Ans.—Your beef doesn’t dry out because you keep it in the cooler. In order to dry beef, it is necessary to hang it in a dry room. You can hang it right out in the market for that matter and there it will dry rapidly, in fact, it will dry too quickly so that it will become hard. Dried Beef will dry some in the smoke house, but not sufficiently. We send you a copy of our book, “Secrets of Meat Curing and Sausage Making,” which will give you full particulars in reference to this entire subject.
BULL-MEAT PREFERABLE FOR SAUSAGE.
Query.—Z. & R. write: There is a prevailing notion among local butchers that bull meat possesses qualities which make it superior to first-class steer or cow meat for making bologna and wieners. Is this not an erroneous idea? How can bologna and wieners be prevented from turning dark and shrinking within a few days after making if exposed to the air?
Ans:—The opinion of your local butcher is correct as far as it concerns bull meat as the best meat for bologna and wienerwurst. The reason for this is that bull meat contains a great deal of gelatine in various forms and far more than even the meat of either steer or cow. If you take the bull meat and chop it up, you will find that it is sticky and binds together, while if you take meat from an aged cow and chop it up it will not bind together, is mushy and soft to the touch, and when cooked frequently crumbles and falls apart.
In answering your next question, we can say that the probable cause in most cases why sausage dries up, shrivels up, shrinks or turns dark within a short time after being made is because it was not properly handled. It is also possible that these effects of which you complain were due to causes produced by the way you salted your meat or what you salted it with. If you will follow our instructions on Bologna making given in our book “Secrets of Meat Curing and Sausage Making,” you should have no further trouble. The book is sent free.
HOW TO MAKE A PAPER BAROMETER
Question.—J. K. writes: Can you tell me how a Barometer can be made with paper that tells what the weather is going to be?
Answer.—Paper barometers are made by impregnating white blotting paper in the following liquid, and then hanging up to dry:
| Cobalt Chloride | 1 oz. |
| Sodium Chloride | ½ oz. |
| Acacia | ¼ oz. |
| Calcium Chloride | 75 gr. |
| Water | 3 fl. oz. |
The amount of moisture in the atmosphere is indicated by the following colors: