As our Poultry will begin to lay plentifully in this Month, it may not be
improper to say something of them before we proceed to give the Receipts
for dressing and preparing their Eggs for the Table. It is necessary to be
known first, the Difference between Fowls and Birds; a Fowl always leads
its young Ones to the Meat, and a Bird carries the Meat to the Young: for
this reason, we find that Fowls always make their Nests upon the Ground,
while Birds, for the most part, build their Nests aloft; so then our common
Poultry are Fowls, the Pheasant, Partridge, Peacock, Turkey, Bustard,
Quail, Lapwing, Duck, and such like are all Fowls: But a Pigeon is a Bird,
and a Stork, or Crane, and a Heron, are Birds, they build their Nests
aloft, and carry Meat to their young Ones.
The Characteristick Marks of the Poultry Kind are, besides what I have said
above, to have short, strong, and somewhat crooked Bills, which are best
adapted to pick up Grains of Corn, Pulse, and other Seeds, which is chiefly
what these Fowls feed upon; and we may observe, that as neither Birds nor
Fowls have Teeth to macerate their Food with, so Nature has provided them
not only with a Crop to soften their Meat, but a Stomach furnish'd with
thick strong Mucles, whose use is to grind the Grains of Corn, or any hard
Meat swallow'd whole, which they perform by the help of little Stones,
which Birds and Fowls swallow now and then, and which supply the defect of
Teeth. It is observable, that Fowls, for the most part, lay a greater
number of Eggs than Birds, even many more than they can sit upon at one
time. I have known about thirty Eggs lay'd by one common Poultry-Hen, but
it is seldom that any Bird lays more than five or six, except the Wren, and
the Tom-tit, and the Pigeon not more than two. Again, the Poultry, contrary
to others of the winged Race, are armed with Spurs; and it is observable,
that the Cocks of the common Poultry distinguish themselves from diurnal
Fowls, by crowing or singing in the Night, as the Nightingale distinguishes
itself from the rest of the Bird-kind. As for the length of Life in common
Poultry, _Aldrovandus_ makes it to be about ten Years, but that the Cock
becomes unfit for the Hens when he is four Years old; and we find by
experience the same, as well as that a Cock should not have more than six
or seven Hens, if we expect healthful and strong Broods of Chickens. About
the Laying-time of these Fowls, Spurry-Seed and Buckwheat is an excellent
strengthening Food for them.
There is another thing relating to Fowls of this kind well worthy
observation; and that is, of Capons being made to bring up a Brood of
Chickens like a Hen, clucking of'em, brooding them, and leading them to
their Meat, with as much Care and Tenderness as their Dams would do. To
bring this about, _Jo. Baptista Porta_, in _lib. 4. Mag. Nat._ prescribes
to make a Capon very tame and familiar, so as to take Meat out of one's
Hand; then about Evening-time pluck the Feathers off his Breast, and rub
the bare Skin with Nettles, and then put the Chickens to him, which will
presently run under his Breast and Belly; the Chickens then rubbing his
Breast gently with their Heads, perhaps allay the slinging and itching
occasioned by the Nettles, or perhaps they may contribute to warm that part
where the Feathers are away: however, the bare part must be rubb'd with
Nettles three or four Nights successively, till he begins to love and
delight in the Chickens.
When a Capon is once accustomed to this Service, he will not casuly leave
it off; but as soon as he has brought up one Brood of Chickens, we may put
another to him, and when they are fit to shift for themselves, we may give
him the Care of a third.
The sorts of the House Pullen, or common Poultry, are many; but as the use
of them for the Table is the same, I shall only take notice of such as are
of the large Dunghill kind, or of the _Hamburgh_ sort, of the Game kind,
and of the small _Dutch_ kind; which last is admired by some for the
fineness of their Flesh, and for being great Layers, especially in the
Winter: But it is certain that the larger sort sell the best at Market, and
lay the largest Eggs, and therefore should be the most cultivated about a
Farm. As for the Game Breed, some fancy that their Flesh is more white and
tender than the other sorts; but they are always quarrelling, which
contributes to make themselves and their Brood weak.
Where we propose to raise a large Stock of Poultry, we should be careful to
secure our Hen-House from Vermin of all sorts, and keep it dry and clean,
allowing also as much Air as possible; for if it is not often clean'd, the
scent of the Dung will give your Fowls the Roop: So likewise there must be
easy Convenience for perching of the Fowls, disposed in such a manner, that
the Perches be not placed over any of the Hen's Nests, which must always
lie dry and clean, bedded with Straw, for Hay is apt to make the sitting
Hens faint and weak. When we design to set a Hen, we should save her Eggs
in dry Bran, and when she clucks, put no more in her Nest than she can well
cover; for as to certain numbers to be more lucky in hatching, there is
nothing in that: And if we fat Fowls, then use the Method prescribed in my
_Country Gentleman and Farmer's Monthly Director_, in the Month of
_January_, which is much the best way of any that has yet been discovered.
In the choice of Fowls for eating, those which are white feather'd and
white legg'd, are much tenderer and finer in their Flesh than those of
other Colours, and are much weaker; for which reason, those who understand
Cocking, do not approve of such as happen to be white feather'd: and those
which are black feather'd, are accounted the hottest and most fiery, and
their Flesh is coarser than in other Fowls. But let us now come to the use
of the Flesh of these Fowls, which is either eaten roasted, boiled,
fricasseed, baked, or broiled either slit or whole. It is to be noted, that
the Flesh of these Fowls or Chickens boiled is more easily digested than
the Flesh of those that are roasted, and the Flesh of the Legs is more easy
of Digestion than that of the Breast. Mr. _Ray_ takes notice, that those
parts of Fowls, which are continually in Action, are esteem'd the best, for
which reason he prefers the Legs of tame Fowls, and what we call the Wings
in wild Fowl, that is, the fleshy part on the Breast. _Gefner_ and
_Aldrovandus_ have both largely treated of the use of the Flesh and Eggs of
these Fowls, but I believe some of the following Receipts for dressing
them, will not be unacceptable, they being more adapted to the Taste of our
Times.
I shall begin with some curious ways of dressing of Eggs, which I had from
a Gentleman of _Brussels_, who had collected them from most parts of
_Europe_.
First Way of dressing of Eggs.
Boil your Eggs till they are hard, and cut the Whites only into Rings or
large pieces; then cut some Parsley and Onions small, and stew them with a
little Salt, Pepper, and Nutmeg in half a Pint of Water, till the Onion and
Parsley is tender; when this is done, put in your Eggs well flower'd, and
as soon as they are hot, put half a Pint of Cream to them, and thicken them
for serving at the Table. The Yolks may be fry'd to garnish the Dish.
Second Way of preparing of Eggs.
Boil your Eggs hard as before, and cut the Whites likewise as directed in
the above Receipt, and then prepare some Gravy, a bunch of sweet Herbs, a
little Salt, some Lemon Peel, some _Jamaica_ Pepper beaten small, an Onion
shred small, and let these stew together till it is sufficiently season'd;
after which, strain it off, and put in the Eggs to heat them thoroughly,
and then thicken the whole with burnt Butter.
Third Way of preparing of Eggs.
Break some Eggs, beat them well, and season them with Salt and some
_Jamaica_ Pepper finely powder'd, then make some Butter very hot in a Pan,
and pour in the Mixture to fry, till it is hard enough to hold together;
then it must be taken out, and cut into several Pieces, and served with the
same Sauce directed in the foregoing Receipt.
Fourth Way of dressing of Eggs.
Take the Hearts of two or three Cabbage-Lettuces, a little Sorrel, Parsley,
Cherville, and a large Mushroom, put them in Water over the Fire till they
are tender, then chop them together very small with some Yolks of hard
Eggs, and season the whole with Salt, Pepper, or Nutmeg; and when the Mass
is well mixt together, put them in paste, making them into small flat
Puffs, and fry them. This may be diversify'd, by adding some sweet Herbs
chop'd small to the Mixture, before it is put into Paste.
Fifth Way of dressing of Eggs.
Beat as many Eggs as you think convenient, and at the same time squeeze the
Juice of an Orange among them; being well beaten, season them with a little
Salt, then take a Stew-Pan, and if it is a Fast-day, put some Butter into
it and pour in your Eggs, keeping them stirring continually over the Fire
till they are enough, then pour them into a Plate upon Sippets. But on
Flesh-days, instead of Butter use strong Gravy, or on Fish-days some
Mushroom-Gravy may be used instead of Butter, or with it.
Sixth Way of ordering of Eggs.
Boil Eggs till they are hard, peel them, and cut them lengthways, then
quarter each half, and dip the several quarters in Batter, made of Flower,
Eggs and Milk; fry them then in Butter very hot, over a quick Fire, and lay
them a while before the Fire to drain. In the mean while prepare for them
the following Sauce of burnt or brown Butter, seasoned with Sweet-herbs,
Salt, Pepper, Nutmeg, and a little Elder-Vinegar, with some Mushrooms
stew'd and hash'd; and garnish your Dish, or Plate, with fry'd Bread,
Parsley, and fry'd Mushrooms.
These are a few out of many Receipts, which the above Gentleman gave me,
and may serve as Directions for many others; for by what I can find, all
the others depend upon the same Principles. The variation of these depends
upon the variety of Tastes: Some like Amletts, or Frazes of Eggs, with
Bacon, or with Clary, or other high-tasted Herbs, which every good
Housewife knows how to direct. The same Gentleman observes, that Amletts
with boiled Artichoke Bottoms sliced, Amletts with the Tops of boil'd
Asparagus, green Pease boiled, Mushrooms stew'd and sliced, or Truffles,
these he tells me are extraordinary.
As to the particulars relating to the dressing of farced Fowls, the methods
which most agree with my Palate, and have been admired by the best Judges
of my Acquaintance, are the following, which I had from _France_.
To dress a Capon, or other Fowl.
When your Fowl is truss'd for Roasting, cover the Breast with a thin slice
of fat Bacon, and put an Onion stuck with Cloves into the Belly, with some
Salt and Pepper; when it is roasted enough, take off the Bacon, and strew
it with grated Bread, till it is brown. This is eaten, either with
Orange-Juice and Salt, or if Oysters are at hand, as they are about many
Farms in _England_, they may be stew'd gently with a little White Wine,
Spice, and a little Butter, which will make an agreeable Sauce for it. Or
else it may be eaten with a very good Sauce, which I have often met with,
and have lik'd as well; which is made with small Beer and Water, equal
quantities, an Onion slic'd, some Pepper and Salt, and about an Ounce of
Flesh, either of Mutton or Beef, to boil till it comes to about half,
supposing at first 'tis not above half a Pint; and at some places, instead
of Mutton, _&c._ this Sauce has been only made of the Neck of a Fowl. This
Sauce, in my Opinion, has a very rich Taste, and has been well approv'd of
by some curious Travellers: Where we could have this, we rather chose it
than Wine-Sauce. Capons, Pullets, or others of this sort of Fowl, may be
also larded with Bacon, if they are roasted; but the Gentleman aforesaid,
who gave me this Receipt, told me that no Water-Fowl must be larded with
Bacon.