THE LARDER.
A goodlarder is essential to every house. It should have a free circulation of air through it, and not be exposed to the sun. If it can be so contrived, the larder ought to be near the kitchen, for the convenience of the cook. For a family of moderate style of living it need not be very roomy. There should be large and strong hooks for meat and poultry; a hanging shelf so placed as for the cook to reach it with ease; and a safe, either attached to the wall, or upon a stand, for dishes of cold meat, pastry, or anything which would be exposed to dust and flies on the shelf. Wire covers should be provided for this purpose, and in hot weather, when it may be necessary to place dishes of meat on a brick floor, these covers will be found to answer every purpose of a safe. There should be a pan, with a cover, for bread, another for butter, and one for cheese. A shelf for common earthenware bowls, dishes, &c., &c., &c. Cold meat, and all things left from the dinner, should be put away in common brown or yellow ware; there ought to be an ample supply of these. Tubs and pans for salted meat sometimes stand in the dairy, but it is not the proper place for them, for meat ought not to be kept in a dairy.
Meat should be examined every day in cold, and oftener in warm weather, as it sometimes taints very soon. Scrape off the outside, if the least appearance of mould, on mutton, beef, or venison; and flour the scraped parts. By well peppering meat you may keep away flies, which cause so much destruction in a short time. But a very coarse cheese-cloth, wrapped round the joint, is more effectual, if the meat is to be dressed soon. Remove the kidneys, and all the suet, from loins which are wanted to hang long, in warm or close weather, and carefully wipe and flour that part of the meat. Before you put meat which is rather stale to the fire, wipe it with a cloth dipped in vinegar. Ajoint of beef, mutton, or venison, may be saved by being wrapped in a cloth and buried, over night, in a hole dug in fresh mould. Neither veal, pork, or lamb should be kept long.
Poultry and game keep for some length of time, if the weather be dry and cold, but if moist or warm, will be more liable to taint, than venison or any kind of meat, except veal. A piece of charcoal put inside of any kind of poultry will greatly assist to preserve it. Poultry should be picked, drawn and cropped. Do not wash, but wipe it clean, and sprinkle the parts most likely to taint with powdered loaf sugar, salt, and pepper. As I should reject the use of all chemical processes, for the preservation of meat, I do not recommend them to others.
Frost has a great effect upon meat, poultry, and game. Some cooks will not be persuaded of the necessity for its being completelythawed before it is put near the fire; yet it neither roasts, boils, nor eats well, unless this be done. If slightly frozen, the meat may be recovered, by being five or six hours in the kitchen;notnear the fire. Another method is, to plunge a joint into a tub ofcoldwater, let it remain two or three hours, or even longer, and the ice will appear on the outside. Meat should be cooked immediately after it has been thawed, for it will keep no longer.
If the tastes of all persons were simple and unvitiated, there would be little occasion for the cook's ingenuity to preserve meat after it has begun to putrefy. An objection to meat in that state, does not arise merely from distaste, but from a conviction of its being most unwholesome. There may have been a difference of opinion among the scientific upon this subject: but, it seems now to be generally considered by those who best understand such matters, that when meat has become poisonous to the air, it is no longer good and nutritious food. The fashion of eating meatà la cannibale, or half raw, being happily on the decline, we may now venture to express our dislike to eat things which are half decomposed, without incurring the charge of vulgarity.
SALTING AND CURING MEAT.
The Counties of England differ materially in their modes of curing bacon and pork; but the palm of excellency inbacon has so long been decreed to Hampshire, that I shall give no other receipts for it, but such as are practised in that, and the adjoining counties. The best method of keeping, feeding, and killing pigs, is detailed inCobbett'sCottage Economy; and there, also, will be found directions for salting and smoking the flitches, in the way commonly practised in the farm-houses in Hampshire. Thesmokingof bacon is an important affair, and experience is requisite to give any thing like perfection in the art. The process should not be too slow nor too much hurried. The skin should be made of a dark brown colour, but not black; for by smoking the bacon till it becomes black, it will also be made hard, and cease to have any flavour but that of rust.—Before they are dressed, both bacon and hams require to be soaked in water; the former an hour or two, the latter, all night, or longer, if very dry. But, according to some, the best way to soak a ham is to bury it in the earth, for one, two, or three nights and days, according to its state of dryness.
Meat will not take salt well either in frosty or in warm weather. Every thing depends upon the first rubbing; and the salt, or pickle, should not only be well rubbed in, but this is best done by a hard hand. The following general direction for salting meat may be relied on:—"6 lbs. of salt, 1 lb. of coarse sugar, and 4 oz. of saltpetre, boiled in 4 gallons of water, skimmed and allowed to cool, forms a very strong pickle, which will preserve any meat completely immersed in it. To effect this, which is essential, either a heavy board or flat stone must be laid upon the meat. The same pickle may be used repeatedly, provided it be boiled up occasionally with additional salt to restore its strength, diminished by the combination of part of the salt with the meat, and by the dilution of the pickle by the juices of the meat extracted. By boiling, thealbumen, which would cause the pickle to spoil, is coagulated and rises in the form of scum, which must be carefully removed."
It is a good practice to wash meat before it is salted. This is not generally done; but pieces of pork, and, more particularly, beef and tongues, should first lie in cold spring water, and then be well washed to cleanse them from all impurities, in order to ensure their being free from taint; after which, drain the meat, and it will take the salt muchquicker for the washing.—Examine it well; and be careful to take all the kernels out of beef.
Some persons like salted meat to be red. For this purpose, saltpetre is necessary. Otherwise, the less use is made of it the better, as it tends to harden the meat. Sweet herbs, spices, and even garlic, may be rubbed into hams and tongues, with the pickle, according to taste. Bay salt gives a nice flavour. Sugar is generally used in curing hams, tongues and beef; for the two latter some recommend lump sugar, others treacle, to make the meat eat short.
In cold weather salt should be warmed before the fire. Indeed, some use it quite hot. This causes it to penetrate more readily into the meat than it does when rendered hard and dry by frost.
Salting troughs or tubs should be clean, and in an airy place. After meat of any kind has been once well rubbed, keep it covered close, not only with the lid of the vessel, but, in addition, with the thick folds of some woollen article, in order to exclude the air. This is recommended by good housekeepers; yet in Hampshire the trough is sometimes left uncovered, the flitches purposely exposed to the air.
To cure Bacon.
As soon as the hog is cut up, sprinkle salt thickly over the flitches, and let them lie on a brick floor all night. Then wipe the salt off, and lay them in a salting trough. For a large flitch of bacon, allow 2 gallons of salt, 1 lb. of bay salt, 4 cakes of salt prunella, a ¼ lb. of saltpetre, and 1 lb. of common moist sugar; divide this mixture into two parts; rub one half into it the first day, and rub it inwell. The following day rub the other half in, and continue to rub and turn the flitch every day for three weeks. Then hang the flitches to drain, roll them in bran, and hang them to smoke, in a wood-fire chimney. The more quickly, in reason, they are smoked, the better the bacon will taste.
To cure a Ham.
Let a leg of pork hang for three days; then beat it with a rolling pin, and rub into it 1 oz. of saltpetre finelypowdered, and mixed with a small quantity of common salt; let it lie all night. Make the following pickle: a quart of stale strong beer, ½ lb. of bay salt, ½ lb. of common salt, and the same of brown sugar; boil this twenty minutes, then wipe the ham dry from the salt, and with a wooden ladle, pour the pickle, by degrees, and as hot as possible, over the ham; and as it cools, rub it well into every part. Rub and turn it every day, for a week; then hang it, a fortnight, in a wood-smoke chimney. When you take it down, sprinkle black pepper over the bone, and into the holes, to keep it safe from hoppers, and hang it up in a thick paper bag.
Another.
For one of 16 lb. weight. Rub the rind side of the ham with ¼ lb. of brown sugar, then rub it with 1 lb. of salt, and put it in the salting-pan, then rub a little of the sugar, and 1 oz. of saltpetre, and 1 oz. salt prunel, pounded, on the lean side, and press it down; in three days turn it and rub it well with the salt in the pan, then turn it in the pickle for three weeks; take it out, scrape it well, dry it with a clean cloth, rub it slightly with a little salt, and hang it up to dry.
Another.
Beat the ham well on the fleshy side with a rolling pin, then rub into it, on every part, 1 oz. of saltpetre, and let it lie one night. Then take a ½ pint of common salt, and a ¼ pint of bay salt, and 1 lb. of coarse sugar or treacle; mix these ingredients, and make them very hot in a stew-pan, and rub in well for an hour. Then take ½ a pint more of common salt and lay all over the ham, and let it lie on till it melts to brine; keep the ham in the pickle three weeks or a month, till you see it shrink. This is sufficient for a large ham.
Another, said to be equal to the Westphalian.
Rub a large fat ham well, with 2 oz. of pounded saltpetre, 1 oz. of bay salt, and a ¼ lb. of lump sugar: let it lie two days. Prepare a pickle as follows: boil in 2 quartsof stale ale, 1 lb. of bay salt, 2 lb. of common salt, ¾ lb. of lump sugar, 2 oz. of salt prunella, 1 oz. of pounded black pepper, and ½ an oz. of cloves; boil this well, and pour it boiling hot over the ham. Rub and turn it every day for three weeks or a month; then smoke it for about a fortnight.
To cure a Mutton Ham.
A hind quarter must be cut into the shape of a ham: rub into it the following mixture: ¼ lb. saltpetre, ¼ lb. bay salt, 1 lb. common salt, and ¼ lb. loaf sugar; rub well, every other day, for a fortnight, then take it out, press it under a weight for one day, then hang it to smoke ten or fifteen days. It will require long soaking, if kept any length of time, before it is dressed. Boil very gently, three hours. It is eaten cut in slices, and these broiled for breakfast or lunch.—Or; the ham smoked longer, not boiled, but slices very thinly shaved to eat by way of relish at breakfast.
To pickle Pork.
For a hog of 10 score.—When it is quite cold, and cut up in pieces, have well mixed 2 gallons of common salt, and 1½ lb. of saltpetre; with this, rub well each piece of pork, and as you rub, pack it in a salting tub, and sprinkle salt between each layer. Put a heavy weight on the top of the cover, to prevent the meat's swimming. If kept close and tight in this way, it will keep for a year or two.
Leg of Pork.
Proceed as above, salt in proportion, but leave out the saltpetre if you choose. The hand andspringalso, in the same way—and a week sufficient for either. Rub and turn them every day.
Pig's Headin the same way, but it will require two weeks.
To pickle a Tongue.
Rub the tongue over with common salt; and cut a slit in the root, so that the salt may penetrate. Drain the tongue next day, and rub it over with 2 oz. of bay salt,2 oz. of saltpetre, and 2 oz. of lump or coarse sugar, all mixed together. This pickle should be poured over the tongue, with a spoon, every day, as there will not be sufficient liquor to cover it. It will be ready to dress in three weeks or a month.
To salt Beef.
Be sure to take out thekernels, and also be sure to fill up the holes with salt, as well as those which the butcher's skewers have made. In frosty weather, take care that the meat be not frozen; also, to warm the salt before the fire, or in a frying pan.
For a piece of 20 lb. weight.—Sprinkle the meat with salt, and let it lie twenty-four hours; then hang it up to drain. Take 1 oz. of saltpetre, a ½ oz. of salt prunella, a ¼ lb. of very coarse sugar, 6 oz. of common salt, all finely powdered, and rub it well into the beef. Rub and turn it every day. It will be ready to dress in ten days, but may be kept longer.
To salt a Round of Beef.
For one of 30 lb. weight.—Rub common salt well into it all over and in every part, cover it well with salt: rub it well next day, pouring the brine over the meat. Repeat this every day for a fortnight, when it will be ready. Let it drain for 15 minutes, when you are going to cook it. You may, if you wish it to look red, add 4 oz. salt prunel, and 1 lb. saltpetre to the pickle.
An Edge Bone.
To one of 10 or 12 lb. weight allow ¾ lb. of salt, and 1 oz. of moist sugar. Rub these well into the meat. Repeat the rubbing every day, turning the meat also, and it will be ready to dress in four or five days.
Tongue Beef.
After the tongues are taken out of the pickle, wash and wipe dry a piece of flank or brisket of beef; sprinkle with salt, and let it lie a night; then hang it to drain, rub in alittle fresh salt, and put the beef into the pickle; rub and turn it every day for three or four days, and it will be ready to dress, and if the pickle have been previously well prepared, will be found to have a very fine flavour.
To smoke Beef.
Cut a round into pieces of 5 lb. weight each, and salt them very well; when sufficiently salted, hang the pieces in a wood-smoke chimney to dry, and let them hang three or four weeks. This may be grated, for breakfast or luncheon.Another.—Cut a leg of beef like a ham, and to one of 14 lb. make a pickle of 1 lb. salt, 1 lb. brown sugar, 1 oz. saltpetre, and 1 oz. bay salt. Rub and turn the ham every day for a month, then roll it in bran and smoke it. Hang it in a dry place. Broil it in slices.
To make pickle for Brawn.
To rather more than a sufficient quantity of water to cover it, put 7 or 8 handsful of bran, a few bay leaves, also salt enough to give a strong relish; boil this an hour and a half, then strain it. When cold, pour the pickle from the sediment into a pan, and put the meat into it.
Any of these pickles may be used again. First boil it up and take off all the scum.
THE SEASONS FOR MEAT, POULTRY, GAME, AND VEGETABLES.
Itis always the best plan to deal with a respectable butcher, and to keep to the same one. He will find his interest in providing his regular customers with good meat, and thebestis always thecheapest, even though it may cost a little more money.
Beefis best and cheapest from Michaelmas to Midsummer.
Vealis best and cheapest from March to July.
Muttonis best from Christmas to Midsummer.
Grass Lambis best from Easter to June.
House Lambcomes in in February.
Poultryis in the greatest perfection, when it is in the greatest plenty, which it is about September.
Chickenscome in the beginning of April, but they may be had all the year round.
Fowlsare dearest in April, May, and June, but they may be had all the year round, and are cheapest in September, October, and November.
Caponsare finest at Christmas.
Poulards, witheggs, come in in March.
Green Geesecome in in March, and continue till September.
Geeseare in full season in September, and continue till February.
Turkey Poultscome in in April, and continue till June.
Turkeysare in season from September till March, and are cheapest in October and November.
Ducksare in season from June till February.
Wild Ducks,Widgeons,Teal,Plovers,Pintails,Larks,Snipes,Woodcocks, from the end of October till the end of March.
Tame Pigeonsare in season all the year,Wild Pigeonsfrom March till September.
Pea-Fowl(young ones) from January till June.
Partridgesfrom 1st September till January.
Pheasantsfrom 1st October till January.
Grousefrom the 12th of August till Christmas, alsoBlack CocksandGrey Hens.
Guinea Fowlsfrom the end of January till May; their eggs are much more delicate than common ones.
Haresfrom September to March.
Leveretsfrom March to September.
Rabbitsall the year round.
Fish.
The seasons of Fish frequently vary; therefore the surest way to have it good is to confide in the honesty of respectable fishmongers; unless, indeed, you are well acquainted with the several sorts, and have frequent practice in the choosing of it. No fish when out of season can be wholesome food.
Turbotis in season from September to May. Fish of this kind do not all spawn at the same time; therefore, there are good as well as bad all the year round. The finest are brought from the Dutch coast. The belly of a Turbotshould be cream coloured, and upon pressing your finger on this part, it should spring up. A Turbot eats the better for being kept two or three days. Where there is any apprehension of its not keeping, a little salt may be sprinkled on it, and the fish hung in a cool dry place.
Salmon.—This favourite fish is the most unwholesome of all. It ought never to be eaten unless perfectly fresh, and in season. Salmon is in season from Christmas till September. The Severn Salmon, indeed, is in season in November, but it is then obtained only in small quantities. This, and the Thames Salmon, are considered the best. That which comes from Scotland, packed in ice, is not so good.Salmon Peelare very nice flavoured, but much less rich than large Salmon; come in June.
Codis in perfection at Christmas; but it comes in, generally, in October; in the months of February and March it is poor, but in April and May it becomes finer. The Dogger Bank Cod are considered the best. Good Cod fish are known by the yellow spots on a pure white skin. In cold weather they will keep a day or two.
Skate,Haddocks,Soles,Plaice, andFloundersare in season in January, as well asSmeltsandPrawns. In February,LobstersandHerringsbecome more plentiful;Haddocksnot in such good flavour as they were. In MarchSalmonbecomes plentiful, but is still dear. And in this month theJohn Dorycomes in.
In AprilSmeltsandWhitingare plentiful; andMackerelandMulletcome in; also riverTrout.
In MayOystersgo out of season, andCodbecomes not so good; excepting these, all the fish that was in season at Christmas, is in perfection in this month.
In JuneSalmon,Turbot,Brill,Skate,Halibut,Lobsters,Crabs,Prawns,Soles,EelsandWhitingare plentiful and cheap. Middling sized Lobsters are best, and must weigh heavy to be good. The best Crabs measure about eight inches across the shoulders. The silver eel is the best, and, next to that, the copper-brown backed eel. A humane method of putting this fish to death is to run a sharp-pointed skewer or fine knitting needle into the spinal marrow, through the back part of the skin, and life will instantly cease.
In July fish of all sorts plentiful, except Oysters, and about at the cheapest. Cod not in much estimation.
In the months of August and September, particularly the former, fish is considered more decidedly unwholesome than at any other time of the year, and more especially in London.Oysterscome in, andTurbotandSalmongo out of season. In choosing Oysters, natives are best; they should be eaten as soon after they are opened as possible. There are various ways ofkeepingandfeedingoysters, for which see Index.
In OctoberCodcomes in good season, alsoHaddocks,Brill,Tench, and every sort of shell fish.
In November most sorts of fish are to be got, but all are dear.Oystersare excellent in this month.
Fresh Herringsfrom November to January.
River Eelsall the year.
Red Mulletcome in May.
FloundersandPlaicein June.
Spratsbeginning of November.
Gurnetis best in the spring.
Sturgeonin June.
Yarmouth Mackerelfrom May till August.
Vegetables.
Artichokesare in season from July to October.
Jerusalem Artichokesfrom September till June.
Asparagus, forced, may be obtained in January; the natural growth, it comes in about the middle of April, and continues through May, June, and July.
French Beans, forced, may be obtained in February, of the natural growth, the beginning of July; and they continue in succession through August.
Red Beetis in season all the year.
Scotch Calein November.
Brocoliin October.
Cabbageof most sorts in May, June, July, and August.
Cardoonsfrom November till March.
Carrotscome in in May.
Cauliflowers, the beginning of June.
Celery, the beginning of September.
Corn Salad, in May.
Cucumbersmay be forced as early as March; of their natural growth they come in July, and are plentiful in August and September.
Endivecomes in in June, and continues through the winter.
Leekscome in in September, and continue till the Spring.
Lettuce, both the Coss and the Cabbage, come in about April, and continue to the end of August.
Onions, for keeping, in August.
Parsley, all the year.
Parsnipscome in in October; but they are not good until the frost has touched them.
Peas, the earliest forced, come in about the beginning of May; of their natural growth, about the beginning of June, and continue till the end of August.
Potatoes, forced, in the beginning of March; and the earliest of natural growth in May.
Radishes, about the beginning of March.
Small Salad, in May and June; but may be had all the year.
SalsifyandScorzonera, in July and August.
Sea Kalemay be found as early as December or January, but of the natural growth it comes in in April and May.
Eschalots, for keeping, in August and three following months.
Spring Spinach, in March, April, and three following months.
Winter Spinachfrom October through the winter.
Turnips, of the garden, in May; but the field Turnips, which are best, in October.
THE KITCHEN.
Thebenefit of a good kitchen is well known to every housekeeper, but it is not every mistress that is aware of the importance of having a good cook. I have seen kitchens which, though fitted up with every convenience, and certainly at considerable expense, yet failed to send forth good dinners, merely because the lady of the house was not happy in her choice of a cook. I do not in the least admire gourmands, or gourmandism; and yet I would be more particular in selecting the servant who is to perform the business of preparing the food of the family, than I should deem it necessary to be in selecting any of the other servants. In large establishments there is a greater quantity of cookery to be performed, and, consequently, a greater quantity of waste is likely to be caused by unskilful cooks, than there can be in small families; but even in the latter considerable waste may be the consequence of saving a few pounds a year in the wages of a cook. An experienced cook knows the value of the articles submitted to her care; and she knows how to turn many things to account which a person unacquainted with cooking would throw away. A good cook knows how to convert the remains of one dinner into various dishes to form the greater part of another dinner; and she will, also, be more capable than the other of forwarding her mistress's charitable intentions; for her capability in cooking will enable her to take advantage of everything which can be spared from the consumption of the family, to be converted into nourishing food for the poor, for those of her own class who have not the comfort of a home such as she herself enjoys. The cook who knows how to preserve the pot-liquor of fresh meat to make soup, will, whenever she boils mutton, fowls, or rabbits, &c., &c., carefully scum it, and, by adding peas, other vegetables, or crusts of bread, and proper seasonings, make some tolerable soup for poorpeople, out of materials which would otherwise be thrown away.
To be a good cook she must take pleasure in her occupation; for the requisite painstaking cannot be expected from a person who dislikes the fire, or who entertains a disgust for the various processes necessary to convert meat into savoury dishes. But a cook who takes pride in sending a dinner well dressed to table, may bedepended upon, and that is of great importance to the mistress of a house: for though Englishmen may not be such connoisseurs in eating as Frenchmen, I question whether French husbands are more dissatisfied with a badly-cooked dinner than English husbands are. Dr.Kitchenerobserves, "God sends us victuals, butwhosends us cooks?" And the observation is not confined to the Doctor, for the walls of many a dining-room have echoed it, to the great discomfiture of the lady presiding at the head of the table. Ladies might, if they would, be obliged to confess that many ill humours had been occasioned by either under or over roasted meat, cold plates, or blunt knives; and perhaps thesearegrounds for complaint. Of the same importance as the cooking is neatness in serving the dinner, for there is a vast difference in its appearance if neatly and properly arranged in hot dishes, the vegetables and sauces suitable to the meat, andhot—there is a vast difference between a dinner so served, and one a part of which is either too much or too little cooked, the meat parting from the bone in one case, or looking as if barely warmed through in the other case; the gravy chilled and turning to grease, some of the vegetables watery, and others crisped, while the edges of the dishes are slopped, and the block-tin covers look dull. A leg of mutton or piece of beef, either boiled or roasted—so commonly the dinner of a plain-living family—requires as much skill and nicety as the most complicated made dishes; and a plain dinner well cooked and served is as tempting to the appetite as it is creditable to the mistress of the house, who invariably suffers in the estimation of her guests for the want of ability in her servants. The elegance of the drawing-room they have just left is forgotten by those who are suffocating from the over-peppered soup; and the coldness of the plate on which is handed a piece of turbot bearing a reddish hue, may hold a place in the memory of a visitor, tothe total obliteration of the winning graces, and agreeable conversation, of the lady at the head of the table.
It is impossible to give particular directions for fitting up a kitchen, because so much must depend upon the number of servants, and upon what is required in the way of cookery. It was the fashion formerly to adorn it with a quantity of copper saucepans, stewpans, &c., &c., very expensive, and troublesome to keep clean. Many of these articles, which were regularly scoured once a week, were not, perhaps, used once in the year. A young lady ought, if she has a good cook, to be guided by her, in some measure, in the purchase of kitchen utensils; for the accommodation of the cook, if she be a reasonable person, ought to be consulted. But, where there is no kitchen-maid to clean them, the fewer coppers and tins the better. It is the best plan to buy, at first, only just enough for use, and to replace these with new ones as they wear out; but all stewpans, saucepans, frying-pans, &c., &c., should be kept in good order—that is to say, clean and in good repair.
Some of the best cooks say that iron and block tin answer every purpose. There is an useful, but somewhat expensive, article, called theBain-marie, for heating made dishes and soups, and keeping them hot for any length of time, without over-cooking them. ABain-mariewill be found very useful to persons who are in the habit of having made dishes. Abraisingkettle and astock-potalso; and two or three cast-ironDigesters, of from one to two gallons, for soups and gravies. Saucepans should be washed and scoured as soon as possible after they have been used: wood ashes, or very fine sand, may be used. They should be rinsed in clean water, wiped dry (or they will rust), and then be turned down on a clean shelf. The upper rim may be kept bright, but it seems labour lost to scour that part where the fire reaches; besides which, the more they are scoured the more quickly they wear out. Copper utensils must be well tinned, or they become poisonous. Never allow anything to be put by in a copper vessel; but the fatal consequences of neglect in this particular are too well known for it to be necessary here to say much in the way of caution.
The fire-place is a matter of great importance. I have not witnessed the operations of many of the steam cooking apparatuses, which the last thirty years have produced, butthe few I have seen do not give me satisfaction. It is certainly desirable that everypossiblesaving should be made in the consumption of coals; but it isnot possibleto have cooking in perfection, without a proper degree of heat; and, as far as my observation has gone, meat cannot be well roasted unless before a good fire. I should save in many things rather than in coals; and am often puzzled to account for the false economy which leads persons to be sparing of their fuel, whilst they are lavish in other things infinitely less essential. A cook has many trials of her temper, but none so difficult to bear as the annoyance of a bad fire; for she cannot cook her dinner well, however much she may fret herself in the endeavour; and the waste caused by spoiling meat, fish, poultry, game, &c., is scarcely made up for by saving a few shillings in coals. "Economy in fuel" is so popular, that every species of invention is resorted to, in order to go without fire; and the price of coals is talked of in a fine drawing room, where the shivering guest turns, and often in vain, to seek comfort from the fire, which, alas! the brightly polished grate does not contain. The beauty of the cold marble structure which rises above it, and is reflected in the opposite mirror, is a poor compensation for the want of warmth. I advise young housekeepers to bear in mind, that of the many things which may be saved in a house, without lessening its comforts, firing isnotone.
It is best to lay in coals in the month of August or September, to last until the spring. They should be of the best kind; paid for in ready money, to prevent an additional charge for credit. The first year of housekeeping will give a pretty correct average to go by: and then the consumption should be watched, but not too rigidly.
To return to the fire-place.—Perhaps there is no apparatus more convenient for a family of moderate style of living than the common kitchen range, that which has a boiler for hot water on one side, and an oven on the other side. It is a great convenience to have a constant supply of hot water, and an advantage to possess the means of baking a pie, pudding, or cake; and this may always be done, when there is a large fire for boiling or roasting. There is a great difference in the construction of these little ovens. We have had several, and only three whichanswered; and these were all, I believe, by different makers.—AHot plateis also an excellent thing, as it requires but little fire to keep it sufficiently hot for any thing requiring gradual cooking; and is convenient for making preserves, which should never be exposed to the fierceness of a fire. The charcoal stoves are useful, and so easily constructed that a kitchen should not be without one. There is a very nice thing, called aDutch Stove, but I do not know whether it is much in use in England. On a rather solid frame-work, with four legs, about a foot from the ground, is raised a round brick-work, open at the top sufficiently deep to receive charcoal, and in the front, a little place to take out the ashes; on the top is a trivet, upon which the stew-pan, or preserving-pan, or whatever it may be, is placed. This is easily moved about, and in the summer could be placed anywhere in the cool, and would, therefore, be very convenient for making preserves.—Where there is much cooking, aSteameris convenient; it may be attached to the boiler of the range. I have seen lamb and mutton which had been steamed, and which in appearance was more delicate than when boiled, and equally well flavoured. But there is anuncertaintyin cooking meat by steam, and, besides, there is no liquor for soup. Puddings cook well by steam.—TheJackis an article of great consequence, and also a troublesome one, being frequently out of repair. ABottle-jackanswers very well for a small family; and where there is a goodmeat screen(which is indispensable), a stout nail and a skein of worsted will, provided the cook be not called away from the kitchen, be found to answer the purpose of a spit.
There are now so many excellent weighing-machines, of simple construction, that there ought to be one in every kitchen, to weigh joints of meat as they come from the butcher, and this will enable the cook to weigh flour, butter, sugar, spices, &c., &c.
The cook should be allowed a sufficiency of kitchen cloths and brushes, suitable to her work. Plates and dishes will not look clear and bright unless rinsed in clean water, after they are washed, then drained, and wiped dry with a cloth which is not greasy. A handful of bran in the water will produce a fine polish on crockery ware.
As they do not cost much, there need be no hesitation to allow plenty of jelly-bags, straining cloths, tapes, &c. &c. These should be very clean, and scalded in hot water before they are used.
There should be a table in the middle of the kitchen, or so situated as not to be exposed to a current of air, to arrange the dishes upon, that blunders may not be committed in placing them upon the dining-table. Much of the pleasure which the lady at the head of her table may feel at seeing her guests around her, is destroyed by the awkward mistakes of servants in waiting; who, when they discover that they have done wrong, frequently become too frightened and confused to repair the error they have committed.
The cook in a small family should have charge of the beer; and where there are no men servants, it should be rather good than weak, for the better in quality, the more care will be taken of it. When more is drawn than is wanted, a burnt crust will keep it fresh from one meal to another, but for a longer time it should be put into a bottle, and corked close; it would be well for the cook to keep a few different sized bottles, so that the beer may not stand to become flat before she bottle it.
A clock, in or near the kitchen, will tend to promote punctuality. But the lady herself should see to its being regulated, or this piece of furniture may do more harm than good. There is nothing fitter to be under lock and key than the clock, for, however true to time, when not interfered with, it is often made to bear false testimony. That good understanding which sometimes subsists between the clock and the cook, and which is brought about by the instrumentality of a broom-handle, or some such magic, should be noted by every prudent housekeeper as one of the things to be guarded against.
The kitchen chimney should be frequently swept; besides which, the cook should, once or twice a week, sweep it as far as she can reach; for where there are large fires in old houses, accidents sometimes occur; and the falling of ever so little soot will sometimes spoil a dinner.
Every lady ought to make a receipt-book for herself. Neither my receipts nor those of any cookery book can be supposed to give equal satisfaction to every palate. Afterperforming any piece of cookery according to the directions given in a book, a person of common intelligence would be able to discover whatever was displeasing to the taste, and easily alter the receipt, and so enter it in her own book that the cook could not err in following it. This plan would be found to save much trouble.
As soon after breakfast as she conveniently can, the mistress of a house should repair to the kitchen; which ought to be swept, the fire-place cleaned, tea-kettles, coffee-pots, and anything else used in preparing the breakfast, put in their appropriate places, and the cook ready to receive her orders for the day. Without being parsimonious, the mistress should see, with her own eyes, every morning, whatever cold meat, remains of pastry, bread, butter, &c., &c., there may be in the larder, that she may be able to judge of the additional provision required. Having done that, she should proceed to the store-room, to give the cook, the housemaid, and others, such stores as they may require for the day. This will occupy but very little time, if done regularly every morning; and having done this, she should proceed to make her purchases at once, lest visitors, or any accidental circumstance, cause her to be late in her marketing, and so derange the regularity of the dinner hour, the servants' work, &c., &c. Many ladies, in consequence of their own ill health, or that of their children, are compelled to employ their servants to market for them; but when they can avoid doing so it is better. I do not say this from a suspicion that either tradespeople or servants are always likely to take advantage of an opportunity to impose upon their customers or their employers, but because this important part of household management ought to be conducted by some one of the family, who must necessarily be more interested in it than servants can be. Besides, more judgment is required in marketing than all servants possess. A servant, for instance, is sent to a fishmonger's for a certain quantity of fish, and she obeys the order given her and brings home the fish, but at a higher price, perhaps, than her mistress expected. Now if the lady had gone herself, and found that the weather, or any other circumstance, had raised the price of fish for that day, she would probably have made a less expensive one suit her purpose, or turned to the Butcher or Poulterer to supply her table.Also it is a hindrance to a servant to be sent here and there during the early part of the day, not to mention the benefit which the lady of the house would derive by being compelled to be out of doors, and in exercise, for even a short time, every day.
Although I like French cookery, I am not sufficiently acquainted with the interior of French kitchens to know whether we should improve in the fitting up of ours by imitating our neighbours. When I was abroad, and had opportunities of informing myself upon this subject, I had not the present work in contemplation. And though it is the object of travellers in general to inquire into almost every thing while passing through a foreign country, it happened once to me to meet with so much discouragement, when prying into the culinary department of a large Hotel in the south of France, that I hesitated to enter a foreign kitchen again. I was then on the way to Italy, and from what was afterwards told me respecting the kitchens of the latter country, I have reason to think that my resolution was not unwise, since, had it been overcome by fresh curiosity, I might have been induced to starve from too intimate knowledge of the mode in which the dishes of our table were prepared. We had, at the hotel I am speaking of, fared sumptuously for three days. There were, among other things, the finest poultry and the most delicate pastry imaginable. But some chicken broth was wanted for an invalid of our party, and the landlord suggested that if Mademoiselle would herself give directions to the cook, the broth might, perhaps, be the better made; and he went, accordingly, to announce my intended visit to the important person who commanded in the kitchen. Upon receiving intimation that all was ready, I descended, and was introduced to the said cook, who met me at the door of a large, lofty, vaulted apartment, the walls of which were black, not from any effect of antiquity, but from those of modern smoke, and decorated with a variety of copper utensils, all nearly as black on their outsides as the walls on which they hung. Of what hue their insides might be I did not ascertain; and, at the moment, my attention was suddenly diverted by the cook, who, begging me to be seated, placed a chair by the side of a large, wild-looking fire-place. I had not expected to see a tall, thin and bony, or a short andfat woman, like the cook of an English kitchen; I imagined a man, somewhat advanced in age, and retaining some traces of theancien regime, with large features and a small body, with grizzly and half-powdered hair, and, perhaps, a pigtail; at all events, with slippers down at heel, hands unclean, and a large snuff-box. It was, therefore, not without surprise that I found the very contrary of this in the personage who, dressed in a white apron, white sleeves, and white night cap of unexceptionable cleanness, and bowing with a grace that would have done credit to the most accomplishedpetit maîtreof the last century, proceeded to relate how he had been instructed in the art of making chicken broth by an EnglishMiledi, who in passing into Italy for the benefit of her health, had staid some weeks at the Hotel de l'Europe. His detail of the process of broth-making was minute, and no doubt scientific, but unhappily for the narrator, it was interrupted by his producing a delicate white fowl, which he without ceremony laid on the kitchen table, which stood in the middle of the room, and rivalled the very walls themselves in blackness. I was assured, by the first glance at this table, by reason of the fragments of fish, fowl, and pastry, strewed over it, that the same piece of furniture served every purpose ofchopping-blockandpaste-board. When, therefore, under these circumstances, I saw the preparation for the broth just going to commence, the exclamation of "Dirty pigs!" was making its way to my lips, and I, in order to avoid outraging the ears of French politeness, in the spot of all France most famous for the romantic, made the best of my way out of the kitchen, and endeavoured, when the next dinner-time arrived, to forget that I had ever seen it. Whenever afterwards the figure of this black table appeared to my fancy, like a spectre rising to warn me against tasteful and delicate lookingentremets, I strove to forget the reality; but I never recovered the feeling of perfect security in what I was about to eat until the sea again rolled between me and the kitchen of the Hotel de l'Europe, and I again actually saw the clear bright fire, the whitened hearth, the yellow-ochred walls, the polished tins, the clean-scrubbed tables and chairs, and the white dresser cloths, of the kitchen, such as I had always been used to see at my own home.