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Hog Killing time in the early winter months with
the temperature hovering near freezing was just as much a part of
life in Milstead as spring planting and cultivating gardens. Every
year as the fall season comes upon us and the temperature falls to
near the freezing point and stays there for several days, I think
back to those days with a lot of joy and excitement.
My daddy, Grover Foster, would tell my brother,
Ronnie, and me that we were going to kill hogs in the morning. The
next morning before sunrise we would be outside getting everything
ready. Starting the fires for boiling water was one of the duties
assigned to Ronnie and me. I remember that after the hogs were
dressed and cut up into sections, they were ready to be salted down
in a large wooden box to be cured. This was known as salt cured.
Daddy would trim away the fat, cut the meat into small chunks, place
them in a big black iron pot and boil it until the grease was cooked
out. This made lard and cracklins. The lean trimming was ground and
seasoned and made into sausage.
Oh! How I still enjoy thinking of those
days. Yes, those were truly, "The good old days." |
