Sun drying is a common method of curing pork in the Canton region. For this purpose, head, side, ham, and shoulder meat is used. The meat is cut in strips, about eight to ten inches long, and about one inch thick. It is immersed over night in a pickle which is the same as the one used in making sausage, and the next day rubbed with a mixture of honey and water (mat t’ong shui 蜜糖水), made up of one part honey and one part water, and hung up to dry in the sun for two days. Again it is soaked in the pickle for a short time, and dried in the sun for two days. This is done a third time. Then it is put in a stone jar in a cool, dry place for two days, and again hung up to dry for one week, when it is cured. When cured, the fat meat is rather firm.
Pork can be sun dried in the Canton region between the first of November and the middle of January. Dry, north wind is best for curing. If cured later than January, it must be consumed immediately as it will not keep long.
§ 78. Pickled Pig Feet (Ch’aat T’ai 札蹄)
In making pickled pig feet, the bone is first removed from the leg, leaving only the meat, skin and toes. Boil, and stuff with roast fat and lean meat to take the place of the bone. Tie up with rice straw, and immerse in the sausage spice for several hours.
§ 79. Pickled Beef
Cut the beef into pieces weighing about four or five taels. Rub each piece thoroughly with salt. Place the meat in a jar and cover with salt. In one or two weeks, the meat is cured and ready to use. Soak in water for one-half hour before using in order to remove part of the salt.
§ 80. Dried Rice Bird (Laap Woh Fa Tseuk 腊禾花雀)
Remove the feathers, internal organs, and brain. Then treat same as in making sun dried pork.
§ 81. Pork Stuffed Liver (Kam Ngan Yun 金銀潤)
Use the liver of hogs. Cut into strips about one inch wide. Use wine and ginger for flavoring. Half dry it in the wind. It should not be overdried, as it will then be hard to digest. Prepare fat meat by cutting strips of it into such sizes that they can be inserted into the liver. Soak the fat meat in a solution of salt, saltpeter, and sugar, in proportions of 3-2-1. Finally, half dry the fat by hanging in the sun for several hours. With a wooden stick, make pockets in the strips of liver from one end to the other, and insert the strips of fat meat into the pockets. The strips of stuffed liver should then be hung up to dry for a half day.