Kuivaliha also known as kapaliha, is salted and dried meat, often reindeer

Reindeer

The reindeer , also known as the caribou in North America, is a deer from the Arctic and Subarctic, including both resident and migratory populations. While overall widespread and numerous, some of its subspecies are rare and one has already gone extinct.Reindeer vary considerably in color and size...

 meat.

It is a traditional food and a delicacy of Northern Finland, prepared at springtime. Like jerky

Jerky (food)

Jerky is lean meat that has been trimmed of fat, cut into strips, and then been dried to prevent spoilage. Normally, this drying includes the addition of salt, to prevent bacteria from developing on the meat before sufficient moisture has been removed. The word "jerky" is a bastardization of the...

, of which kuivaliha is a variant of, its origins lie in the need for food preservation

Food preservation

Food preservation is the process of treating and handling food to stop or slow down spoilage and thus allow for longer storage....

. Kuivaliha is a very useful snack when camping and etc., for its small weight and good nutrition values.

Preparation

Kuivaliha is prepared outdoors by hanging salted strips of meat in the open air, facing south (for sunshine). Netting is often used to keep carrion birds away. The drying process takes approximately three weeks.

Preparation of Kuivaliha is based on specific weather conditions in the Finnish springtime, namely ambient temperature above freezing during the day; below-freezing temperatures at night; a dry wind; and sunlight. The Kuivaliha can't be prepared in summer, because meat-eating insects would lay eggs on the meat.