§ 55. Smoked Meats
The process of smoking helps to preserve meat, and, if smoked properly, and with the right kind of fuel, adds a desirable flavor to meat. The creosote formed by the combustion of the wood closes the pores to some extent, and excludes the air. This also helps to keep out the insects.
§ 56. The Smokehouse
The size of smokehouse to build depends on the amount of meat that is to be smoked. In a house eight feet square and ten feet high, the hams, sides, and shoulders of three to five hogs can be smoked at one time. Ventilation should be provided to carry off the warm air in order to prevent overheating the meat. A chimney, made by placing a six inch tile in the roof, makes a good ventilator. The smoke house walls may be built of lumber, brick, or concrete. Lumber would be the cheapest, but least permanent, and concrete the most costly. Brick is no doubt the most satisfactory material for a small smoke house in southern China. Mud bricks may be used, but burnt clay bricks are more lasting. The roof should be made of tile. The best material for the floor is large square tiles, called in Chinese taai ch’uen (大磚). Concrete or brick may also be used, but would be more expensive then taai ch’uen.
A good arrangement is to have the fire box outside the smoke house, with a flue to carry the smoke into the smoke house. When this cannot well be arranged, a fire may be built on the floor of the house, and the meat shielded from heavy smoke by a sheet of tin, about four feet square, placed over the fire between the fire and the meat, about three feet above the floor.
§ 57. The Fuel
Lychee, or any other hard wood, makes good fuel for smoking meat. Resinous woods, such as pines and cedars, should never be used as they give an objectionable flavor to the meat due to turpentine which they contain.
§ 58. Preparing Meat for Smoking
Meat that is to be smoked should be removed from the brine and thoroughly washed in tepid water in order to clean off the coat of pickle that has formed on the surface of the meat. It can then he hung up in the smokehouse, but should be allowed to drain for a day or two before the fire is started. The pieces of meat should be hung so that the air can pass freely between them.