Pickling curing process

Salt preserves foods by providing a hostile environment for certain microorganisms. Within foods, salt brine dehydrates bacterial cells, alters osmotic pressure, and inhibits bacterial growth and subsequent spoilage. Dry salt and salt brine are used in several types of curing processes. Pickles are preserved in strong brine before final processing. 

The body contains 8-10 mg of molybdenum. Daily intake in food is approx. 0.3 mg. It is a component of aldehyde oxidase and xanthine oxidase. The bacterial nitrate reductase involved in meat curing and pickling processes contains molybdenum. High levels of the metal are toxic, as has been shown by cattle grazing on molybdenum-enriched soil. The grass on such soil contains 20-100 pg molybdenum/g dry matter. 

Paste that has been insufficiently cured is easily broken. The uncured paste is pale in color and soft. If the plate has been insufficiently cured, it can be rewetted and reheated to force the paste to cure. Another way is to dip the partially cured paste into dilute sulfuric acid, which is called pickling. The pickling curing process is also used for curing of powder-filled tubular positive plates. 

A high proportion of pork is pickled in brine and smoked, to make ham or bacon. The original process was to immerse the meat in a tank of cold brine for a period. A quicker method is to inject the cold pickle with hypodermic needles into the cuts. Smoking is carried out at around 52°C, so the cured bacon must be cooled again for slicing, packing and storage. 

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