A Pickled Pork Picnic?

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foamheart

Gone but not forgotten. RIP
Original poster
OTBS Member
Ok, butcher just called, she got in my accident a case of "Pickled Pork Picnics".

I start wondering if a pickled pork, I assume thats a salted pork cause thats what we always called  bean meat in the old days. Pickled = Brined. Brined without cure..... Hmmmmm......

Maybe put 'em in a tub with fresh water and change the water till its less salty and then smoke?

Anyone have experience with a pickled pork shoulder ??
 
I would guess that it is cured; an old fashioned name for curing is pickling (but technically, from Wikipedia, "

Pickling  is the process of preserving  food  by anaerobic  fermentation  in brine  to produce lactic acid, or marinating  and storing it in an acid solution, usually vinegar(acetic acid). The resulting food is called a pickle. This procedure gives the food a salty  or sour  taste. In South Asia, edible oils are used as the pickling medium with vinegar.[sup][1][/sup]

Another distinguishing characteristic is a pH  less than 4.6,[sup][2][/sup]  which is sufficient to kill most bacteria. Pickling can preserve perishable  foods for months.Antimicrobial  herbs and spices, such as mustard seedgarliccinnamon  or cloves, are often added.[sup][3][/sup]  If the food contains sufficient moisture, a pickling brine may be produced simply by adding dry salt. For example, German  sauerkraut  and Korean  kimchi  are produced by salting the vegetables to draw out excess water. Natural fermentation at room temperature, by lactic acid bacteria, produces the required acidity. Other pickles are made by placing vegetables in vinegar. Unlike the canningprocess, pickling (which includes fermentation) does not require that the food be completely sterile  before it is sealed. The acidity or salinity of the solution, the temperature of fermentation, and the exclusion of oxygen determine which microorganisms dominate, and determine the flavor of the end product.[sup][4][/sup]

When both salt concentration and temperature are low, Leuconostoc mesenteroides  dominates, producing a mix of acids, alcohol, and aroma compounds. At higher temperatures Lactobacillus plantarum  dominates, which produces primarily lactic acid. Many pickles start with Leuconostoc, and change to Lactobacillus  with higher acidity.[sup][4][/sup]

[sup]But in all terms, it is referring to vegetables or roots, not to meat.[/sup]

For meat, it is a derivation of "brining"; which today is "curing".   

If possible, call her back and see if there is ingredients listed in the pickle, that would confirm it for sure if it lists either TQ or sodium nitrite.

If so, do a fry test to determine the saltiness, then soak if necessary, changing the water every half hour under refrigeration until the right salt content is found to be acceptable with fry tests.  You can toss in some potatoes too to absorb the salt if necessary.

However, if there are no curing ingredients listed, you would have to mix up a brine solution with curing salt like you would with fresh picnic, inject and brine from the start.

The other possibility is that they are pickled like a pickle, with vinegar, pickling spices, etc.  If so, then smoke them for a pork version of pastrami.  Be wonderful for boiled dinner!
 
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