chestnut stuffing. Line the bottom of a braising pan with slices
of bacon; lay the turkey on these, and place more slices of bacon
on the top of it. Put in 2 carrots and 2 onions cut in slices, and
sweet herbs, parsley, bay leaf, a clove of garlic, and whole pepper,
and salt to taste; moisten with some stock and a tumblerful of
sherry. Lay a round of buttered paper on the top, put on the lid, and
braise on a moderate fire for about four hours, then serve with the
gravy strained and freed from excess of fat. _Truffle and Chestnut
Stuffing._--Remove the outer skin from a quantity of chestnuts, set
them to boil in salted water with a handful of coriander seeds and
2 bay leaves. When nearly done, drain off the water, and remove the
inner skin of the chestnuts. Mince 1 lb. fat bacon and 2 shallots,
give them a turn on the fire in a saucepan, then put in 1 lb. of
the chestnuts (boiled and peeled) and ½ lb. truffles, both cut up
into moderate-sized pieces; add pepper, salt, and spices to taste,
a little powdered thyme and marjoram; give the mixture another turn
or two on the fire, and it is ready. A simple form of stuffing can
be made by omitting the truffle. _Chestnut Stuffing._--Boil the
chestnuts as above. When cooked (they must be rather underdone),
drain and remove the inner skin, sprinkle with pepper, salt, and
spices, and stuff the turkey, inserting while so doing ½ lb. butter
(or beef suet) cut into small pieces. An onion, chopped finely, may
be added to the stuffing.
Devilled.--Take a cooked leg of turkey or large fowl, cut it all over
to the bone, pepper and salt it well, using black pepper and cayenne,
then get some mixed mustard, mix it with about a third its quantity
of flour, and plaster the leg over with this mixture as thick as it
will stick, also stuffing the gashes with it. When this is done, put
it on a gridiron on a clear fire, serve hot.
Galantine.--Take a turkey, bone and trim it. Take 1 lb. veal and
½ lb. fat bacon, pound them together in a mortar, season with
powdered spice and sweet herbs, pepper and salt to taste, then
pass the mixture through a wire sieve. Cut ½ lb. boiled tongue in
pieces about 1 in. square, cut 6 truffles each into 3 or 4 pieces;
lay the prepared turkey, skin downwards, on the table, sprinkle it
with pepper, salt, and powdered spices; lay the pounded meat, the
truffles, and the tongue on it, then roll it up neatly as a roly-poly
pudding, and tie it up tightly in a cloth; put all the trimmings of
the turkey into a saucepan large enough to hold the galantine; add a
calf’s foot cut in pieces, the trimmings of the bacon (mind they are
perfectly sweet), 2 or 3 onions, 2 carrots cut in pieces, a clove of
garlic, a bundle of sweet herbs (thyme, marjoram, parsley, and bay
leaf), cloves, whole pepper, mace, and salt in proportions according
to taste; fill up with such a quantity of cold water as will leave
room for the galantine to be put in, set the saucepan on the fire,
and boil for 2 hours, strain, and when the liquor boils put in the
galantine, let it boil 2-2½ hours; then lift it out, put it on a
plate, and when it has cooled a little take off the cloth, tie it up
afresh, and lay it between 2 dishes with a moderate weight upon it,
to remain till cold. Care must be taken in this last operation that
the “seam” of the galantine be made to come undermost. When quite
cold, glaze the galantine, and garnish it with aspic jelly. _Aspic
Jelly._--Pack into a stewpan 2 calves’ feet, chopped in small pieces,
a few slices of ham, and the carcase of a fowl, with 2 onions and 2
carrots cut into slices, a head of celery, 1 shallot, and parsley,
sweet herbs, spices, pepper, and salt to taste; fill up with the
liquor in which the galantine was boiled or with any other common
stock, and set the whole to simmer gently for 3-4 hours. Strain off
the liquor into a basin, and when cold carefully remove all the
fat. Then put the jelly into a saucepan, and add to it as much _suc
colorant_ as may be required to give it the proper colour. Put the
saucepan on the fire, and when the jelly is melted whisk into it the
whites of 2 eggs and a wineglassful of tarragon vinegar; let it come
to boiling point, and strain it through a jelly bag. If not quite
clear warm it again, and strain it a second time. _Glaze._--Take a
small quantity of the above jelly, freed from fat and strained, but
not clarified; set it on the fire to reduce till it presents the
appearance of treacle, and keep on skimming it all the time, then
lay it on hot with a paste brush. _Boning._--There are two ways of
boning. Knives are sold for the purpose, but a sharp pocket-knife
will do. Lay the bird on its breast, and cut through the skin along
the middle of the back. Keep the knife always close to the bone, and
cut away the flesh on either side, turning it back as you go. Cut
through the joints of the leg and wing bones, and keep cutting till
you have separated the breast-bone, when the whole of the body will
come out intact. The legs and wings are rather more difficult, but
the only thing is to cut very carefully, and on no account to pierce
the skin, turning the skin and flesh inside out, like a stocking, as
you go along. The legs should be cut off at the first joint, and the
last bone of the wing is sometimes left in. When all the bones are
out, fill the bird with tongue, stuffing, chestnuts, or whatever
else you may have, remaking it, as far as may be, into the shape
of an unboned bird. Some persons prefer to lay it flat and roll it
round, tying it with string. Another way is to make an incision at
the back or the neck only, just as if the fowl were to be drawn, and
to take all the bones out there, turning the skin back from the body,
as directed above as for the limbs. The slits, whether intentional or
accidental (and a beginner will probably have a few of these latter)
should be sewn up with fine cotton.--(E. A. B.)
Grills.--For grilled fowl and turkey legs. Let them stand 10 minutes
in boiling water, so as to get quite hot through, then well pepper
them, and fry them in lard until they are nicely browned. (E. M. K.)
Patties.--A nice way of using up the small pieces of turkey. Mince
some of the meat with grated lemon peel, nutmeg, a little salt, white
pepper, cream and butter warmed, fill the patties, and bake as usual.
Roast.--Pluck, singe, draw, wipe thoroughly, and truss a fine turkey,
stuff it with plain forcemeat, pack it up in some thin slices of
fat bacon, and over that a sheet of buttered paper, roast before
a clear fire, basting frequently with butter. ¼ hour before it is
done, remove the paper and slices of bacon. Sprinkle with salt, just
before serving. Garnish with pork sausages, and serve with a boat
of gravy. Time of roasting 2-3 hours. _Forcemeat._--(1) Take 1 part
finely-shredded suet and 2 of breadcrumbs, season with pepper, salt,
powered spices, sweet herbs, and finely minced parsley; mix all well
together; then add as many eggs as will bind the ingredients together
into a stiff paste. (2) Pound to a paste in a mortar, slightly rubbed
with garlic, equal parts of veal and fat ham or bacon, then pass them
through a wire sieve, and return them to the mortar. Work into the
paste thus obtained ¼ its bulk of butter, and about the same quantity
of breadcrumbs, soaked in milk or in stock, with the yolks of one
or more eggs, according to quantity. Add minced parsley and pepper,
salt, spices, and powdered sweet herbs to taste. _Gravy._--Mince an
onion finely, fry it in butter to a dark brown, then add ¾ pint of
good stock, pepper and salt to taste, a small piece of ham minced
small, a sprig of thyme, one of parsley, and a little Worcester
sauce. Let the whole boil 5-10 minutes put it by till wanted, then
strain it into a sauce boat.
With Mushrooms.--Open a tin of turkey, set in boiling water to melt
the jelly, pour the melted jelly into a saucepan, slightly thicken
it with cornflour and sufficient mushroom ketchup to make it a good
flavour, season it, and keep hot while the turkey is being freed from
bone and minced. Open a small tin of mushrooms, and mince them with
the meat; mix well in the gravy; keep the mince hot for 10 minutes,
and then serve on rounds of toast for breakfast. The turkey can be
simply sliced, and the mushrooms left whole, if preferred.
With Oysters.--Open a tin of oysters and mince them finely, saving
the liquor, and mix well together with them 5 oz. grated breadcrumbs,
1 oz. fresh butter slightly melted, the rind of ½ lemon chopped
small, 1 tablespoonful minced parsley, a pinch of cayenne, a small
teaspoonful of salt, and ½ teaspoonful white pepper. Cut into neat
pieces the contents of a tin of turkey, leaving the bones in; butter
a pie-dish, and put alternate layers of turkey and oyster forcemeat.
Put a teacupful of the oyster liquor into a saucepan, melt a large
teaspoonful of butter in it, and thicken with cornflour. Pour over
the turkey and oysters, and bake 15 minutes in a hot oven.
To use up a Turkey.--If roasted, stuff it with pork sausage meat.
Instead of paying 10_d._ per lb. for a mixture of pork, bread, and
water, buy 1 lb. trimmings, and let the cook mince it herself. Roast
turkey comes in cold several times in a small family. Sometimes the
legs may be devilled. The meat should be carefully picked off the
wing bones, back, &c. Let it be minced very finely, stewed in milk,
a little pounded mace, salt, and thickening; then let it get cold,
and make a top-and-bottom-crust pie of it. If economy be the order
of the day, make the crust of “fleed” or “flick,” in this way: Pull
all the skin off, beat it well with a mallet or rolling-pin till
about the consistency of lard, then, having made 1 lb. flour into
paste with water, roll it out, and dot the “flick” over it; give it
a good coat of flour; repeat this process till you have put in ¾ lb.
of “flick;” bake in a quick oven. If for tarts, 1 lb. “flick” to 1
lb. flour. Now comes the most important part of all. Take all the
bones that have not been on the plates, break up the back and breast
bones, put them in a saucepan with 2 qt. water, a carrot, a turnip,
a few peppercorns, a little bit of mace, lemon peel, a little bit
of ham, &c.; let it boil hard all day till reduced to 1 qt., strain
through muslin or fine flannel; put it into a clean saucepan, have
ready nearly a breakfast cupful of batter, not too thick. While
boiling hard pour in the batter with one hand, stir quickly with the
other. Let it boil for a few minutes, strain through a sieve into the
tureen. Excellent soup.
_Venison_ (Venaison).--This is of 3 kinds. The fallow deer, the red
deer, and the roebuck supply venison of very different qualities. In
the opinion of most competent judges, English park-fed buck venison
is the best and richest, and is followed in order of excellence by
the red deer venisons of Scotland and Germany, slightly coarser in
fibre, and less abundantly supplied with fat. A great fuss is made
on the Continent about the roe-deer or _chevreuil_, but this pretty
little animal supplies rather poor venison--good as to flavour--but
dry, and as a rule destitute of fat. A fat buck is usually divided
into haunch, neck, shoulder, and breast. The haunch and neck are
generally roasted, the shoulder and breast being reserved for
pasties, stews, or chops. In buying venison for immediate cooking
great caution should be observed, as if it has been hanging long
enough to permit serious disintegration of the tissue, it will be
uneatable. Its condition may be ascertained by running a skewer
under the bone. If it smells sweet the meat is good. Venison may be
hung 10-15 days, according to the weather, and should on no account
be kept so long as to render overcooking necessary, as it is best
cooked of all when, without being actually underdone, the meat still
retains its gravy. While hanging--if possible in a clear draught of
air--venison should be wiped and peppered occasionally, especially
on the “cut” parts. The haunch, both on account of its size and
the delicate quality of its fat, requires great care in cooking.
It should be wiped, almost washed, rubbed over with butter, and
sprinkled with salt. The next operation is to cover the haunch with
a large sheet of buttered paper all over it, again covering with a
sheet of common water paste about ½ in. thick. When the paste has
been carefully applied and thoroughly joined, 3 sheets of buttered
paper should be securely fastened with string over all. Placed then
in a cradle-spit before a large fire, a fine haunch will take about
3-3½ hours roasting. It should be frequently basted. When done the
paper and paste must be taken off, and the haunch salted, basted
with butter, dredged with flour till it assumes a brown colour,
and served on a hot-water dish. The best sauce for venison is made
with a little of the gravy, ½ lb. red currant jelly, 2 or 3 knobs
of sugar, and 1 gill red wine simmered together till the jelly is
melted. Jelly should also be served separately. Roast venison may be
accompanied by French beans, white haricots, or perhaps, best of all,
with stuffed tomatoes. The neck is dressed in the same manner as the
haunch, pasted and papered, and requires in roasting about ¼ hour to
1 lb. Venison should be carved as quickly as possible on to silver or
hot-water plates.
Collops.--Venison collops or minced collops are both excellent, and
must be made from the uncooked meat as follows: Cut the meat into
collops (small thin cutlets or _emincés_, or mince it if you wish
“minced” collops), and season this with pepper, salt, and mixed
spices. Throw some butter into a stewpan, put in the collops, brown
them and then add equal quantities of good brown gravy and red wine.
Add to this a little fine sugar, a dash of vinegar, and a spoonful of
ketchup. Stew slowly till done. Then take out the collops, strain the
sauce and serve quickly. These collops may be served within a wall of
well cooked white haricots, garnished with baked tomatoes.
Roast Haunch.--(_a_) Trim the joint neatly, wipe it well with a
cloth, rub it over with butter, and sprinkle it with salt; then wrap
it up in a sheet of buttered kitchen paper Make a paste with flour
and water, roll it out to the thickness of ½ in., wrap the joint in
this, and close up all the openings carefully by wetting the edges
of the sheet of paste; lastly, pack up the haunch into a final sheet
of well-buttered paper; put it to roast at a good fire for about
3 hours, basting it occasionally; then remove the paste and paper
coverings, baste the haunch plentifully with butter, and when nearly
done dredge some flour over it and some salt. Serve on a hot-water
dish.
(_b_) As roe-deer is very dry, a haunch of it is much improved by
being closely larded with fat bacon and then placed to marinade in
equal parts of oil and red wine, with sliced carrots and onions and
judicious flavourings of whole pepper, cloves, salt, chopped parsley,
and sweet herbs. The joint may be left in this pickle for some days,
and should be well basted with it. Then wrap the joint up in oiled
or buttered paper, and baste it well while roasting before a clear
fire. When nearly cooked remove the oiled paper to let the meat take
colour, glaze the joint, and serve with rich gravy and with red
currant jelly. Roe-deer also may be braised, in which case it should
also be well larded. The neck may be jugged like hare, or it can be
made into cutlets, haricot, &c.
Hashed.--Hashed venison is a very popular dish, and the modes of
preparing it are many. The following is a good plan: Cut some cold
haunch or neck of venison into thin slices, and put these aside. Put
any of the venison gravy that may be left, the bones and trimmings,
½ pint red wine, and a little stock into a stewpan, with 4 shallots
chopped very fine, 4 cloves, and 2 spoonfuls of ketchup. Let it
simmer very slowly for 1½ hour, and strain it off. Put a piece of
butter rolled in flour into a stewpan, add the gravy, pepper, and
salt, and let it gradually advance to a boil; then take it off the
fire, and when almost cold put in the venison; let it get quite
hot through without boiling (or the meat may be hardened), and put
it into a hot dish garnished with forcemeat balls or sippets. This
method may also be very successfully applied to cold mutton. Red
currant jelly should be served with either dish.
Pasty.--Venison pasty may be made in 2 ways, either by stewing the
venison first, and then putting it into a pie, or in the following
fashion: Take the breast and shoulder of a buck, remove all the
bones and every particle of skin and sinew, wash thoroughly, and cut
the venison into handsome pieces, saving the fat to put at the top.
Should the venison be short of fat, mutton fat may supply its place
if it be laid in a marinade of vinegar and red wine for 12 hours.
Next proceed to make the paste, by rubbing 2 lb. butter into ½ a
peck flour, and mixing it into a paste with cold water till it is
moderately stiff. Cover the edge and sides of a pasty dish, and lay
in the venison closely, peppering and salting each piece, and put
in 1 gill water. Cover the pie with a piece of paste ½ in. thick,
leaving a hole at the top, and then take the remainder of the paste,
roll it out, add to it ½ lb. butter in lumps, sprinkle some flour
on it, double it and roll it out 4 times; then wet the paste which
already covers the pie, and apply the second paste over it. Make a
round place at the top, and put on a rose, or any ornament you may
think of: put a sheet of paper over the top, and bake for 4 hours in
a sharp oven. When it is done, lift up the rose, and pour in 1 pint
venison gravy; shake it about and serve.
Stew.--(_a_) Shoulder and breast of venison are rarely roasted, it
being far more artistic to stew them or put them into a pasty. To
stew a breast or shoulder of venison the skin and bones should first
be carefully removed and the meat rolled or skewered together: then
put into a stewpan with 1 qt. water, ½ pint red wine, a bundle of
sweet herbs, cloves and mace in a bag, and a little pepper and salt,
and stew very gently for about 3 hours. Then take out the meat, skim
off the fat, take out the spice and herbs, throw in a piece of butter
rolled in flour, and boil till it is thick and smooth; then season
with a _soupçon_ of cayenne pepper, put in the meat again, make it
hot and serve in a hot dish with the sauce over. Currant jelly should
be served with this very nice and inexpensive dish.
(_b_) Venison may also be cut into steaks or chops and broiled on a
well anointed gridiron, but although very wholesome, it is not so
toothsome in any way as when roasted or stewed. A neck of venison may
also be divided into cutlets, which should be beaten with a cutlet
bat, pared neatly and larded with finely-cut bacon. Next a stewpan
is lined with bacon and bacon trimmings and minced vegetables, the
cutlets are put in and covered with good stock. The liquid should be
allowed to boil up and diminish to one-half. When the cutlets are
done they may be taken out, and the sauce strengthened with a little
port wine strained and poured over the cutlets, which may be served
on a cushion of tomato sauce.
_Wildfowl_ (Canard, Halbran). Grilled.--Take a tender fat young
mallard or pintail, or a brace of widgeon, split down the back, after
removing the head, neck, and wing bones, truss as for a spatchcock,
carefully take out the breast bone, rub the inside with mushroom
powder, chop up small the bones and trimmings, simmer slowly with the
gizzard and liver for about ½ hour in a little good brown stock, add
1 teaspoonful made mustard, 2 large teaspoonfuls port wine, a little
pepper and salt, and either some cayenne or else Chili vinegar; let
it boil for a short time and strain. Grill the birds over a clear
fire--a mallard or pintail will take about 20 minutes, widgeon 15
minutes--serve very hot, pour the boiling gravy over, first squeezing
into it the juice of half a lemon.
Roast.--Wild duck should not be dressed too soon after being killed.
In cold, dry weather it will be more tender and finer flavoured after
keeping 7-8 days. Roast before a quick, clear fire, ardent enough
to throw out a great heat. Let it remain without basting, for 5-6
minutes, to keep the gravy in, afterwards baste incessantly with
plenty of butter. A few minutes before serving lightly dredge with
flour, then baste and send to table brown and frothed. Wild duck, if
overdone, loses its flavour; 20-25 minutes before the right kind of
fire, will be sufficient. Serve on a very hot, dry dish. If dressed
to perfection, the duck will give sufficient gravy. Send to table as
hot as possible, with a cut lemon and sauce.
Salmis.--(_a_) Cut up any cold wildfowl, draw the gravy from the
bones and trimmings by simmering in brown stock seasoned with
minced shallot, pepper and salt; let it do slowly for ½ hour, then
add 2 glasses port wine or claret, 1 teaspoonful Chili vinegar, 1
tablespoonful mushroom ketchup, and 1 of Worcester sauce, let it
boil 10-15 minutes longer and then strain; pour the gravy over the
cold bird in another stewpan, bring gently to the boil, add a little
cayenne and lemon juice and serve very hot.
(_b_) Take any kind of wildfowl, half roast them, when cold cut into
nice pieces, removing the skin; place the meat on one side. Then take
the trimmings, head, neck, wings, bones, liver and gizzard, back, &c.
Break all up small, place in a stewpan with some pepper and salt, a
green chili, or if not procurable a little cayenne pepper, 2 shallots
minced fine, and some good brown stock, simmer slowly for 1 hour,
then add 1 oz. butter, into which a little flour has been rubbed,
let it thicken, then strain; put the game into another stewpan, pour
over the gravy, adding ½ pint button mushrooms or a small tin of
champignons, boil up slowly and serve very hot, with a few slices of
lemon and fried sippets for garnish.
_Woodcock._ Roast.--Remove the gizzard from each bird, truss and
wrap the birds in bacon, and roast them at a brisk fire, basting
them continually with butter. Place a slice of toast in the dripping
pan to catch the trail, and serve the birds on that toast. Plain
white sauce to be served in a boat with them. Time of roasting 10-15
minutes.
Toast.--See Snipe.
=Vegetables.=--_Artichokes._--Boiled.--Parboil the artichokes for
10 minutes in water, with vinegar or lemon juice and salt to taste.
Take them out, cutting off all the leaves and removing the “choke,”
trim them neatly in the shape of diminutive pattypans. Lay them in
a saucepan with plain white stock, and let them simmer gently till
done. Drain them on a cloth. Arrange them on their dish, and pour
over them some white sauce, made as follows: Mix in a saucepan 1½
oz. butter and 1 tablespoonful flour, stir in ½ tumblerful white
stock or even hot water, add pepper and salt to taste, then stir in
off the fire the yolks of 2 eggs, beaten up with the juice of a lemon
and strained.
Fried.--Cut 2 green artichokes into 8 or more “quarters,” according
to the size of the artichoke, and trim off all that is uneatable from
each, putting them as they are trimmed in cold water with the juice
of a lemon squeezed into it to prevent their turning black. When the
“quarters” are all done, dip them in batter, see that each piece is
well coated with it, and fry them in plenty of boiling lard; serve
piled on a napkin and garnished with fried parsley.
Stewed.--Prepare the artichoke quarters as for fried. Boil them in
salt and water, with a lemon squeezed into it, till nearly done. Melt
2 oz. butter in a saucepan, mix with it 1 tablespoonful flour, add as
much water as will make sufficient sauce, then pepper, salt, and a
little powdered nutmeg to taste; lay the artichokes in this, and when
quite done stir in, off the fire, the yolks of 2 eggs strained and
beaten up with the juice of a lemon.
Stuffed.--Fill each with as much of the following forcemeat as
it will hold: Pound to a paste, in a mortar slightly rubbed with
garlic, equal parts of raw veal and ham, then pass them through a
wire sieve and return them to the mortar; work into the paste thus
obtained a fourth of its bulk of butter, and about the same quantity
of breadcrumbs soaked in milk, with the yolks of one or more eggs,
according to quantity; add, according to taste, pepper, salt, and a
little grated nutmeg. Lay them all in a well-buttered saucepan, pour
round as much tomato sauce as may be necessary, and let them simmer
gently on a slow fire till done; or they may be cooked in a baking
dish in the oven, in which case a buttered paper should be laid over
them.
_Asparagus._--Boiled.--Scrape each head with the back of a knife and
tie the asparagus in small bundles of 1 doz. heads each; cut off
the ends evenly. Put them into a panful of fast-boiling water, with
plenty of salt, and in about 10 minutes they will be done. Drain at
once, untie the bundles, and serve on a napkin with the following
sauce in a boat: 3 parts olive oil, 1 of tarragon vinegar, a little
mustard, plenty of pepper and salt to taste, beaten up with a fork
until perfectly amalgamated.