Part 3

24. Cut it in slices about a quarter of an inch thick; wash and dry them, season with cayenne pepper and salt; have ready a pan of hot lard and fry your fish in it till of a delicate brown on both sides.

Some dip the cutlets in beaten egg and then in bread crumbs and fry it. When done in this manner it should be cut rather thinner than according to the first method.

Or, heat your gridiron, grease the bars, season your fish with cayenne pepper and salt, and broil it till of a fine brown color. Lay it on a dish and butter it.

CAT FISH.

25. Cut each fish in two parts, down the back and stomach; take out the upper part of the back bone next the head; wash and wipe them dry, season with cayenne pepper and salt, and dredge flour over them; fry them in hot lard of a nice light brown.

Some dress them like oysters; they are then dipped in beaten egg and bread crumbs and fried in hot lard. They are very nice dipped in beaten egg, without the crumbs, and fried.

POTTED HERRING.

26. Clean your herring, wash them well and wipe them dry; then rub each one with salt and cayenne pepper; place in your jar a layer of herring, then some grains of allspice, half a dozen cloves, and two or three blades of mace; then put in another layer of herring, and so on till all are in; cover the herring with cold vinegar, tie up the jar closely with several thicknesses of paper, and set it in the oven after the bread has been drawn out; let it remain there all night. As soon as they become cold they will be fit for use.

SHELL FISH.

PICKLED OYSTERS.

27. Take one hundred oysters out of their liquor, and add to them as much water as there was liquor. Put them over the fire, with salt to the taste, skim them, and as soon as they boil take them off. Have ready in a pan one gill of vinegar, one table spoonful of allspice, one table spoonful of pepper grains, a little cayenne pepper and mace, half a gill of pepper vinegar and half a gill of common vinegar. They should be pickled the day before they are to be eaten. After standing a few hours, if a scum should have risen on them, take out the oysters and strain the liquor. About six hours before they are to be served, slice a lemon and add to them.

FRIED OYSTERS.

28. Select the largest oysters for frying. Take them out of their liquor with a fork, and endeavor in doing so, to rinse off all the particles of shell which may adhere to them. Dry them between napkins; have ready some grated cracker, seasoned with cayenne pepper and salt. Beat the yelks only of some eggs, and to each egg add half a table spoonful of thick cream. Dip the oysters, one at a time, first in the egg then in the cracker crumbs, and fry them in plenty of hot butter, or butter and lard mixed, till they are of a light brown on both sides. Serve them hot.

STEWED OYSTERS, No. 1.

29. Take one hundred large oysters, add to them a quarter of a pound of butter, with salt, black and red pepper to the taste. Stew _as fast as possible_ for three minutes. Serve them hot.

STEWED OYSTERS, No. 2.

30. Rinse one hundred oysters, and put them in a stew pan with the water which adheres to them; season them with salt and cayenne pepper, and a very little mace. As soon as they begin to boil pour in half a pint of cream, and stir in half an ounce of butter rolled in a little grated cracker. Let them boil once and serve them hot.

SCALLOPED OYSTERS.

31. Drain your oysters, and season them with salt and cayenne pepper; crumb some stale bread, and season it with salt and pepper. To each gill of the bread crumbs add one hard boiled egg, finely chopped; butter a deep dish, strew in a layer of egg and crumbs, then a layer of the oysters, with some lumps of butter on them, then more crumbs, and so on till all are in. Put a cover of crumbs on the top. Bake this in a tolerably quick oven and serve it hot.

OYSTER FRITTERS.

32. Drain the oysters and wipe them dry; season them with salt, if they are not salt enough; make a batter in the proportion of a pint of milk to three eggs, and flour to thicken it; beat the yelks till they are very thick, stir in the milk and as much flour as will make a batter, but not a very thick one; add a pinch of salt, beat the whole very hard, whisk the whites to a stiff dry froth and stir them in gently at the last. Put a small spoonful of the batter in a pan of boiling lard, then lay an oyster on the top, and over this put a little more batter; when they are brown on both sides, put them on a dish and send them to the table hot.

OYSTER PIE.

33. Take one hundred oysters out of their liquor, one at a time, so as to free them from any portions of the shell which might adhere to them. Drain and place them between clean napkins in order to dry them perfectly; pour off half the liquor into a stew-pan, salt it to your taste, stir in one gill of cream, one ounce and a half of butter rolled in grated cracker, and a little cayenne pepper; boil two eggs hard, chop them up, and mix them with as many bread crumbs as will cover the top of your pie; season the bread and egg with cayenne pepper and salt, make a rich paste, line the sides of your pie dish, put in the oysters, pour the hot liquor over them, strew the bread crumbs on the top, cover the whole with a lid of paste, cut an opening in the centre of the top crust, and ornament it with flowers or leaves made of the paste, bake it and serve it hot. As soon as the crust is done take the pie out of the oven.

ROASTED OYSTERS.

34. Wash the shells perfectly clean, put them in pans and set them in the oven, or place them in rows on the top of your kitchen range. Those who live in the country, and have large wood fires, may roast them nicely on their hot hearth stone. Take them up as soon as the shells begin to open, before the liquor is lost; have ready a hot vegetable dish, take out the oysters and serve immediately. Or, the upper shell may be taken off, and the oysters placed on broad dishes in the other shell. The dishes must be well heated as the oysters should be eaten hot.

Each person dresses his oysters on his plate.

OYSTER OMELETTE.

35. Eight oysters chopped fine, Six eggs, A wine glassful of flour, A little milk, Pepper and salt to the taste.

Beat the eggs very light, add the oysters and the flour, which must be mixed to a paste with a little milk; pepper and salt to the taste. Fry it in hot butter, but do not turn it; as soon as it is done slip it on a dish and serve it hot.

The above is the usual mode of preparing oyster omelette; but the better way is to put your oysters in a stew pan, set them over the fire, and the moment they begin to boil take them out, drain them and dry them in a napkin. They are not so watery when prepared in this manner, and consequently will not dilute the beaten egg as much as the former mode. When they are cold mince them and proceed as above.

STEWED CLAMS.

36. Wash the clams, put them in a pot and cover them closely; set them near the fire, and as soon as they begin to open take them out of the shell; drain them, and to a pint of clams add half a pint of water, one ounce of butter rolled in flour, cayenne pepper and salt to the taste; let them stew ten minutes. Just before they are to be dished add one gill of cream.

CLAM FRITTERS.

37. Wash your clam shells, put them in a pot with the water only which adheres to them, cover the pot closely, and as soon as they open take them out of the shell. Take out the hard part and cut the remainder in half, and season them with pepper and salt; beat the yelks of four eggs very light, add to them a pint of milk, a little salt, and flour enough to form a batter; whisk the whites very dry and add them at the last. Have ready a pan of hot lard, put in a spoonful of the batter, lay on the top two or three pieces of the clams, then cover them with a little more of the batter. Fry them on both sides and serve them hot.

The small sand clams are the best kind.

FRIED CLAMS.

38. Wash your clams before they are opened; place them in a vessel without any water. Cover the vessel closely and as soon as they open their mouths take them out of the shell. Dry them in a napkin, season them with cayenne pepper and salt if necessary, and fry them in butter. Or, they may be fried in egg and bread crumbs as oysters.

TERRAPINS.

39. Put the terrapins on in boiling water and let them boil ten minutes, take them out and with a coarse cloth rub all the skin off the head, neck, and claws, also the thin shell that may come loose. Then boil them in clean water, with a little salt in it, until the claws are perfectly soft. The time of boiling depends very much on the age of the terrapin; some take three hours. When they are soft, open them carefully, take out the sand bag, the spongy part, and the gall, which you must not break. Cut all the remainder of the terrapin in small pieces, put them in a stew pan, and to each large terrapin take a quarter of a pound of butter, one wine glass of Sherry or Madeira wine, salt, black and red pepper, and mustard, to suit the taste, also to each terrapin, the yelks of two hard boiled eggs, mashed to a paste, with a little butter. Mix the whole together, and stew fifteen minutes. Send them to the table hot.

BOILED CRABS.

40. Have a large pot of water strongly salted, let it boil hard, put in your crabs and boil them for twenty minutes. If the water should cease boiling the crabs will be watery. Take them out, break off the claws, wipe the shells very clean, also the large claws.

When cold, place them on a dish with the large claws around it. The claws should be cracked before they are sent to the table. The small ones are not generally eaten.

SOFT CRABS.

41. Prepare your crabs by removing the spongy part, and sand bag. Wipe them very clean and fry them in some hot lard and butter mixed. When they are a fine yellow brown on both sides, place them on a dish and send them to the table hot.

BOILED LOBSTER.

42. Lobsters, as well as crabs, should be boiled in strong salt and water. Have your pot of water boiling hard, put in your lobsters and boil them for half an hour, or if they are very large, a little longer. Take them out of the pot and when they have drained, open them, extract the meat carefully, and send it to the table cold.

Lobster is usually dressed at the table with mustard, hard boiled eggs, cayenne pepper, salt, vinegar and oil.

LOBSTER SALAD.

43. One large lobster, Three table spoonsful of French mustard, or, Two dessert spoonsful of common mixed mustard, One gill and a half of vinegar, One gill and a half of sweet oil, The yelks of five hard boiled eggs, Salt to the taste, A small tea spoonful of cayenne pepper, The inside leaves of two heads of cabbage lettuce.

Cut the meat and lettuce in small pieces. Boil the eggs hard, mash the yelks with a wooden or silver spoon, and oil enough to make them to a smooth paste, then add the vinegar, mustard, pepper, and salt to the taste. Mix this dressing thoroughly with the lobster and lettuce, and serve it before the salad becomes wilted.

OYSTER OMELETTE.

44. Beat four eggs very light. Cut the hard part out of eight or a dozen oysters, according to their size, wipe them dry, and cut them up in small pieces, stir them into the beaten egg and fry them in hot butter. When the under side is brown, sprinkle a little salt and pepper over the top, and fold one half over the other.

Never turn an omelette, as it makes it heavy.

MEATS.

The finest grained beef is the best, the flesh is of a fine red, and the fat a light cream color, but not yellow; the fat, too, is solid and firm. The lean of mutton should be of a red color, and the fat white. The lean of veal should be of a light color and the fat white. The skin of pork should be of a light color, and if young it is tender. The fat should appear firm. A tender goose is known by taking hold of the wing and raising it; if the skin tears easily, the goose is tender, or if you can readily insert the head of a pin into the flesh, it is young. The same remarks will hold good with regard to ducks. Young chickens may be known by pressing the lower end of the breast bone; if it yields readily to the pressure they are not old, for in all animals the bones are cartilaginous when young. The breast should be broad and plump in all kinds of poultry, the feet pliable, and the toes easily broken when bent back.

ROAST BEEF.

45. The nicest piece for roasting is the rib.

Two ribs of fine beef is a piece large enough for a family of eight or ten. The lean of beef should always appear of a bright red before it is cooked, and the fat of a very light cream color.

Season the beef with salt, and place it in a roaster before a clear bright fire. Do not set it too close at first. As to the time of roasting, that must be left to the judgment of the cook and the taste of those who are to eat it. If it is preferred quite rare an hour and a half or two hours will cook two large ribs sufficiently, but if it is to be better done, it must be cooked a proportionably longer time. Whilst the beef is roasting, baste it frequently with its own gravy. When nearly done, dredge flour lightly over it so as to brown it. When the meat is taken out, skim off the fat on the top of the gravy, and pour the remainder in a pan, add a little flour, with salt to the taste, and some water, give it one boil, and serve it in a small tureen or gravy boat.

In cold weather the plates should be warmed just before the dinner is served. Or, a small chafing dish placed under each plate.

BEEF A-LA-MODE.

46. A round of beef is the best for this purpose. With a sharp knife cut incisions in the meat about an inch apart, and within one inch of the opposite side, season it with pepper and salt according to the size of the piece of meat.

Make a dressing of butter, onion, and bread crumbs, in the proportion of a pint of crumbs, one small onion finely chopped, and an ounce of butter, with pepper and salt to the taste, fill the incisions with the dressing, put the meat in a pot, with about a pint of water, and cover it tightly. Let it simmer six or eight hours.

Some stick in a few cloves, and those who are fond of spice add allspice. When the meat is done, dish it up and thicken the gravy with a little flour. Let it boil once, and serve it. This is excellent when cold.

BEEF STEAKS.

47. Scrape some fine sirloin steaks, wipe them with a clean cloth, heat the bars of your gridiron, grease them, and put your steaks over clear coals. Turn them frequently by placing a dish over them, and then quickly turn them, holding the dish in one hand and the gridiron in the other. In this manner you will preserve the gravy. When done, season them with pepper and salt; baste them well with butter, and add two table spoonsful of water, with a little salt. Send them to the table hot.

FRIED BEEF STEAK.

48. Season your steaks with salt and pepper, and fry them in hot lard. When done, dish them, add a little flour to the fat they were fried in, pour in a little water, and season with pepper and salt to the taste; give the gravy one boil and pour it over.

SMOTHERED STEAK.

49. Take one dozen large onions, boil them in very little water until they are tender.

Pound and wash a beef steak, season it with pepper and salt, put it in a pan with some hot beef dripping, and fry it till it is done. Take it out, put it on a dish, where it will keep hot. Then, when the onions are soft, drain and mash them in the pan with the steak gravy, and add pepper and salt to the taste. Put it on the fire and as soon as it is hot, pour it over the steak and serve it.

BAKED BEEF, AND YORKSHIRE PUDDING.

50. Rub salt on a nice piece of beef, put it on bars, which should fit your dripping pan, set it in the oven, with a gill of water in the pan, and when it is half done, make the pudding in the following manner:

Beat four eggs very light; the yelks in a pan, the whites in a broad dish. When the yelks are thick stir in a pint of milk, and as much flour as will make a batter, but not a thick one. Then stir in the whites which must be whisked very dry; do not heat the batter after the white is in; lastly stir in a tea spoonful of dissolved carbonate of ammonia. Take out the meat, skim all the fat off the gravy, pour in the batter and replace the meat; put all into the oven again, and cook it till the pudding is done. You should make batter enough to cover your dripping pan about half an inch deep. When the meat is dished, cut the pudding in squares, and place it round the dish, the brown side up.

FRENCH STEW, No. 1.

51. Cut up two pounds of beef, and add to it a pint of sliced tomatoes. The tomatoes must be peeled. Put the meat in a stew-pan and season it well with pepper and salt, then add your tomatoes and an ounce of butter rolled in flour. Cover it closely, and let it simmer till the beef is tender. It does not require any water as the tomatoes are sufficiently juicy.

If the gravy should not be thick enough, add a little flour mixed with cold water.

FRENCH STEW, No. 2.

52. Cut up one pound of beef in small pieces about an inch square, pare and slice six onions; put a layer of the meat and a layer of onions in a stew-pan, with salt and pepper and a little flour alternately till all is in, and add half a tea cupful of water; cover it closely and set it on a slow fire to stew; when about half done, if the gravy seems too thin, add one ounce of butter rolled in flour; but if it should be thick enough, add the butter without the flour.

When tomatoes are in season two tomatoes may be cut in small pieces and stewed with the meat.

Cold beef may be cooked in the same manner.

BEEF STEWED WITH ONIONS.

53. Cut some tender beef in small pieces, and season it with pepper and salt, slice some onions and add to it, with water enough in the stew-pan to make a gravy; let it stew slowly till the beef is thoroughly done, then add some pieces of butter rolled in flour to make a rich gravy.

Cold beef may be done in the same way, only the onions must be stewed first and the meat added. If the water should stew away too much put in a little more.

STEWED BEEF'S KIDNEY.

54. Clear the kidney of all the fat, cut it in two, and with a sharp knife cut out the fibre which runs through the middle of it. Lay it in a sauce-pan with a very little water and a little salt, cover it close and let it stew till it is perfectly tender, then take it up and cut it in small pieces, season it with pepper, and more salt if requisite, and return it to the stew-pan; let it stew till there are about two spoonsful of gravy remaining in the stew-pan, then add a piece of butter and a little flour. Let it boil once and serve it.

FRIED BEEF'S KIDNEY.

55. Clean all the fat off the kidney, cut it open and take out the fibre which runs through it; put it in a stew-pan with a very little water and some salt, and cook it till it is tender; then season it with pepper and more salt if required, flour it and fry it in hot lard, add a little flour and water to make the gravy.

Or, you may broil instead of frying it, after it has been parboiled.

CORNED BEEF.

56. One hundred pounds of beef, Six pounds of coarse salt, Two ounces and a half of saltpetre, One pound and a half of sugar, Four gallons of water.

Mix the above ingredients together and pour over the meat. Cover the tub closely.

JEWISH METHOD OF PREPARING BEEF FOR SALTING.

57. Take out all the veins. Sprinkle with salt and let it lay for half an hour; wash off all the salt and soak it half an hour in cold water, drain it and then put it in the pickle as directed above.

BOILED CORNED BEEF.

58. Put on the meat in cold water; allow one quart of water to every pound of meat. The slower it boils the better it will be. For every pound of meat let it boil fifteen minutes; thus, a piece of beef weighing twelve pounds should boil three hours. If the beef is to be eaten cold--as soon as it is taken out of the pot immerse it in cold water for a short time, in order to retain the juices.

Tongues are boiled in the same manner.

BOILED TONGUE.

59. See boiled corned beef, Article 58.

TRIPE.

60. Scrape and wash it very clean--put it in a pot with a tea spoonful of salt to every quart of water, and let it boil till the top of each piece begins to look clear--it requires a great deal of boiling and must be exceedingly soft.

When cold cut it in pieces, season and fry it in egg and bread crumbs like oysters. Or, it may be fried without the egg and crumbs, and the gravy thickened with a little flour, and flavored with catsup or vinegar. Serve it hot.

ROAST VEAL.

61. Season a breast of veal with pepper and salt; skewer the sweet-bread firmly in its place, flour the meat and roast it slowly before a moderate fire for about four hours--it should be of a fine brown but not dry; baste it with butter. When done put the gravy in a stew-pan, add a piece of butter rolled in browned flour, and if there should not be quite enough gravy add a little more water, with pepper and salt to the taste. The gravy should be brown.

PLAIN VEAL PIE.

62. Take the best end of a neck of veal, cut it in pieces, season it with pepper and salt, and stew it in just enough water to cover it. When it is nearly done make a rich gravy with some butter rolled in flour, added to the water it was stewed in.

Line the sides of a deep pie dish with paste, put in the meat and pour in the gravy, roll out a sheet of paste and cover the top; cut an opening in the centre of the top, about three inches long, and another to cross it at right angles; turn back the four corners and ornament with bars of paste twisted and laid over. Set it in the oven, and when the crust is done send it to the table in the dish it was baked in.

VEAL POT PIE.

63. Cut up some veal, the best part of the neck is preferable to any other, wash and season it with pepper and salt; line the sides of your pot with paste, put in the veal with some pieces of paste rolled out and cut in squares, cut up some pieces of butter rolled in flour and add to it, pour in as much water as will cover it, and lay a sheet of paste on the top, leaving an opening in the centre; put the lid on the pot and put it over a moderate fire, let it cook slowly till the meat is done; place the soft crust on a dish, then put the meat over it, and on the top lay the hard crust, with the brown side up. Serve the gravy in a boat.

To have the crust of a pot pie brown, set the pot on a few coals before the fire, and turn it frequently.

FILLET OF VEAL A-LA-MODE.

64. Cut deep incisions in the meat about an inch apart, and season it with pepper and salt. Make your dressing with a four cent baker's loaf, two small onions finely chopped, and an ounce of butter, with pepper and salt to the taste; fill the incisions with this dressing, put the veal in a pot with three gills of water and cover it tightly. Let it cook slowly two hours at least. Some prefer a little sweet marjoram or thyme, finely powdered, added to the dressing. Take out the veal when it is done, and thicken the gravy with a little flour.

BAKED FILLET OF VEAL.

65. Make incisions all around the bone as closely as possible, so as not to touch each other. Make a dressing of bread crumbs, an onion finely chopped, a little sweet marjoram, pepper and salt to the taste, with enough butter to cause the bread crumbs to adhere together; fill these incisions with the dressing, season the meat with pepper and salt, and skewer the strip of fat around it. Pour in enough water to cover the bottom of the pan, put in the rack and place the meat on it; as the gravy stews away add a little more water, put it in a cool oven and let it cook three or four hours. When done, make the gravy with some flour rolled in butter, and add pepper and salt to the taste.

FRENCH STEW OF VEAL.