Meats
Therules for roasting meat apply to broiling, except that instead of cooking it in the oven it is to be quickly browned, first on one side and then on the other, over a hot fire, and removed a little from the fire to finish cooking. Meat an inch thick will broil in about 4 minutes. It should be seasoned after it is cooked.
There are two distinct methods of frying: One with very little fat in the pan, to practise which successfully the pan and the fat must be hot before the article to be fried is put into it. For instance, in frying chops, if the pan is hot, and only fat enough is used to keep the chops from sticking to it, the heat being maintained so that the chops cook quickly, they will be nearly as nice as if they were broiled. Frying by the other method consists in entirely immersing the article to be cooked in sufficient smoking-hot fat to cover it, and keeping the fat at that degree of heat until the food is brown. It should then be taken up with a skimmer and laid upon brown paper for a moment to free it from grease.
Fresh meat for boiling should be put into boiling water and boiled very gently about 20 minutes for each pound. A little salt, spice, or vegetables may be boiled in the water with the meat for seasoning. A little vinegar put in the water with tough meat makes it tender. The broth of boiled meat should always be saved to use in soups, stews, and gravies. Stewing and simmering meats means to place them near enough to the fire to keep the water on them bubbling moderately, constantly, and slowly. Salt meats should be put over the fire in cold water, which as soon as it boils should be replaced by fresh cold water, the water to be changed until it remains fresh enough to give the meat a palatable flavor when done. Salted and smoked meats require about 30 minutes’ very slow boiling, from the time the water boils, to each pound. Vegetables and herbs may be boiled with them to flavor them. When they are cooked the vessel containing them should be set where they will keep hot without boiling until required, if they are to be served hot; if they are to be served cold, they should be allowed to cool in the pot liquor in which they were boiled. Very salt meats, or those much dried in smoking, should be soaked overnight in cold water before boiling.
Wipe meat with damp cloth. Trim and tie into shape if necessary. In the bottom of pan put some pieces of fat from meat. Arrange meat on rack in pan. Dredge with salt, pepper, and flour. Have ovenveryhot at first; when meat is half done reduce heat. Baste every 10 or 15 minutes. If there is danger of fat in pan being scorched add a few spoons of boiling water. Allow from 10 to 20 minutes per pound of meat, according as it is desired rare or well done. When done remove to hot platter. Thicken gravy in pan with browned flour, adding more water as necessary and add seasoning.
Yorkshire Pudding.-¾ pint flour, 3 eggs, 1½ pints milk, pinch salt, 1½ teaspoons Royal Baking Powder. Sift flour and powder together, add eggs, beaten with milk, stir quickly into rather thinner batter than for griddle cakes, pour into dripping-pan, plentifully greased with beef-dripping, bake in hot oven 25 minutes; serve with roast beef.
Braised Beef.—Wipe and trim 6 pounds round or rump of beef without bone. Sear brown on all sides in very hot frying-pan over hot fire. In braising-pan or iron kettle put layers of sliced onions, turnips, and carrots; add bunch of sweet herbs, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper; on this lay meat. Add 1 pint boiling water (or water and stewed tomatoes). Cover closely and cook 4 hours in moderate oven. If water evaporates rapidly add more. Transfer meat to hot platter. Strain, thicken, and season gravy. The vegetables may be served separately if desired.
Braised Veal Shoulder.—Have shoulder boned. Fill with stuffing (seeStuffings). Prepare bed of vegetables as for braised beef. Lay veal on it, add 1 pint boiling water, 1 pint stewed tomatoes, ½ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon pepper. Cover and cook 4 hours in moderate oven. Uncover and brown. Serve strained gravy separately.
Broiled Steak.—Trim and wipe steak, which should be at least 1 inch thick. Rub broiler with fat, arrange steak with thickest part in center of broiler. Have fire clear and very hot, but without blaze. Hold steak close to fire. Turn every ½ minute, that it may sear quickly. When ½ done season with salt and pepper. Steak 1 inch thick will broil in 4 minutes.
Panned Steak or Chops.—Trim and wipe steak. Heat frying-pan until it smokes all over. Rub bottom with a bit of fat. Lay in steak and turn every 10 seconds. Keep panveryhot. Season when ½ done.
Mutton and pork chops, ham and bacon, may be panned in same way.
If hot platter for steak is rubbed with a cut onion it will give a delightful flavor to the meat.
Broiled Ham and Poached Eggs.—Cut slices of boiled ham of equal size; broil on a gridiron over a clear fire; lay on a hot dish. Lay on each a poached egg, neatly trimmed, and serve.
Beefsteak Pie (French style).—Take a nice piece of beef, rump or sirloin, cut in smallslices; slice also a little raw ham; put both in a frying-pan, with some butter and small quantity chopped onions; let them simmer together a short time on the fire or in the oven; add a little flour and enough stock to make sauce; salt, pepper, chopped parsley, and a little Worcestershire sauce as seasoning; add also a few sliced potatoes, and cook together for about 20 minutes; put this into a pie-dish, with a few slices of hard-boiled eggs on the top, and cover with a layer of common paste. Bake from 15 to 20 minutes in a well-heated oven. All dark-meat pies can be treated precisely in the same way. If poultry, leave the potatoes out.
To Boil a Ham.—A blade of mace, a few cloves, a sprig of thyme, and 2 bay-leaves. Well soak ham in large quantity of water for 24 hours, then trim and scrape very clean; put into large stewpan, with more than sufficient water to cover it; put in mace, cloves, thyme, and bay-leaves. Boil 4 or 5 hours, according to weight; when done, let it become cold in liquor in which it was boiled. Then remove rind carefully, without injuring the fat; press cloth over it to absorb as much of the grease as possible. It is always improved by setting in the oven for nearly an hour, till much of the fat dries out, and it also makes it more tender. Shake some bread raspings over the fat. Serve cold garnished with parsley.
Boiled Mutton or Lamb.—Trim and wipe the meat. Have ready kettle of rapidly boiling salted water. Immerse meat, boil hard 5 minutes, then reduce to gentle simmer. Allow 12 to 15 minutes per pound. Lamb should always be well done; mutton may be rare. A little rice may be added to water to keep meat white; if a few vegetables are also added the pot liquor will make a good thick soup.
Boiled Corned Beef and Turnips.—Select a piece not too salt. The brisket is a good cut for family use when not too fat. Cook beef in plenty cold water. Bring slowly to boil. Cook 18 minutes to the pound after it begins to simmer. When fully ¾ done put in a dozen turnips, peeled and quartered. When both beef and turnips are thoroughly done dish out the beef, and lay the turnips, unmashed, about it. Serve with drawn butter, having as a base the pot liquor. Remaining liquor will make a good soup for next day’s dinner.
Pork Chops with Tomato Gravy.—Trim off skin and fat; rub the chops over with a mixture of powdered sage and onion; put small piece butter into a frying-pan; put in the chops and cook slowly, as they should be well done. Lay chops on hot dish; add a little hot water to gravy in pan, 1 large spoon butter rolled in flour, pepper, salt, and sugar, and ½ cup juice drained from can tomatoes. The tomatoes themselves can be used for a tomato omelet. Stew 5 minutes and pour over the chops and serve.
Sausages.—Have ¾ lean and ¼ fat pork chopped very fine, 1 pound salt, ¼ pound pepper, and tea-cup sage to every 40 pounds meat. Warm the meat, that you can mix it well with your hands, do up a part in small patties mixed with a little flour, the rest pack in jars. When to be used, do it up in small cakes, flour the outside, fry in butter or alone. They should not be covered while frying, or they will fall to pieces. They should be kept where it is cool, but not damp. To prevent sausages from bursting when cooking, never make a hole in them with a fork while turning them.
Fried Salt Pork.—Cut fat salt pork in thin slices and soak in milk for a few hours. Pour boiling water over, drain, and fry until crisp. When partly fried they may be dipped into batter (seeFritters), then finished in the same pan, turning several times.
Pork and Beans.—Soak 1 quart white beans overnight in cold water. Drain, add fresh water, and simmer gently till tender. Put in baking-pan and place in center, rind up, gashed, ½ pound fat salt pork parboiled. Mix 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon dry mustard, and 1 tablespoon molasses; add to the beans, with enough boiling water to cover. Bake 8 hours in a moderate oven, adding more water as necessary.
Liver and Bacon.—Cut liver in ½-inch slices, soak in cold water 20 minutes, drain, dry, and roll in flour. Have pan very hot. Put in bacon thinly sliced, turn until brown, transfer to hot platter. Fry liver quickly in the hot fat, turning often. When done pour off all but 1 or 2 tablespoons fat, dredge in flour until it is absorbed, and stir till brown. Add hot water gradually to make smooth gravy, season and boil 1 minute. Serve separately.
Few people know that lamb’s liver is as tender and well flavored as calf’s liver; it is much less expensive.
Stew, Irish.—Time, about 2 hours. 2½ pounds chops, 8 potatoes, 4 turnips, 4 small onions, nearly a quart of water. Take some chops from loin of mutton, place them in a stewpan in alternate layers of sliced potatoes and chops; add turnips and onions cut into pieces, pour in nearly quart cold water; cover stewpan closely, let stew gently till vegetables are ready to mash and greater part of gravy is absorbed; then place in a dish; serve it up hot.
Brown Beef Stew.—Cut 2 pounds beef in small pieces. Melt some of the fat in a pan, brown in it ½ the meat. Put rest of meat in kettle with 1 pint cold water, let stand 20 minutes, then heat slowly. Transfer browned meat to kettle; thicken fat with two tablespoons browned flour, add 1 pint boiling water and stir; when thick strain into kettle. Add 1 cup diced carrot, cover, and simmer. When half done add 1 pint diced potatoes. Season well with salt and pepper.
Mutton Haricot.—Cut 2 pounds breast mutton in pieces, roll in flour, and brown in drippings. Transfer to a stewpan,add2 sliced onions, cover with boiling water, and simmer until very tender. Add 1 pint parboiled potatoes or 1 pint boiled macaroni and 1 pint shelled peas; season, simmer till vegetables are done.
Brown Kidney Stew.—From a beef kidney cut off the outside meat in bits, rejecting tubes and purplish cores. Cover with cold water; heat slowly till steaming, drain, add cold water, and heat a second and again a third time. To the drained kidneys add 1 cup brown sauce (seeSauces), season very highly with Worcestershire and catsup, and stand over hot water for 10 minutes.
To Roast a Leg of Pork.—Choose a small leg of fine young pork; cut a slit in the knuckle with a sharp knife, and fill the space with sage, and onions chopped, and a little pepper and salt. When half done score the skin in slices, but do not cut deeper than the outer rind. Apple sauce and potatoes should be served to eat with it.
Sweetbreads.—Scald in salted water; remove stringy parts; put in cold water 5 or 10 minutes; drain in towel; dip in egg and bread or cracker crumbs, fry in butter, or broil them plain.
Veal Cutlets, Breaded.—Trim and flatten the cutlets, pepper and salt, and roll in beaten egg, then in pounded cracker. Fry rather slowly in good dripping, turning when the lower side is brown. Drain off the fat, squeeze a little lemon juice upon each, and serve in a hot flat dish.
(Decorative Design)