' To Pack Ileat.--Scald thoroughly the inside of the tubs or barrels by pouring into them boiling water am) washing down the sides with a swab of clean cloth tied to the end of a stick or clean mop handle. Cover the bottom of the cask with common salt 1 inch or more in depth. Pack the meat in layers as tightly as possible with common salt sprinkled between them and, when packed, pour over it the cold pickling liquid through cheese cloth until the barrel is full. Place on top a loose cover of wood, previously scalded, small enopgh to slip inside of the barrel and rest on the meat. Lay on this a stone or other heavy weight, to keep it below the surface of the pickle, and be sure that the pickle does not evaporate so as to leave the meat exposed to the air. 'Otherwise it will rust. The above is a general method to which the following favorite recipes may be added to show the manner in which the proportions may be changed ac cording to the experience of different individuals. But all of these are tested recipes.
Pickle for Beef.—Dissolve in 8 gal lons of soft water 20 pounds of coarse fine salt, 8 ounces of saltpeter, and 4 pounds of coarse brown sugar. Bring to a boil with very gentle beat, skimming constantly. This quantity is sufficient for one full barrel, or 200 pounds of beef, if properly packed.
Or prepare in a similar manner a pickle containing 14 pounds of coarse fine salt, 2 ounces of saltpeter, 2 ounces of Cayenne pepper, 3 pints of New Orleans molasses, 2 pounds of brown sugar, and 12 gallons of soft water.
Or 10 pounds of salt, 1 ounce of saltpeter, 2 pounds of brown sugar, and 6 gallons of soft water.
Or 12 pounds of salt, 4 pounds of brown sugar, 4 ounces of saltpeter, 8 gallons of soft water, and 4 ounces of potash.
Or 2 quarts of coarse fine salt 31 quarts of molasses, 2 teaspoonfuls of saltpeter, and 8 gallons of soft water.
Pickle for Beef.—Any of the above pickles may be used.
Or for a full barrel of beef, or 200 pounds, dissolve in 8 gallons of pure soft water 10 ounces of coarse fine salt, 4 ounces of saltpeter, 3 pints of New Orleans molasses, and 9 pounds of brown sugar. Place over a slow fire and bring to a boil, skimming constantly.
Or 15 pounds of salt, 9 pounds of sugar, 6 ounces of saltpeter, and 2 ounces of baking soda in 8 gallons of soft water.
Salting Meat—Another method of curing meat is to rub or pack it with a mixture of salt, sugar, and salt peter, but without water, thus allow ing the meat to .form a brine by means of its own juices. lf the brine which forms is allowed to drain from the meat, it is said to be dry-salted. Or if the meat is packed in a tight receptacle, and the brine is allowed to remain over it, it is said to be wet salted.
To salt beef or pork, first remove all bones. Rub the pieces, especially the cut surfaces, with a mixture of 1 pound of salt, 1 ounce of saltpeter, and 1 ounce of sugar. Use pressure enough to rub the salt thoroughly into the grain of the meat. Let stand 24 to 48 hours. Again rub with the same mixture, sprinkling common salt freely between the layers. Cover also the top thickly with salt, and put over all a heavy weight—the heavier the better.
Or for 1 a barrel, or 100 pounds of beef, prepare a mixture of 4 quarts of coarse fine salt, 4 pounds of brown sugar, and 4 ounces of saltpeter. Rub thoroughly into the meat. Let
stand 48 hours to drain, turning oc casionally, and pack in layers under a heavy weight, sprinkling the above mixture between but without the ad dition of water. If a scum rises it should be taken off with a skimmer and a little fine salt sprinkled over the surface.
Or for the same quantity of beef, prepare a mixture of 6 quarts of coarse fuae salt, 4 pounds of light " A " or coffee sugar, 6 ounces of soda, and 4 ounces of saltpeter. Cure in all respects as above.
Rusty or Tainted Meat.—If meat has been properly drained to free it from blood, the pickle boiled and clarified, the barrels scalded, and the meat kept under the pickle by means of a suitable weight, it should keep indefinitely. But it is quite custo mary, as a precaution, to pour off the pickling liquid on the approach of summer, say in April, in temperate climates. Again bring it to a boil, with the addition of about I pound of salt to each gallon of pickling liquid, and when cold, once more pour it over the meat through a cheese cloth strainer. But this is said to harden the beef and inj ure its flavor. It is believed that if the meat is prop erly cured, this vvill not usually be found necessary.
If the meat should become tainted, pour off the tainted pickle and dis card it. Rinse tbe meat with clear water and wash out the barrel with a strong solution of lime water or wood ashes. If the barrel is much tainted, it may be well to fill it with this solution and let stand overnight. Afterwards scald with boiling water.
Rub the meat in a mixture of salt peter and sugar, and pack it betvveen layers of charcoal. Finally, pour over it fresh pickling liquid, prepared as above, strong enough to float an egg.
Or mix 12 pmmds of powdered charcoal, 10 pounds of common salt, and 4 pounds of saltpeter. Cover the bottom of the cask with a layer of this raixture, rub each piece with the same, and sprinkle it freely between the layers of meat. By either of these methods all traces of taint can be removed. The charcoal can be rinsed off with clear water.
Red Pickling Liquid for Neat.— To impart a fine red color to meat and to improve its flavor, dissolve in 8 gallons of pure soft water 8 pounds of bay salt, pounds of common salt, 6 pounds of brown sugar, 1 pound of saltpeter, 8 ounces of bruised pi mento, 5 ounces of bruised black pep per, and 2 ounces of grated nutmeg.
To Improve Corned Beef. — The quality of corned beef can be im proved by immersing the pieces for half a•minute by the watch, in boil ing water before pickling. This is in accordance vvith the well-known prac tice of immersing beef that is to be boiled for the table in hot water in order to harden the surface, and cause the meat to retain its natural juices. Similarly this method tends to make corned beef more tender and juicy than otherwise. To effect this result first drain the meat to free it from blood, rinse it in clear water. Bring to a boil a solution of 2 ounces of saltpeter in 4 gallons of water and. with a large fork having a long wooden handle, or a piece of wire having a hook at the end, immerse the pieces of meat for half a minute each in the boiling solution.
Or the same result may be ob tained by pouring the pickling liquid while scalding hot over the meat; but the former method is to be preferred.