ABSTRACT
The origin of salting meats is lost in antiquity, but it is believed that the ancient Sumerian civilization, which flourished in the southern part of Mesopotamia during the fourth and third millenniums BC, was the first to practice this process. From a historical perspective, meat curing can be defined as the addition of salt to meats
for the sole purpose of preservation; that is, to inhibit or deter microbial spoilage. The preservation of meat resulted from necessity, so that products could he held for extended periods for later consumption in times of scarcity. It was recognized that fresh cuts of meat could be preserved by treating them with a salt solution or packing them in dry salt (Aberle, Forrest, Gerrard, and Mills 2001). Salting prevented bacterial growth on account of salt’s direct inhibitory effect or because of the drying action it had on meat (note that most bacteria require substantial amounts of moisture to survive and proliferate). Thus, rock salt was an important commodity long before the Christian era, as it was routinely employed for muscle food preservation in ancient China, Babylonia, and Sumeria (Jensen 1953). As the use of salt as a meat preservative spread, it was found that high concentrations of salt would promote the formation of an unattractive brownish-gray color within lean muscle tissue. At some point in the development of this art, more likely by accident than design, it was discovered that certain salts (i.e., those containing saltpeter) could impart or “fix” a unique pink or red color and flavor in meats (Binkerd and Kolari 1975). A preference developed for the use of this special salt. Granulated or grain salt was formerly called “corn,” which comes from the Old Norse, korn, meaning grain; thus when beef was sprinkled with these salts, corned beef was the resultant product.
