this came out of a book i bought at a yard sale. published 1965. 50 lbs beef, 10lbs fat, mace, salt, pepper, cloves and brown sugar. dissolve 2 1/2 ozs. saltpeter in warm water, stuff into new muslin bags seam side out and smoke. the only reason given for the use of saltpeter was to keep the meat red. i know it has been used as a preservative for a long time. my question is, does anybody still use saltpeter?
tony
tony