Pork?

[Eriktronix]

I stumbled over the book by Nessmuk about camping. After reading some chapters I realized that he seems to "always" carry and use what he refer to as pork. I have been thinking about it for awhile, and also before I read about it in the book. I wonder what type of pork he might have been eating on his trips, could it have been Bacon? My conclusion so far is that it must have been something smoked (or maybe salted).


Some of his trips lasted for several days. I would have been worried about eating meat that had been stored for that long time in temperatures above 8 degC. But I am used to modern standards, maybe things were different in his days.

 

[Shewie]

I'd guess salted back bacon, probably still on the roll and good for many days. I suppose an air dried ham joint would survive well too.

 

[The Ratcatcher]

Salt pork, either wet or dry will keep for many years. On sailing ships, wet salt pork and beef (kept in casks of brine) could last for at least ten years in the hold. Dry salt pork or bacon was a staple food of the trappers and prospectors in Canada, and, if kept dry in oilskin wrapping, would last for up to a year. Wet salt meat needs soaking in fresh water to remove the excess salt, but dry salt pork can be eaten directly, usually sliced and fried. Quite often, dry salt pork was smoked before salting.

Alan

 

[Shewie]

Salt pork, either wet or dry will keep for many years. On sailing ships, wet salt pork and beef (kept in casks of brine) could last for at least ten years in the hold. Dry salt pork or bacon was a staple food of the trappers and prospectors in Canada, and, if kept dry in oilskin wrapping, would last for up to a year. Wet salt meat needs soaking in fresh water to remove the excess salt, but dry salt pork can be eaten directly, usually sliced and fried. Quite often, dry salt pork was smoked before salting.

Alan

I want a bacon sarnie now

 

[The Ratcatcher]

I've not seen salt pork for a long time, but if you want to try salt beef, try to find a good Kosher butcher, which is where I got my last lot from.

Alan

 

[santaman2000]

Salt pork is still common here and used for seasoning vegetable. But it it isn't like what Ratcatcher is describing so I'm not sure if it's quite the same thing. Nevertheless I suspect what the earlier generations carried was salted or smoked or cured/dried as others have said.

 

[bushcraftmyway]

I stumbled over the book by Nessmuk about camping. After reading some chapters I realized that he seems to "always" carry and use what he refer to as pork. I have been thinking about it for awhile, and also before I read about it in the book. I wonder what type of pork he might have been eating on his trips, could it have been Bacon? My conclusion so far is that it must have been something smoked (or maybe salted).


Some of his trips lasted for several days. I would have been worried about eating meat that had been stored for that long time in temperatures above 8 degC. But I am used to modern standards, maybe things were different in his days.

cured, smoked pork can be stored surprisingly long time, depending on the preserving method and meat/fat ratio...

cured&smoked fatback, if done properly, can be stored (away from direct sun) for over a year. it was a very popular food among romanian shepherds and lumberjacks (and, these days, among campers), as it lasts long and is very high in calories.

 

[wattsy]

could be a sort of pemmican thing?

 

[lannyman8]

its cured or salted pork, when i was in small towns in spain they sell it in every shop, a cured pork leg hanging up in the shop rows, at times hundreds of them, they look very good and would last for an age....

would make very good trail food... nom nom nom...

 

[torc]

http://www.rathergood.com/pork
Pork is good. (Sorry, this is all I can contribute to this discussion.)
I can remember seeing dry salted pork and ling hanging from my Grandfather's pantry ceiling when I was small.
Happy trails...torc.

 

[Tymur]

You can keep salted pork fat in room temperature for weeks. If it in plastic it can stay edible for about a year.
That is what I take with me on my trips. Sounds pretty disgusting I believe for someone but believe me properly preserved pork fat is brilliant for long trips as has everything you need.