Put the meat in the vessel in which it is to stand, pour the pickle on the meat till it is covered, and keep it for family use.
Once in two months boil and skim the pickle, and throw in two ounces of sugar and half a pound of salt.
When tongues and hung beef are taken out, wash and dry the pieces, put them in paper bags and hang in a dry, warm place. In very hot weather, rub the meat well with salt before it is put in the pickle, and let it lie three hours for the bloody portion to run out. Too much saltpetre is injurious.
Another by measure, and with less trouble.
For every gallon of cold water, use a quart of rock salt, a tablespoon heaping full of saltpetre, six heaping tablespoonfuls of brown sugar, and two quarts of blown salt. No boiling is needed; keep it as long as there is salt undissolved at the bottom. When scum rises scald it, and add more sugar, salt, and saltpetre. Keep weights on the meat to keep it under.
In very hot weather fresh meat will often spoil if it is put in cold pickle. At such times put the meat into hot pickle and boil it for twenty minutes, and the meat will keep a month or more. If you save the pickle, add a little more salt to it.
To salt down Beef to keep the year round.
To one hundred pounds of beef, take four quarts of rock salt pounded very fine, four ounces of saltpetre made very fine, four pounds of brown sugar, all well mixed.
Scatter some over the bottom of the barrel, lay down one layer, and over that scatter the proportion of salt belonging to such a portion of the meat, allowing rather the most to the top layers. Pack all down very close, and if any scum should rise, sprinkle a pint or more of salt over the top.