The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1908-12-29
THE FARMERS pol.K BARREL.
How The Parts of a Hog May Be Saved
and Used.

How The Parts Of Hog May Be Saved
and Used.
Butchers wagons are traversing the
country roads in all directions. peddling
fresh meats, and sometimes taking
along bacon, ham and sausage. II fre-
quently happens in warm weather that
their fresh meat is on the verge Of
spelling, with an unpleasant odor while
cooking. II Is entirely proper for mer.
chants and mechanics TO patronize these
travelling markets. because they have
not the time nor the convenience 10
fstten animals and make meats so
cheapiy as formers, says the Country
Gentleman. With farmers the case Is
entirely different They have by.
products" and things that all win go
Tar toward fattening pigs, for which
products there Is no market. Il %
poor financial policy for farmers to sell
a hog TO the butcher at six or seven
cents a pound and buy It back in small
pieces at l2 and Is cents a pound. Eco
nomical farmers endeavor TO salt down
pork enough in the fall to supply their
families with smoked bacon, hams and
shoulders for year. The jowls are al
so smoked.
There are pieces Of lean meat and
scraps that can be made into sausage
to last all winter after butchering. It
is not necessary TO put the sausage
meat into entrails, which requires much
labor 10 properly clean, nor into cloth
bags, as is the method OF some. II will
keep Just as well packed in small tin
basins, covered with melted lard and
kept in cool place Kept in small bA-
sins, the contents Of one gets consumed
before being exposed long to the air.
Unless large quantity OF lard is de-
sirable, hogs intended for family use
should not be too large, nor too fat.
When at the right temperature for cut
ting up (cold, but not frozep). hog
il taken down and laid on the chopping
bench square on his back. The head Is
first taken off by cut Just back of
the ears and thence down through the
sticking hole to the throat. and laid
aside to be cut up later Then with
sharp axe the hog is split down through
the center Of the back bone from neck
to tail; but il only chopped through
the bone; the meat is cut true and
smooth with sharp knife. Some PEG.
pie cut on both sides Of the backbone
and take IL out BIZ itself for roasting.
like the spareribs After being split
open one-half Is laid aside, the other
kept on the bench. The first and most
difficult operation is TO take out tho
spare rib without making it too gener-
Gus, or spoil its beauty BY haggling.
There are two small strips OF lean
meat along the backbone called the
''tcnder loinss which should be eaten
fresh, when tender and sweet. They
are not good after being sailed. There
are two larger strips OF purely lean
meat along The back under the spare
ribs which should be laid out for sats-
aCe. When salted. this meat is coarse
grained, dry and uHsayory, but in saus
age is excellent. The hams and should
ders are next taken OF. cutting smooth.
~ in an oval shape to give them a
handsome appearance. Food that looks
fne tastes BETTER. There is a great
deal ia looks to tempt the appetite or
disgust IT. We saould take as much
pains in preparing our own provisions
with an eye to beauty, az IL we intend
"a them for sale. In this respect, OUR
women are superior to our men. The
from the hams and shoui-
iers should, with 81 the neck. 60 into
the sausage. The side pork or bacon,
IS cut in strips from back to belly about
four. nchas wide. Western packers cut
hem wider than this, but for farmers
pork three or four inches is wide en-
1ugh, The pieces are more easily pack
a when placed on the edge and coiled
around In the barrel
The head must Ne cut up with an old |
tx, as the teeth, if hit with sharp AK,
would surely nick. The iowls are MS
tally very bloody and should be soak
ID and washed to get the blood off be- |
lore sailing. The pork barrels. unless
Jew, should be thoroughly scalded and |
scrubbed with boiling water before the
,ork is packed. Pork cannot be kept I
;weet and palatable, no matter how
much salt Is used, unless the barrel |
ire AZ sweet a. ii they had Just come
rom the cooper's. Many farmers salt /
he hams and shoulders of their hogs I
n the same barrel with their side pork. /
MS Is not the pest way, as tne MANS I
md shoulders become too salt for eat /
No, and when freshened by soaking
n parboiling, lose their finest flavor.
The writer packs hams, shoulders,
owls and some thin pieces Of side
,ork, called bacon, in barrel by itself. |
,utting no salt on It, only strong
,rine. prepared as follows; For 100
pounds of meat, take eight pounds of
alt, two pounds Of sugar. one pint of
Saw Orleans 1nolasses, and two ounces
i saItpeter. Pulverize the saltpeter,
issolye it in water, and, mixed with
he sugar and molasses, stir into the
rine It requires three gallons of
rater with eight pounds of salt to make
he brine strong enough.