HOW TO SMOKE PICKLE-SOAKED MEAT. (Copyrighted; Reprint Forbidden.)

It sometimes happens that butchers leave their Hams in brine too long and they become pickle-soaked. Once in this pickle-soaked condition, it is well known that it is a very difficult matter to smoke the Hams, because, even though they are sweet when they go into the Smoke House, they will come out sour. Hams should not be left in brine over ninety days, and at the very outside not more than one hundred days, unless they are put into a freezer and kept at a temperature of 28 degrees, at which they can be kept as long as desired. But it is frequently the case that they are left in pickle five or six months in an ordinary cooler. Hams thus over-pickled cannot fail to cause trouble in the Smoke House, and we would advise that all Hams that have been left in the brine for such a long time should be washed off in warm water after first letting them soak in cold water 2 to 4 hours. They should then be hung up to dry and kept in a well ventilated room where the temperature is not too high. A room in which the circulation of air is good and which can be well ventilated by opening the windows and doors, and which does not rise in temperature above 60 to 70 degrees, would answer the purpose for drying out. It will do no harm to let the Hams hang two or three weeks before smoking. They can then be put in the Smoke House and smoked gently, using as little heat as possible. For the purpose of this light smoking, it is best to use sawdust instead of wood, or mostly sawdust, and a small amount of wood, in order to reduce the heat. The Smoke House should also be constructed in such a way that it can be sufficiently ventilated to let cool air into it and thus make sure of a cool smoke. If Hams are smoked under such conditions, they should come out of the Smoke House without souring.

The souring of pickle-soaked Hams is due to the brine fermenting in the Hams when they are placed in the warm Smoke House. Hence the advisability of drying out the Hams well before placing them in the Smoke House, and of smoking them in a cool smoke. When Meat has been in brine a very long time and has become pickle-soaked, and is afterward soaked in cold water, the greatest of care must be taken not to keep it in cold fresh water too long, otherwise the meat will absorb more moisture. It is also a good plan to soak Meat that has been in brine 60, 70 or 80 days in cold water. When Hams are fully cured, the strength of the brine may be reduced somewhat, after which the Hams may be permitted to remain in the brine about 30 days longer. Hams are fully cured in 70 days, and may be allowed to remain in a weaker brine 30 days longer, but no longer. After 30 days they must be taken out of this reduced brine, and, if it is so desired, they may be kept in a low temperature two or three weeks longer before smoking, but at the end of that time they must be smoked.