In polymer chemistry and process engineering, curing refers to the toughening or hardening of a polymer material by cross-linking of polymer chains, brought about by chemical additives, ultraviolet radiation or heat. In rubber, the curing process is also called vulcanization. A polymer is a generic term used to describe a substantially long molecule. ... Chemistry (in Greek: χημεία) is the science of matter and its interactions with energy and itself (see physics, biology). ... Note: Ultraviolet is also the name of a 1998 UK television miniseries about vampires. ... Rubber is an elastic hydrocarbon polymer which occurs as a milky emulsion (known as latex) in the sap of a number of plants but can also be produced synthetically. ... Vulcanization is the process of cross-linking elastomer molecules to make the bulk material harder, less soluble and more durable. ...

In food preparation, curing refers to various preservation and flavoring processes, especially of meat or fish, by the addition of a combination of salt, sugar and either nitrate or nitrite. Many curing processes also involve smoking. Food preservation - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Flavor (or flavour) is the sensory impression of a food or other substance. ... Meat is animal tissue (mainly muscle) used as food. ... Atlantic herring, Clupea harengus, the most abundant fish species in the world. ... Edible salt is a mineral, one of the few rocks people eat. ... A sugar is a carbohydrate which is sweet to taste. ... Definition The nitrate ion is NO3-. A nitrate compound is one that contains this group, either an ionic compound, or an analogous covalent one. ... In inorganic chemistry nitrites are salts of nitrous acid HNO2. ... Wikibooks Cookbook has more about this subject: Smoking Smoking is the process of curing, cooking, or seasoning food by exposing it for long periods of time to the smoke from a wood fire. ...

Curing with salt and sugar may be called salting, salt-curing, sugar-curing or honey-curing. The application of pellets of salt, called "corns", is often called corning. Curing in a water solution or brine is called wet-curing or pickling or brining. The curing of fish is sometimes called kippering. Brine is water saturated or nearly saturated with salt. ... Pickling is the process of preparing a food by soaking and storing it in a brine (salt) or vinegar solution, a process which can preserve otherwise perishable foods for months. ... In cooking, brining is a process similar to marination in which meat is soaked in a salt solution (the brine) before cooking. ... A kipper is a fish which has been split from tail to head, eviscerated, salted, and smoked. ...

Salt and sugar inhibit the growth of microorganisms by drawing water out of microbial cells by osmosis. Concentrations of salt up to 20% are required to kill most species of bacteria. Smoking adds chemicals that reduce the concentration of salt required. A microorganism or microbe is an organism that is so small that it is microscopic (invisible to the naked eye). ... Osmosis is the diffusion of a solvent through a semipermeable membrane from a region of low solute concentration to a region of high solute concentration. ... Phyla/Divisions Actinobacteria Aquificae Bacteroidetes/Chlorobi Chlamydiae/Verrucomicrobia Chloroflexi Chrysiogenetes Cyanobacteria Deferribacteres Deinococcus-Thermus Dictyoglomi Fibrobacteres/Acidobacteria Firmicutes Fusobacteria Gemmatimonadetes Nitrospirae Omnibacteria Planctomycetes Proteobacteria Spirochaetes Thermodesulfobacteria Thermomicrobia Thermotogae Bacteria (singular, bacterium) are a major group of living organisms. ...

Salted meat and fish are commonly eaten as a staple of the diet in North Africa, Southern China and in the Arctic where they are associated with nasopharyngeal cancer caused by infection by the Epstein-Barr Virus. One study hypothesizes that the actual vector is anaerobic bacteria found in salted fish, Article in The Scientist, Volume 13, No. 6:1, Mar. 15, 1999 (registration required). Salt-cured meat or salted meat, for example ham, bacon or kippered herring, is meat or fish preserved or cured by salt or brine. ... The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), also called Human herpesvirus 4 (HHV-4), is a virus of the herpes family (which includes Herpes simplex virus and Cytomegalovirus), and one of the most common viruses in humans. ... An anaerobic organism or anaerobe is any organism that does not require oxygen. ...

Nitrates and nitrites (found in nearly all processed meats) not only help kill bacteria, but also produce a characteristic flavor, and give meat an appealing pink or red color. The use of nitrates and nitrites in food is controversial due to the development of nitrosamines when cooked. Nitrosamines are carcinogenic chemical compounds of the chemical structure R2N-N=O. Nitrosamines are produced from nitrites and amines. ...

See also: Food preservation, smoking Food preservation - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Wikibooks Cookbook has more about this subject: Smoking Smoking is the process of curing, cooking, or seasoning food by exposing it for long periods of time to the smoke from a wood fire. ...

External links

• National Center for Home Food Preservation - How do I...Cure & Smoke