The new practical housekeeping

7. The flank (or curing or stews 6 cte., and in itlies the flank steak, best and jaciest steak there is ; when purchasing it do not have it scored as is usually done; just remove fat and skin; 12!4 cts. 8. Porterhouse steaks, those lying next to tenderloin steaks being the best, oi course ; 18 cts. Cutting the steaks in this way a part of the tenderloin, the most tender bit of the beef, lies in the sirloin, and a smaller part in the opper part of the porterhouse steak. The low- er hall of the cut gives us the PORB-OUABTBS. 1. Rib piece for boiling or coming, 2. Plate piece for coming ; 8 centa fresh. 3. Sbank forsonp bone, weighs lOpounds ; 36 cents entire. 4. Lower part of the division araehonlder pieces for stewine and pot roasts ; 10 cents. Upper part used lor same purpose, bnt better pieces of meat; 12>ff cents. In the npper part of 4, between 4 and 8 is what is called the ahonlder joint for soup meat ; 10 cents a piece. 4. In the end of four next 1, is the "shoulder clod" which makes No. I pot roasts ; 12>b cents. 5. Rib roasts ; first cut and best, IB cents. 6. Rib roa sts ; second cuts, 14 cents. 7. Chuck lib roasts first next to rib roast and best, 14 to IS cents. B. Upper part, or uext 7, are shoulder roasts, generally tued for pot* routs ; I2>ff cents. 8. Front part is the neck, good lor Btews, mince, coming and soup meat; Scents. 9. The brisket, extending under the shank (3). This makes stews, braises, corned beef, etc ; 8 cents. 644 CURING MEATS. Curing Meats. The manner in which salt acts in preserving meat is not difficult to un- derstand. By its strong affinity, it, in the £rst place, extracts the juices from the substance of meal in sufficient quantity to form a saturated solation with the water contained in the juice, and the meat then absorbs the satr urated brine in place of the juice extracted by the salt. In this way, mat- ter incapable of putrefaction takes the place of that portion in the meat which is most perishable. Such, however, is not the onl^ office of salt as a means of preserving meat ; it acts also by its astringency in contracting the fibres of the muscles, and so excludes the action of air on the interior of the substance of the meat. The last mentioned operation of salt as an antisep- tic is evinced by the diminution of the volume of meat to which it is applied. The astringent action of saltpetre on meat is much greater than that of salt, and thereby renders meat to which it is applied very hard ; but in small quantities, it considerably assists the antiseptic action of salt, and also pre- vents the destruction of the fiorid color of meat, which is caused by the ap- plication of salt. Thus,' it will be perceived, from the foregoing statement, that the application of salt and saltpetre diminishes, in a considerable de- gree, the nutritive, and, to some extent, the wholesome qualities of meat; and, therefore, in their use, the quantity applied should be as small as pos- sible, consistent with the perfect preservation of the meat. In salting or pickling beef or pork for family consumption, it not being generally reouired to be kept for a great lengtK of time, a less quantity of saH and a larger quantity of other matters more adapted to retain mellowness in meat, may be employed, which could not be adopted by the curerof immense quantities of meat.