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John Yoder
John Yoder and his wife Joyce are owners of Yoder Meats, located in Yoder, KS. They are known for their custom butchering of hormone-free beef, pork and many other meats. They have been active in the meat processing business since 1965. You can contact them at (620) 465-3807, or toll free at (800) 952-MEAT(6328), or by e-mail at: yodermeatsinc@hotmail.com
Food & Drink
2002-10-01 13:43:00
How were hams cured in the old days?
John Yoder Question:  What process did older generations use to cure a ham?Answer:  Some called it the 'Four Season' process.  It evolved because there used to be no refrigeration and, of course, no freezing. The only refrigeration there was came from the cold of winter. If a farmer wished to preserve a slaughtered hog, he had to use the means that were naturally available.  For this reason, farmers slaughtered their hogs in late fall when temperatures were becoming quite cold and frosts were turning the last green of summer to rusty brown. They covered the hams with the right amount of cure which consisted of salt, sugar, pepper and other spices and wrapped them in paper to keep the cure against the ham and hung them in feed sacks in a corn crib or smokehouse. The cold of the winter prevented the ham from spoiling and allowed the cure to penetrate to the center of the ham. By spring, the cure had penetrated to the center and the curing was complete. The farmers removed the paper wrapping and hung them again, this time, to dry. Since corn cribs were open buildings, the spring winds circulated around the hams and dried them. Ultimately, the hams would lose 25 percent of their weight. But the greatest gain in flavor was yet to come. It took hanging in the hot, lazy days of summer for the hams to slowly age to perfection. It was not until the fall, after the hams had aged all summer and the mornings had become cool and crisp, that the hams would reach their ultimate flavor. It was then that they could be eaten and enjoyed. It took nearly a year to make a ham.  The U.S.D.A still allows this process to be used in controlled environments. Most hams sold commercially today use a process that only requires a few days.
 
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