# Smoking/Curing Meats



## jpadams (Sep 7, 2012)

Okay, this is a whole new area for me.. We came across a smaller stove top smoker, so we were wondering if anyone had any good recipes and know how on curing meats or any kind of foods to help with making them shelf stable.. 
Any advise would be super great... 
Thanks so much..
Peace


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

Blob or OldCootHillbilly probably have more experience curing meats but I have been experimenting with it for a while now and I've just about settled on this process and am fairly comfortable with it.

I read about sugar curing beef in the "Orange Judd Cook Book" and thats where I got the general outline for this and then modified it a little.

Sugar Cured Beef

In a 3 gallon or larger pot, measure in about 1 1/2 gallons of 
water and add 4-5 cups sugar and 1/2 to 1 cup salt. I use 
regular table sugar and coarse rock salt. The rock salt is 
cheaper than table salt and I have quantities of it stored 
for food preservation. A general rule for the curing solution is 
that it should be strong enough to "Float an egg".
.

Bring the liquid to a boil and ensure that all the salt and sugar
dissolves then let cool to a temperature that will allow you to
put your hand into without scalding or discomfort.

Place the roast into the solution, it will try to "float" and will
need to be weighed down. Canning jars full of water work well
to keep the meat down below the water level. If the "Roast 
Floats" or any part rises above the liquid,it could spoil or 
attract insects. Cover the pot and keep in a cool to cold
place until the cure "Strikes Through" the cut of meat. 

The cure usually takes at least 2 full days to " Strike", you
can recognize that it is done when you can remove the cut
and it will hold its shape and appears darker in color. Its 
better to stay too long in the cure than to be taken out before
its done.

When the roast is removed, rinse it in clean water and allow
it air dry to the point that water does not drip from it when it
is held in the air, it should still be damp and tacky enough
to hold a coat of salt.Place it in a container on a bed of
table salt and make sure salt completely coats it then leave
it to air dry. Turn the cut several times a day so it will dry 
evenly.

To speed the drying, I put a small fan blowing over the
container to help evaporate the liquid drawn out by the
salt. As the meat dries you may notice the bed of salt
it is laying on becoming damp, no worries, the liquid that 
doesn't evaporate into the air will be drawn into the bed
and evaporate from there.

Drying will take about 7 - 10 days in a good cool dry area 
and when the meat can be pinched between your fingers
and no moisture surfaces, it is done. The roast should
hold its shape when held horizontally by one end. 

With a sharp knife, slice a thin piece off one end to check
the color and texture. The inside should be a dark red to 
brown color and be very dense and any fat marbling should 
be solid and the color of shortening. Any loose or ragged pieces
of meat or fat should be trimmed off and any salt/cure should 
be brushed off with a vegetable brush.

Some old recipes say to dip the cured meat into a pan of
boiling water for about a minute to remove any crusted 
salt and/or cure and to kill any germs that may be present
then left in the open air to dry before storage.

Some old procedure for storage call for the piece to be 
wrapped in fresh clean paper and placed in a muslin bag 
and kept in a cool dry location until needed. It is said that 
meats preserved in this manner can remain good for up
to 5 years or more. 

Personally, I'd shoot for 1 year to safe.and I have pieces
wrapped in paper, covered with a cotton pillow case and
hung from a hooks on a shelf to promote air flow and to 
help keep pests away. I also have pieces vacuum sealed 
and they seem to be doing well after about 3 - 4 months 
so far. I'm not sure if the cured cuts need to breathe yet
or if vacuum sealing is a better option but the experiment
is still ongoing here.

Pictures

SB1 - Raw washed 2 1/2 pound Rump Roast.

SB2 - Roast weighed down in the Cure.

SB3 - Roast after having been "Struck Through". Notice
the deep red to almost brown color. Important!

SB4 - Roast coated in and sitting on a bed of table
salt.

SB5 - Finished Roast with slices cut from the end.

SB6 - Cotton pillow case holding the cured roast 
wrapped in Butcher Paper(notice no grease of fat
stains on the pillow case) 

SB7 - Vacuum sealed Sugar Cured Roast.


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## preponomics (Nov 18, 2012)

Nice share Divarm

I have made a lot of jerky but have not tried this. After you are hanging it with the paper, how cool must the temperature be? Also must this be outside with breeze access?
I live in a hot region, could this be done in a food cellar? In the summer time my hottest point (July/August) in a medium to shallow cellar is about 80 degrees. A deeper cellar maybe around 75.

Also I wonder if I could prolong how long my jerky can last by striking the meat before dehydrating it in the sun? I have jerky to last 4 years so far without striking it, just by vacuum packing it into mylar.

thanks


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## pawpaw (Dec 21, 2011)

Fascinating post! I implore anyone with additional knowledge of this to join in & add yours, or post good links to simple recipes such as this! 
And to think I was fooling with deli ham jerky......:nuts:


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## hiwall (Jun 15, 2012)

Does this get cooked before you eat it? I certainly would cook it before I ate it. Thats why if I have un-cooked meat, I jerk it in the oven at over 175 degrees.


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

preponomics said:


> Nice share Divarm
> 
> I have made a lot of jerky but have not tried this. After you are hanging it with the paper, how cool must the temperature be? Also must this be outside with breeze access?
> I live in a hot region, could this be done in a food cellar? In the summer time my hottest point (July/August) in a medium to shallow cellar is about 80 degrees. A deeper cellar maybe around 75.
> ...


I have been storing mine in my "Pantry Area" by screwing small hooks onto the front of the shelves that hold my jars of canned goods and letting the bags hang in front of the jars.

My storage area is inside the house so the temp ranges between 40 to 80 degrees year round.



pawpaw said:


> Fascinating post! I implore anyone with additional knowledge of this to join in & add yours, or post good links to simple recipes such as this!
> And to think I was fooling with deli ham jerky......


You can get a lot of good info from "Pre-Refrigeraion Era" Cook Books like "The Orange Judd Cook Book 1914 edition". I have posted a link to where it can be downloaded from the Library of Congress(dont remember exactly where it was). Lots of good info and ideas there that have been time tested.



hiwall said:


> Does this get cooked before you eat it? I certainly would cook it before I ate it. Thats why if I have un-cooked meat, I jerk it in the oven at over 175 degrees.


I've eaten it uncooked and its pretty good, like slightly sweet jerky with a lot less salt. I have also used it in soups, good that way also.

The slices that are in the picture I posted were eaten on crackers(by me) with a little cheese while I was doing the post.

If you prefer to cook it for whatever reasons, go for it! Personally I would not eat raw fish but there are those who consider it a delicacy.


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## pawpaw (Dec 21, 2011)

I remember reading a lot about the civil war, & when they DID get salted beef or pork, it had to be cooked or boiled to death. My point is, would this be as hard to 're-constitute' as salt beef? I'm picturing it being fine just diced up in a stew or slow-cooked chili.


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

pawpaw said:


> I remember reading a lot about the civil war, & when they DID get salted beef or pork, it had to be cooked or boiled to death. My point is, would this be as hard to 're-constitute' as salt beef? I'm picturing it being fine just diced up in a stew or slow-cooked chili.


Some of my first experiments(pork and beef) had to be "Cooked To Death". It was so full of salt and dried so hard that it was not edible otherwise, about the same hardness as "Hard Tack" and almost to the point you'd need a hack saw to cut it.

I did some lean Pork Loin the same way as the beef and both could be sliced with a sharp knife and eaten like jerky, not even as hard as the jerky and both had/have a really good flavor.

When I put it in soup, it cooked up kinda like the little pieces of meat you'd find in a can of Campbells Vegetable Beef Soup.


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## catsraven (Jan 25, 2010)

The pioneers soaked the meat before using it. Try soaking it for a few hours. Change the water a few times when soaking.


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## OldCootHillbilly (Jul 9, 2010)

Taday's modern cure be called cure number 1, prague powder er a couple other names. These replaced saltpeter. I would say this be a short term cure fer meats.

Fer long term storage, salt, sugar an dryin be the secret. The salt an sugar keep the meat from spoilin while it dry's. Dried meats can last quite a long time but do need some preppin before ya eat em. They tend ta be salty an a course dry. Be why the old timers always boiled there meats an where the idear fer jerky come from.

So it depends on whay yall lookin ta do, smoked sausage an the like tend ta have a cure so they won't spoil durin the smokin process an will keep longer where fresh sausage don't cause yer gonna cook it er freeze it right away. Jerky and dried meats will keep much longer cause a the lack a moisture but will require a bit more work ta use.

A nice inbetween be cannin meats cause they will keep longer yet don't mean ya gotta boil em.


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## pawpaw (Dec 21, 2011)

Since we've been posting here, I've been poring over the 'net trying to find complete, easy, and SAFE recipes such as Davarm has posted here. There's so much incomplete & down-right dangerous information out there! Lots of "My grand dad used to- ".
Even explored pickling meats, but that doesn't seem suitable for long term storage. Thanks again, for posting this DAVARM!
I'm goin' fer it!


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

pawpaw said:


> Since we've been posting here, I've been poring over the 'net trying to find complete, easy, and SAFE recipes such as Davarm has posted here. There's so much incomplete & down-right dangerous information out there! Lots of "My grand dad used to- ".
> Even explored pickling meats, but that doesn't seem suitable for long term storage. Thanks again, for posting this DAVARM!
> I'm goin' fer it!


Thanks pawpaw, I'm glad that someone finds them useful. I just put another Beef Rump Roast on the shelf last night.


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

I just finished up a batch of salted fish fillets, I took some pictures and documented it and thought it would go along with this thread.



How I Do It.

When I salt fish, I use fillets from lean mild flavored fish, no catfish, carp or others that tend
to have a strong fishy smell or flavor, just my preference. I chose not to work with "bone in"
fish(yet) just because they are not as easy to work and they will not fit into my dehydrator.

I first make sure the fillets are completely clean, fully thawed and have no ragged pieces
attached to them. Small or ragged pieces will tend to fall of the fillets and muck up the 
process..

The first step is to make the brine cure, I do this by dissolving enough salt in a large pan of water 
to "float an egg". You should make enough of the liquid so that their will be enough salt
dissolved to soak into all the fillets. Some sugar can be added to the for verity.

Place the fillets into the brine being careful that the container is not over crowded and the 
that it will hold enough brine to cure the fillets, I use a graniteware baking dish that has a 
cover.

The fillets need to be soaked in the brine until they have "firmed up". They take on a firmness
and texture that will hold its shape and not bend like a limp noodle, this is referred
to as being "Struck Through" with the cure. For fillets about 1/4 inch thick this should take 
about 24 hours. 

The fish should now be placed in a strainer to drip dry and after they have dripped, 
towel dry and place them onto your dehydrator trays. Dry them at a low heat, about 110-115
degrees until they are completely dry. Heats much higher than 115 can cook the
fillets while they are drying. The fish can also be smoked instead being dried in a dehydrator.



If anyone is interested I have references from the "Orange Judd Cook Book" and "The Village Technology Handbook" that I used as reference when I was learning how to do this.


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## catsraven (Jan 25, 2010)

There are a few things I will not eat. Fish is one of them. For some reason I get ill when I eat it. So I literally can not eat it.
The Village Technology Handbook what year?


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

catsraven said:


> There are a few things I will not eat. Fish is one of them. For some reason I get ill when I eat it. So I literally can not eat it.
> The Village Technology Handbook what year?


I dont have the title page or any of the credit type info, only the the chapters BUT I think it was the first release, 1963.

Usually with fish, if I dont catch it, I dont eat it but the fillets the DD's bring home from Wally's haven't made me sick yet and they taste fairly good so I've been tolerating them. Most people dont realize that if a piece of fish smells like fish, its not very fresh at best.


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