Preserving Meat in Lard
“Use only fresh meat, and be sure that containers are sterile. To sterilize crock—turn crock upside down in a dishpan half full of water, and boil water for 15 minutes. Remove crock, but do not dry with cloth.
To pack meat in lard—cook meat as you would for serving. Place it in a dry sterilized crock and cover immediately with hot lard. Cover with clean waxpaper, then with crock cover or plate.
When removing meat from crock, be sure that remaining meat is well covered … Pour melted lard over it so that no air will touch it.
Small crocks are better than large ones, since the meat will not be disturbed as often.”—Food as We Like It, 1943
Meat rationing did not go into effect until early in 1943 with the distribution of War Ration Book Two. Under the program, red ration stamps were needed to purchase fresh, frozen, cured, or canned beef, veal, pork, and lamb; all variety meats such as heart, liver, etc.; ready-to-serve meats like sausage and hot dogs; and canned meat, fish, and poultry. In addition, under the same program, butter, lard, margarine, shortening, salad and cooking oils, and cheese (except cottage) were rationed. Initially, each person was allotted 2½ pounds a week of the above foods requiring red ration stamps. That meant that the weight of any fats or cheese purchased was deducted from the ration budget for meat. Meat production in 1943 actually went up by almost 50 percent, but the shortages were explained by the increased demand for meat both at home and in the armed forces. The 25 percent increase in civilian meat purchases was attributed to increased worker incomes in the war industry, while increased military needs were due to the fact that servicemen’s meat consumption was about two and a half times that of the average civilian.
When meat rationing began, Americans took a second look at the black market. Because of the cultural importance of meat in the American diet, it was the rationed commodity that people were most often willing to go to unpatriotic means to obtain. It was perceived that American men needed and deserved a certain amount of meat daily, and that in order to “do right by her man” the homemaker had to find a way to provide it. The government responded with posters and the Home Front Pledge to keep housewives and butchers honest, while food writers looked to Europe for enticing recipes using fresh game, poultry, and fish—which were not rationed—and the less desirable cuts of meat that carried fewer points. Point values were changed monthly depending upon the supplies available for the consumer market, and were posted in the store. Meat was hard to hoard, so the problem of providing it was a daily one. The shopper had to be constantly aware of the changing point values of different meats and of the number of points she had to work with.
When asked about meat, many home-front cooks remember inventing casseroles and one-pot meals that used meat for flavoring. They also remember saving their points for special occasions, and going to dinner parties where each couple would bring their own steak to cook and the host and hostess would provide the rest of the meal. My mother remembers joining with four friends to buy and raise a steer on a neighboring farm. It was cheaper than purchasing the meat from a butcher but you had the meat from a quarter of a steer all at one time. She said she canned most of the meat, but that she fried the steaks, layered them in crocks covered with lard, and stored them in the basement (American confit?). Other people described a similar technique. In this chapter you will find recipes for main dishes that provide varying amounts of protein. Included are unrationed chicken, fish, and game recipes, dishes using low-point stewing meats, variety meats, and sausages, and a few ways to recycle yesterday’s roast into an entirely new dish.
