The Salting Room

At the far end of the passage are the rooms under the control of the housekeeper and cook, accessible from a second set of stairs.

Conveniently situated near the outer door to the kitchen courtyard is the salting room. Preserving food in the days before refrigeration was an essential part of household management. Tatton was well placed in the heart of the Cheshire salt mining industry for obtaining large quantities of salt required for preserving the carcasses of bacon and ham joints produced from pigs reared at Home Farm.

After being pickled in saltpetre, sugar, salt and water, the joints were wrapped in muslin and hung on the overhead hooks to provide the household with meat throughout the winter.