MEATS.
RULES FOR BOILING MEAT.
All fresh meat should be put to cook in boiling water, then the outer part contracts and the internal juices are preserved.
For making soup, where you want all the juices extracted, put on in cold water.
All salt meat should be put on in cold water, that the salt may be extracted in cooking.
In boiling meats, it is important to keep the water constantly boiling, otherwise the meat will absorb the water. Be careful to add boiling water, if more is needed.
Remove the scum when it first begins to boil.
Allow about twenty minutes for boiling for each pound of fresh meat. The more gently meat boils the more tender it will be.
To broil meat well, have your gridiron hot before you put it on.
In roasting beef it is necessary to have a brisk fire. Baste often. Season well with pepper and salt. Twenty minutes is required for every pound of beef.
Stuff the turkey as for roasting. A very nice dressing is made by chopping half a pint of oysters and mixing them with bread crumbs, butter, pepper and salt, thyme or sweet marjoram, and wet with milk or water. Baste about the turkey a thin cloth, the inside of which has been dredged with flour, and put it to boil in cold water, with a spoonful of salt in it. Let a large turkey simmer for two and a half or three hours. Skim it while boiling. Serve with oyster sauce made by adding to a cupful of the liquor in which the turkey was boiled the same quantity of milk and eight oysters chopped fine. Season with minced parsley; stir in a spoonful of rice or wheat flour wet with cold milk; a tablespoonful of butter. Boil up once and pour into a tureen.
Mrs. S. Craighead.A turkey a year old is considered best. See that it is well cleansed and washed. Salt and pepper it inside. Take a loaf and a half of bakers stale bread for a good sized turkey; rub it quite fine with your hands; have in your skillet a lump of butter as large as an egg (or a little more); cut into it one large white onion; let it cook a few minutes, but not get brown; then stir in your bread, one teaspoonful of salt, one of pepper; let it get thoroughly heated. Put the turkey into a dripping pan; salt and pepper the outside, and sprinkle a little flour over it. Put about one coffee cup of water in the pan; baste very frequently; use a good, moderate oven; roast about three hours, or three and a half. Be sure to keep up an even fire.
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PLAIN, EXCELLENT STUFFING. |
Mrs. R. P. Brown.Take stale bread; cut off all the crust; rub very fine, and pour over it as much melted butter as will make it crumble in your hands; salt and pepper to taste.
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TURKEY DRESSED WITH OYSTERS. |
Mrs. W. A. B.For a ten-pound turkey, take two pints of bread crumbs; half a teacupful of butter cut in bits (not melted); one teaspoonful of sweet basil, pepper and salt, and mix thoroughly. Rub the turkey well, inside and out, with salt and pepper; then fill with first a spoonful of crumbs, then a few well drained oysters, using half a can for the turkey. Strain the oyster liquor and use to baste the turkey. Cook the giblets in the pan and chop fine in the gravy. A fowl of this size will require three hours cooking in a moderate oven.
Mrs. J. Harris.Take two-thirds bread and one-third boiled potatoes grated, butter the size of an egg, pepper, salt, one egg and a little ground sage. Mix thoroughly.
Take half a pound of the pulp of tart apples, which have been baked or scalded; add two ounces of bread crumbs, some powdered sage, a finely shred onion; and season well with cayenne pepper. This is a delicious stuffing for roast geese, ducks, &c.
Boil the chestnuts and shell them; then blanch them and boil until soft; mash them fine and mix with a little sweet cream, some bread crumbs, pepper and salt. Excellent for roast turkey.
Mrs. James Stockstill.Cut up a good sized chicken in all the joints; make a rich crust or like soda biscuit; have ready a smooth pot; put in a layer of the chicken at the bottom; pepper and salt; then small, square pieces of dough, and then a layer of potatoes (quartered if large) and small pieces of butter; then another layer of chicken, and so on. Put a crust over the top with a slit cut each way, so that you can turn back and add more water if necessary. Before putting it on, fill the pot with boiling water and cover closely; boil with a good fire one hour and a half.
Mrs. W. R. S. Ayres.Boil a chicken until it is tender (one a year old is best); peel half dozen potatoes while it is stewing. To make the crust, take one quart of flour; one tablespoonful of baking powder; a little salt; half a teacupful of lard, and sufficient water to make a stiff dough. Roll half the dough to the thickness of half an inch; cut in strips and line the dish. Then put in half the chicken and half the potatoes; season with butter, pepper and salt; dredge well with flour, and put in some of the crust cut in small pieces. The other half of the chicken and potatoes, put in, with butter, salt and pepper, and dredge with flour as before; roll out the remainder of the dough for upper crust. Before putting on the cover, fill the dish with boiling water; put in the oven immediately, and bake one hour.
Mrs. Judge Holt.Stew chicken till tender; season with one-quarter of a pound of butter, salt and pepper; line the sides of pie dish with a rich crust; pour in the stewed chicken, and cover loosely with a crust, first cutting a hole in the center, size of a small teacup. Have ready a can of oysters; heat the liquor; thicken with a little flour and water, and season with salt, pepper and butter size of an egg. When it comes to a boil, pout it over the oysters, and about twenty minutes before the pie is done, lift the top crust and put them in.
Mrs. John A. McMahon.Stuff two chickens as if to boil; put in a pot; don't quite cover with water; put them on two hours before dinner. Chop an onion, some parsley, and a little mace; rub a piece of butter twice as large as an egg with flour, and stir all in. Before dishing, beat the yolks of six eggs and stir in carefully; cook five minutes.
Pick the meat from the bones of a cold turkey (without any of the skin); chop it fine. Put a layer of bread crumbs on the bottom of a buttered dish; moisten them with a little milk; then put in a layer of turkey with some of the filling, and cut small pieces of butter over the top; sprinkle with pepper and salt; then another layer of crumbs, and so on until the dish is nearly full; add a little hot water to the gravy that was left from the turkey, and pour over it. Then take two eggs; two tablespoonsful of milk; one of melted butter; a little salt; and cracker crumbs as much as will make it thick enough to spread on top with a knife; put bits of butter over it, and cover with a plate; bake three-quarters of an hour. About ten minutes before serving remove the plate and let the crust brown nicely.
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TURKEY OR CHICKEN CROQUETTES. |
Mrs. S. Gebhart.Mince turkey or chicken as fine as possible; season with pepper, salt, a little nutmeg, and a very little onion. Take a large tablespoonful of butter; two of flour; one-half glass of cream; mix, boil, and stir the meat in. When cold, take a spoonful of the mixture and dip into the yolk of an egg; then in bread crumbs; roll lightly in your hand into the proper shape, and fry in boiling lard deep enough to cover them.
Mrs. J. R. Young.One sweet bread; one pound of chopped chicken; half pound bread crumbs; pour on of boiling water enough to moisten them; add the yolks of two eggs; stir over the fire till quite stiff, and set away to cool. Chop three teaspoonsful of parsley, three of thyme, three of onions, one of mace, one of nutmeg; salt and cayenne pepper to taste; add half pound of butter; then beat in the mixture, two eggs; mix well with hand; shape as pears; dip in bread crumbs and egg, and fry in hot lard, a light brown.
Take the breast of two chickens, or as much cold, cooked veal; beat in a mortar; add as much ham. Add parsley, thyme, salt and pepper to taste. Boil a pint of new milk, and thicken it with a little flour. Put in the meat; boil it a short time; take it out, and set it away to cool. Roll in grated cracker, then in the yolk of an egg, and fry.
Lewis G. Evans.Fry out in the pot you make the curry in, three large rashers of pickled pork, and three onions sliced; fry until the onions are brown; cut the chicken into small pieces, and slice three potatoes thin; add them to the pork and onions; cover well with water; cook until the chicken is done and the potatoes have thickened the water; salt to taste. Slice two or three more potatoes, very thin; put two tablespoonsful of curry powder in a tumbler, and mix with water; add the potatoes and mixed curry powder to the stew, and boil until the potatoes are cooked, but not broken; serve with rice. Green peas and corn are a valuable addition. The above is for one extra large chicken, or two of ordinary size.
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STEWED CHICKEN WITH OYSTERS. |
Mrs. J. F. E.Season and stew a chicken in a quart of water until very tender, but not to fall from the bones. Take it out on a hot dish and keep it warm; then put into the liquor in which it was stewed a lump of butter the size of an egg; mix a little flour and water, smooth and make thick gravy; season well with pepper and salt, and let it come to a boil. Have ready a quart of oysters picked over, and put them in without any of the liquor; stir them around, and as soon as they are cooked pour all over the chicken.
Scald the tomatoes; skin and quarter them, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bury the meat in a stew pan with tomatoes and add bits of butter rolled in flour; a little sugar, and an onion minced fine; let cook until the meat is done and the tomatoes dissolved into a pulp.
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BEEFSTEAK SMOTHERED IN ONIONS. |
Mrs. Sarah S. Crane.Put in the skillet a little lard, and the steak; peel the onions; slice and lay them over the meat till the skillet is full; season with salt and pepper; cover it tightly and put it over the fire. After the juice of the onions has boiled away and the meat begins to fry, remove the onions, turn the meat to brown on the other side, then replace the onions as before. Be very careful that they do not burn.
Take a flank or round steak; pound it and sprinkle with pepper and salt; then make a plain filling and spread it on the meat; roll it up and tie closely. Put in a pot with a quart of boiling water, and a lump of butter the size of an egg. Boil slowly one hour, then put in a pan with the water in which it was boiled, and bake until nicely browned, basting it frequently. Dredge a little flour into the gravy, boil and pour over the meat.
Boil a shin of twelve pounds of meat until it falls readily from the bone; pick it to pieces; mash gristle and all very fine; pick out all the hard bits. Set the liquor away, and when cool take off all the fat; boil the liquor down to a pint and a half; then return the meat to it while it is hot; add what salt and pepper is needed, and any spice you choose. Let it boil up a few times, stirring all the while. Put it into a mould or deep dish to cool. Use cold, and cut in thin slices for tea, or warm it for breakfast.
Mrs. G. Arnold.Corn a bit of briskit (thin part of the flank or the top of the ribs) with salt and pulverized saltpetre five days, then boil it gently until quite tender. Put it under a heavy weight or a press till perfectly cold. It is very nice for sandwiches.
Mrs. J F. Schenck.Ten pounds of salt; three of sugar; one-fourth of ginger; one-half of pulverized saltpetre; one ounce cayenne pepper; nine gallons of water.
Mrs. J. F. Edgar.Take your beef, be it much or little, rub it over lightly with salt, and put it in either an earthen or wooden vessel; let it stand two or three days, then take it out; throw away the liquor; cleanse the vessel, and put it back again. Make a pickle of good salt that will bear up an egg; to about every four gallons of liquor add two pounds of sugar and two ounces of pulverized saltpetre; mix well together, and pour over the meat until it is covered; it must be kept under the brine.
Mrs. J. A. McMahon.For a twenty-five pound round take one and a half ounces of pulverized saltpetre and a handful of brown sugar; pound and mix thoroughly; then rub the beef well with the mixture. Put it into a tub as near the size of the round as you can get, and let it remain forty-eight hours, during which time turn and rub the beef twice. Then have prepared one and a half ounces of ground pepper; two ounces of allspice; one of cloves; and three or four good handsful of fine salt; pound and mix the spice and salt, and rub the beef with it; turn and rub it every day for a week, taking care to preserve the pickle. It will be ready for use in three or four weeks.
Miss Blossom Brown.To twenty pounds of round beef take two and a half pounds of suet, chopped very fine, and mixed with black pepper until it is almost black. Mix with this, one handful whole allspice, and one of whole cloves; punch holes through the meat and stuff with suet; sew up in a bag very tight, and cover well with a brine made of four gallons of water, one and a half pounds of sugar, two ounces of pulverized saltpetre, and six pounds of common salt. It is ready for use in three weeks. Boil well, and when cold remove the bag and slice from the cut end.
Three pounds of finely chopped veal; six rolled crackers; three eggs well beaten; two large spoonsful of cream; one of salt; one teaspoonful of white pepper; use powdered sage; thyme or sweet marjoram if you like; mix all well together; form into one or two loaves; baste with butter and water while baking. Bake one hour and a half.
Fresh beef can be used in the same way.
Mrs. A. C. Clark.Two pounds of porksteak; three pounds of veal, chopped fine; ten crackers, rolled; one tablespoonful of thyme, summer savory or parsley; six eggs; salt and butter. Mix thoroughly. Bake one hour; then spread eggs and cracker over it and put in to brown.
Mrs. S. Craighead.Have a steak of first cut; pound and season it well; cut the outer edges; then beat it into a good shape. Take one egg; beat it a little; roll the cutlet in it; then cover thoroughly with rolled crackers. Have a lump of butter and lard mixed hot in your skillet; put in the meat and let cook slowly; when nicely browned on both sides, stir in one spoonful of flour for the gravy; add a half pint of sweet milk and let it come to a boil; salt and pepper, and grate a little nutmeg on it.
Mrs. S. Gebhart.Mince veal very fine; add one onion chopped; mix half a cup of milk with one teaspoonful of flour; piece of butter size of a walnut; cook until thickened, and stir into the meat; roll into balls; dip into a beaten egg and roll in bread crumbs; fry in plenty of hot lard.
Take three veal steaks; boil until very tender; take them out; save the water in which they were boiled; chop the meat up very fine; put into a deep dish alternate layers of the meat and bread crumbs; salt and pepper each layer; use small lumps of butter. When the bowl is pretty full, add the liquor, of which there should be about a pint, and a teacup of milk; a pint of bread crumbs will be about enough.
Cold roast veal, with the stuffing and gravy, can be used in the same way.
Mrs. D. A. Bradford.Take some cold, roasted veal; season with spice; beat in a mortar. Skin a cold, boiled tongue; cut up and pound it to a paste, adding to it nearly its weight of butter; put some of the veal into a pot; then strew in lumps of the pounded tongue; put in another layer of the veal, and again more tongue; press it down and pour clarified butter on top. This cuts very prettily, like veined marble.
The dressed white meat of fowls may be used instead of veal.
Winnie.Take mutton chops (one for each person); cover well with water, and let come to a boil. Pour off this and add more water. Take a lump of butter the size of an egg; two tablespoonsful of flour; a teacupful of milk, with pepper and salt to taste; also potatoes, and a small onion or two, if liked. Boil all till the potatoes are done.
Parboil the sweetbreads as soon as you get them. Remove the tough parts carefully. Let them lie in cold water a short time before using them, then have rolled crackers to rub them in, and broil or fry as you choose.
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SWEETBREADS WITH TOMATOES. |
Mrs. John A. McMahon.Take two large parboiled sweetbreads; put them into a stew pan with one and a half gills of water, and season with salt, cayenne and black pepper to taste. Place them over a slow fire. Mix one large teaspoonful of browned flour with a small piece of butter, to which add a leaf of mace. Stir the butter and gravy well together. After letting them stew slowly for half an hour, set the stew pan into a quick oven, and when the sweetbreads are nicely browned, place them on a dish. Pour the gravy into a half a pint of stewed tomatoes thickened with one dessert-spoonful of flour and a small piece of butter, and seasoned with salt and pepper; strain it through a small wire sieve into the stew pan; let it come to a boil and stir until done, then pour it over the sweetbreads and send it to the table hot.
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SWEETBREADS WITH MUSHROOMS. |
Parboil sweetbreads, allowing eight medium ones to a can of mushrooms. Cut the sweetbreads about half an inch square; stew until tender. Slice mushrooms and stew in the liquor for one hour, then add to the sweetbreads a coffee cup of cream, pepper and salt, and a tablespoonful of butter. Just before serving throw quickly in, two tablespoonsful of Madeira wine.
Sweetbreads broiled, and served with a dressing of green peas, make a very nice dish.
Mrs. G.Cut the liver in pieces an inch thick; steam fifteen minutes; have frying some slices of pickled pork; when done take out the pork and fry the liver in the hot grease a nice brown; add a little flour and water to the gravy, cooking a few minutes; pour over the meat, and serve; pepper and salt to taste.
Half a calf's liver, seasoned and fried brown; hash it, not very fine, and dredge it thickly with flour. Take one teaspoonful of mixed mustard; a pinch of cayenne pepper; two hard boiled eggs, chopped fine; a piece of butter the size of an egg; one teacupful of water; and boil together a minute or two.
Mrs. W. A. B.Allow a beef's liver to remain in corn beef brine for ten days. Hang it up ten days to dry. Slice thin and broil or fry in butter.
Mrs. P. P. Lowe.Scrape off the outside gently; soak in cold water for three hours, if the ham is small, or over night if it is large. Take the ham from the water; wipe it dry, and place it in a boiler large enough to hold it without bending, and cover with cold water. Throw in six cloves, four small onions, and a handful of parsley; boil gently four hours, for a medium sized ham. When boiled, take out and trim; removing the rind and the small bone at the large end, by breaking it off carefully without tearing the meat. After the ham is trimmed, put it in the oven for from one-half to an hour, basting it frequently.
A ham of 16 pounds to be boiled three hours slowly; then skin, and in the fat rub half a pound of brown sugar; pour over it a gill of wine and cover with bread crumbs. Bake for two hours, basting with wine.
Mrs. J. W. S.Chop fine some cold dressed ham, and mix with it a teaspoonful of chopped pickle, one of mustard, and a little pepper. Beat about half a pound of butter to a cream, and then add the ham and seasoning. Spread on thin slices of bread and place between them bits of cold roast beef, mutton, chicken or quail.
Miss Hattie Brown.Sardines chopped fine; also a little ham; a small quantity of chopped pickles; mix with mustard, pepper, catsup, salt and vinegar; spread between bread nicely buttered. To be like jelly cake, cut in slices crossways. Will keep fresh some time.
Mrs. Rebecca Buck.Rub one tablespoonful of mustard into one-half pound of sweet butter; spread on thin slices of bread; cut boiled ham very thin, and place in between two pieces of the bread.
Take cold beef of any kind; cut very fine; then take about one-third mashed potatoes; warm, season and pound altogether in a stone crock; cut in slices and brown in butter.
Mrs. D. W. S.To one pound of cooked beef chopped fine, take seven crackers (rolled). First cook the meat in a little water a few minutes, seasoning with salt and pepper; then stir into the crackers and pour all into a pudding dish; if too dry, add a little water. Take a piece of butter size of a walnut and cut in small pieces over the top of the dish. Bake about twenty minutes, or until quite brown; serve in the same dish.
Beat together two eggs and a half cupful of bread crumbs; chop fine some bits of boiled ham, and mix with them; make into balls and fry a nice brown.
Mince a little cold veal and ham, allowing one-third ham to two-thirds veal; add an egg boiled hard and chopped fine, and a seasoning of pounded mace, salt, pepper and lemon peel; moisten with a little gravy or cream. Make a good puff paste; roll rather thin and cut into round or square pieces; put the mince between two of them, pinch the edges to keep in the gravy and fry a light brown. They may also be baked in patty pans; in that case they should be brushed over with the yolk of an egg before they are put in the oven.
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SCRAMBLED EGGS WITH BEEF. |
Chip dried beef very fine; put equal parts of lard and butter in a skillet; when hot put in the beef; heat up a few minutes, stirring to keep from burning; break up some eggs in a bowl; season and stir in. It will require but a few minutes' cooking.
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OMELETTE, OR FRENCH EGG CAKE. |
E. C.Beat up thoroughly six eggs; a teaspoonful of sweet cream or milk, and a little salt. Fry in a pan in which there is one-half ounce of melted butter, over a quick fire. In order that the omelette may remain soft and juicy, it is necessary that the pan should be hot before the eggs are poured in. During the frying move the pan continually to and fro, so that what is below may always come on top again. Continue this until there is a cake formed, then let it remain still a moment to give it color. Turn out on a dish and serve immediately.
One quart of milk; one pint of bread crumbs; five eggs; one tablespoonful of flour; one onion, chopped fine; chopped parsley; season with pepper and salt. Have butter melted in a frying pan; when the omelette is brown, turn it over. Double it when served.
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