CARE OF HAMS AND SHOULDERS.
In too many instances farmers do not have the proper facilities for curing
hams, and do not see to it that such are at hand, an important point in
success in this direction. A general cure which would make a good ham
under proper conditions would include as follows: To each 100 lbs. of ham
use seven and a half pounds Liverpool fine salt, one and one-half pounds
granulated sugar and four ounces saltpeter. Weigh the meat and the
ingredients in the above proportions, rub the meat thoroughly with this
mixture and pack closely in a tierce. Fill the tierce with water and roll
every seven days until cured, which in a temperature of 40 to 50 degrees
would require about fifty days for a medium ham. Large hams take about ten
days more for curing. When wanted for smoking, wash the hams in water or
soak for twelve hours. Hang in the smokehouse and smoke slowly forty-eight
hours and you will have a very good ham. While this is not the exact
formula followed in big packing houses, any more than are other special
recipes given here, it is a general ham cure that will make a first-class
ham in every respect if proper attention is given it.
Another method of pickling hams and shoulders, preparatory to smoking,
includes the use of molasses. Though somewhat different from the above
formula, the careful following of directions cannot fail to succeed
admirably. To four quarts of fine salt and two ounces of pulverized
saltpeter, add sufficient molasses to make a pasty mixture. The hams
having hung in a dry, cool place for three or four days after cutting up,
are to be covered all over with the mixture, more thickly on the flesh
side, and laid skin side down for three or four days. In the meantime,
make a pickle of the following proportions, the quantities here named
being for 100 lbs. of hams. Coarse salt, seven pounds; brown sugar, five
pounds; saltpeter, two ounces; pearlash or potash, one-half ounce; soft
water, four gallons. Heat gradually and as the skim rises remove it.
Continue to do this as long as any skim rises, and when it ceases, allow
the pickle to cool. When the hams have remained the proper time immersed
in this mixture, cover the bottom of a clean, sweet barrel with salt about
half an inch deep. Pack in the hams as closely as possible, cover them
with the pickle, and place over them a follower with weights to keep them
down. Small hams of fifteen pounds and less, also shoulders, should remain
in the pickle for five weeks; larger ones will require six to eight weeks,
according to size. Let them dry well before smoking.
WESTPHALIAN HAMS.
This particular style has long been a prime favorite in certain markets of
Europe, and to a small extent in this country also. Westphalia is a
province of Germany in which there is a large industry in breeding swine
for the express purpose of making the most tender meat with the least
proportion of fat. Another reason for the peculiar and excellent qualities
which have made Westphalian hams so famous, is the manner of feeding and
growing for the hams, and finally the preserving, curing, and last of all,
smoking the hams. The Ravensberg cross breed of swine is a favorite for
this purpose. They are rather large animals, having slender bodies, flat
groins, straight snouts and large heads, with big, overhanging ears. The
skin is white, with straight little bristles.
A principal part of the swine food in Westphalia is potatoes; these are
cooked and then mashed in the potato water. The pulp thus obtained is
thoroughly mixed with wheat bran in a dry, raw state; little corn is used.
In order to avoid overproduction of fat and at the same time further the
growth of flesh of young pigs, some raw cut green feed, such as cabbage,
is used; young pigs are also fed sour milk freely. In pickling the hams
they are first vigorously rubbed with saltpeter and then with salt. The
hams are pressed in the pickling vat and entirely covered with cold brine,
remaining in salt three to five weeks. After this they are taken out of
the pickle and hung in a shady but dry and airy place to "air-dry." Before
the pickled hams can be put in smoke they are exposed for several weeks to
this drying in the open air. As long as the outside of the ham is not
absolutely dry, appearing moist or sticky, it is kept away from smoke.
Smoking is done in special large chambers, the hams being hung from the
ceiling. In addition to the use of sawdust and wood shavings in making
smoke, branches of juniper are often used, and occasionally beech and
alder woods; oak and resinous woods are positively avoided. The smoking is
carried on slowly. It is recommended to smoke for a few days cautiously,
that is, to have the smoke not too strong. Then expose the hams for a few
days in the fresh air, repeating in this way until they are brown enough.
The hams are actually in smoke two or three weeks, thus the whole process
of smoking requires about six weeks. Hams are preserved after their
smoking in a room which is shady, not accessible to the light, but at the
same time dry, cool and airy.
THE PIG AND THE ORCHARD.
The two go together well. The pig stirs up the soil about the trees,
letting in the sunshine and moisture to the roots and fertilizing them,
while devouring many grubs that would otherwise prey upon the fruit. But
many orchards cannot be fenced and many owners of fenced orchards, even,
would like to have the pig confine his efforts around the trunk of each
tree. To secure this have four fence panels made and yard the pig for a
short time in succession about each tree, as suggested in the diagram,
Fig. 17.
[Illustration: FIG. 17. FENCE FOR ORCHARD TREE.]