amount of its ingredients.
Hams should be thoroughly washed
before being picked in order to remove
all the blood, and then be wiped dry.
After being smoked they can be kept
for several years, If, after sewing them
up in old cotton cloth, they are closely
packed in ashes or powdered cbarcSxi.
They can also be kept in chests filled
with bran or oat chaff. A two-year
old ham makes a much finer dish than
one recently smoked.
WARWICKsHIRE HANS. Rub large
ham with two ounces of powdered salt
petre, and let 1t remain in the sailing
pan for tWenty-four hours. Make a
pickle of three pounds and half of
salt, ONO pound of sugar, four onions
sliced fiue, peck of pale-dried malt,
and one gallon of water. Boil all &c,
gether for ten minutes; pour it hot
oyer the ham, straining out the malt
and oniops, Keep the ham covered
with pickle for three or four weeks.
Take 1t out, wipe it dry, and smoke it
slowly for two or three weeks.
AHoTHER EXCELLENT RECEIPT. Put
the ham into deep happy, anA rub it
with mixture of one pound of coarse
brown sugar, one pound of common
salt, one pound of bay salt, one ounce
of salt-prunella. and one ounce of salt
petite. Rub it thoroughly, and pile the
rest of the MIXTURE on the top of the
ham, and leave it for two days. Then
turn it over every day, rubbing it well,
and ladling the brine over it with
spoon. Do this for fortnight and the
ham is ready to smoke, and it will be
far better than when it has been soaked
in pickle.
To PICKLE PoRK.-For picking pork,
the pieces should be so cut that they
will lie fat in the tub, add each layer
should be pounded down closely. But
before the sides are cut up it is a good
plan to rub them over with a mixture
of white sugar and salt, putting one.
third as much sugar as salt. Then
place the pieces in the tub, rind down
ward. and sprinkle each layer with the
sugar and salt. When the tub is well
filled, put layer of salt over it so thick
as to exclude the air, and cover it close
ly for ten days; then look at it, and IL
the brine is not formed enough to cover
it, sprinkle in very little cold water.
In three months the pork will be ready
to cook, and it will keep good for two
years at least, and the sugar will give
it finer flavor than saltpetre. In warm
climates both sugar and saltpetre can
be used as advantsgeously as in pick
ling beef. All housekeepcrs know that
they can make corned beef more tender
and better favored, by using q pickle
of one pound of sugar to three pounds
of salt, and teaspoonful of saltpetre.
STEWED PORK AND VEGETABLEs.-
Put into an iron pot large, tender
cabbage cut into quarters. six carrots
and three turnIps halved lengthwise,
eight middle-sized whole potatoes and
couple of pounds of fresh pork. fat
and lean together. Season with pei
per and salt and pat in one pint OF
boiling water, Close the pot tightly
and set it over small fire and let it
stew slowly for two hours and half
When served, place the pork in the
middle of the platter and lay the yege-
tables about it and pour the gravy over
the whole, The potatoes should be
added when the pork has stewed an
hour. Some parsnips are an addition
il one likes them. This is q German
dish that is highly relished by farm