In large packing houses, where each man has a certain piece of work to do, the hogs are hung by one leg upon a moving over-head track. As the hogs move by the killer, he grasps one front leg with one hand, and, with the other hand, does the sticking. Such an arrangement is practical where a large number of hogs is killed daily.
§ 14. “Watered” Meat
There is a very common practice in China of increasing the weight of the dressed hog carcass by forcing water into the meat as soon as the blood has drained away and the scraping is finished. Water is forced in through the large blood vessels leading away from the heart. To do this properly, care is taken in sticking not to sever the large blood vessels from the heart. This is accomplished by using a long, narrow sticking knife, which is thrust into the heart itself. The animal thus stuck bleeds into the chest cavity, which is not desirable, as the bleeding will not be as thorough as when the large blood vessels only are severed. The carcass of the hog may be increased several pounds by this treatment. It is difficult to detect from the appearance of the pork whether or not it has been watered. On roasting, watered meat shrinks more than normal meat. Watered meat will spoil quicker than normal meat, and will not cure well. The practice of “watering” meat should be discouraged.
§ 15. Scalding and Scraping
An soon as the hog is dead, it must be scalded and the hair and scurf quickly removed. The animal is then placed on the top of the t’ong chue ts’o. The head and shoulders are scalded first. They should be immersed in the water, which should be from 185 to 190 degrees Fahrenheit. If the water is hotter, the hair will set. Care should be taken to keep the carcass constantly moving by turning it from side to side, in order to get a uniform scald and not to allow the carcass to stay in contact with the bottom of the bowl in which the water is being heated. Occasionally it should be removed from the water and the hair “tried”. As soon as the hair and scurf slip easily, the scalding is complete. The hind quarters are scalded in the same manner. The head and feet should be scraped first, as the hair sets on those parts first. Two or three pounds of wood ashes put in the water will help loosen the scurf. Proper scalding and scraping require fast work. If the carcass gets cold before the hair has been removed, the hair will set and have to be removed by shaving with a sharp knife. For scraping, the candle-stick or bell-shaped scraper is best. What cannot be removed with it, can be removed with a sharp, curved knife.
In America when only from one to three hogs are butchered at a time the custom is to heat the water in a large kettle over a stove or out-door fire. The hot water is poured into a barrel which is tipped at an angle with the top of the table, the top of the table being level with the lower side of the top of the barrel. The hog is slid into the barrel, first the head end, and then the rear end. The body is kept in motion by pulling it up and down until it is scalded, and the hair and scurf slip well. This is a quick method of scalding as much of the hog can be immersed in the water at one time, but it requires more labor than does the method of scalding with the t’ong chue ts’o.
In large packing houses, the hogs are automatically scalded and scraped, by being drawn through a tube filled with water of the proper temperature. Stiff brushes on the inside of the tube remove the hair and scurf as the hog passes through.
§ 16. Gutting
The entrails of the hog may be removed with the hog lying on a table, as is the common practice in the Canton region. The hog should be propped so that it lies on its back. However, it is more conveniently done with the hog hung up by its hind legs. To hang up the hog requires what is known as a gambrel, which may be simply a strong stick, pointed at the ends, about an inch and a half in diameter and eighteen inches long, a block and tackle, and a secure place over-head, about nine feet high, for attaching one end of the tackle. With a sharp knife, the cords in the hind legs just above the dew claws are separated from the bone enough to allow inserting the sharpened end of the gambrel, and thus spreading the legs. The gambrel should have a hook or ring in the center for attaching it to one end of a block and tackle. The carcass is then lifted so that the head end clears the floor or ground about four inches. A better and more convenient gambrel may be made of iron and adjustable for hogs of different sizes.
After the hog is hung up, clean water should be poured on it and it should then be scraped clean of all remaining patches of hair, scurf, or dirt. The head should then be removed by cutting through the flesh to the atlas joint where the neck joins the head, cutting entirely around the neck about an inch back of the ears. If the head does not drop off, it can be easily removed by grasping it by the ears and twisting it.