Skip to main content
Main

The Dutch Way to Salt Beef

A method of curing beef with treacle, salt, and optional saltpetre, then drying and boiling.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 5 ingredients
Jump to recipe ↓

Why it works: Beef and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 37% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,435 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓

The Dutch Way to Salt Beef

Ingredients

Directions

Cure the beef

  1. Rub the beef well with treacle or brown sugar and turn it often for 3 days.

  2. After 3 days, wipe the beef and rub it with common salt and finely beaten saltpetre.

  3. Turn the beef every day for 2 weeks.

  4. Wrap the beef tightly in a coarse cloth and press it under a heavy weight.

Smoke and cook

  1. Hang the beef to dry in wood smoke, turning it upside down daily.

  2. When ready, boil it in water and press it again before serving.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Beef + sugartop 37% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together5,435 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Beef
The main cut that is cured, dried and then cooked until tender.
Treacle or brown sugar
Adds sweetness and a deep flavour that balances the salt.
Common salt
Draws out moisture and preserves the meat while seasoning it through.
Saltpetre
Helps preserve the meat and gives the cured beef its characteristic colour.

The step that matters

Turning the beef every day during the 2-week salt cure. Salt penetrates slowly and unevenly, so turning the beef daily spreads the brine and dry cure over all surfaces. This helps the cure reach the centre and prevents spoilage at exposed spots.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

You might also like

Roast BeefRoast Beef211 recipesBeef LoafBeef Loaf175 recipesCorned BeefCorned Beef87 recipesBeef BrothBeef Broth67 recipes