Beef Pickle is a traditional British recipe, based on Mrs Beeton's recipe of 1861, for a classic brine of salt, sugar, saltpetre and water intended for pickling beef, hams and tongues. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic British version of: Beef Pickle.
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This is a traditional British recipe redacted from the redoubtable Mrs Beeton's 1861 volume Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management, the classic Victorian cookbook.
Original Recipe
BEEF PICKLE, which may also be used for any kind of Meat, Tongues, or Hams.
654. INGREDIENTS.—6 lbs. of salt, 2 lbs. of fine sugar, 3 oz. of powdered saltpetre, 3 gallons of spring water.
Mode.—Boil all the ingredients gently together, so long as any scum or impurity arises, which carefully remove; when quite cold, pour it over the meat, every part of which must be covered with the brine. This may be used for pickling any kind of meat, and may be kept for some time, if boiled up occasionally with an addition of the ingredients.
Time.—A ham should be kept in the pickle for a fortnight; a piece of beef weighing 14 lbs., 12 or 15 days; a tongue, 10 days or a fortnight.
Note.—For salting and pickling meat, it is a good plan to rub in only half the quantity of salt directed, and to let it remain for a day or two to disgorge and effectually to get rid of the blood and slime; then rub in the remainder of the salt and other ingredients, and proceed as above. This rule may be applied to all the recipes we have given for salting and pickling meat.
Modern Redaction
Ingredients:
2.7kg rock salt
900g sugar
90g saltpetre (sodium or potassium nitrate)
15l water
Method:
Combine all the ingredients in a pan and bring to a boil. Continue boiling, skimming the surface, for as long as any scum or impurities continue to rise. Take off the heat, pour into a large pot and set aside until completely cold.
When cold, add the ham or beef to be pickled, ensuring that the meat is entirely covered by the liquid. Place in the refrigerator and allow to pickle until done. As a rule of thumb, a ham should be pickled for 14 days and a pice of beef about 6.5kg for 15 days.
