The stall-fed or squab is prepared the same as the wild one.
_To select._--If the legs are not red, they are young; and if not stiff,
they are fresh. When not fresh, the rump is of a bluish color.
Clean and prepare them as directed for fowls.
_Broiled._--Split the backs of the pigeons so as to open them, flatten
them a little with a chopper. Put two ounces of butter (for six pigeons)
in a saucepan, and set it on a good fire; when hot, add to it a
teaspoonful of chopped parsley and green onions, salt, and pepper; then
the pigeons. When half cooked, take them from the fire, roll them in
bread-crumbs, place them on the gridiron and set on a moderate fire,
turn over once or twice, and, when done, serve on a _maitre d'hotel_,
_piquante_, or _poivrade_ sauce.
_Another way._--When cleaned, prepared, and split open as directed
above, salt and pepper them, grease them slightly with melted butter, by
means of a brush; then broil them till underdone, and serve with a
_maitre d'hotel_ sauce.
_In Chartreuse._--A _chartreuse_ with pigeons is made and served as a
_chartreuse_ of prairie-hens.
_In Papillotes._--When cleaned and prepared as directed, bake the
pigeons till about half done, then split them in two, lengthwise, and
then proceed as for _veal cutlets_ in papillotes.
They may be fried with a little butter, instead of baked.
_With Vegetables._--Clean and prepare as directed for poultry, four
pigeons. Cut them in four pieces each.
Put in a saucepan two ounces of butter, and set it on the fire; when
melted, brown the pigeons in it, and then take them from the pan.
The pigeons being taken off, put into the pan, which is kept on the
fire, half a carrot and two onions sliced, half a turnip, sliced also;
four or five stalks of parsley, one of thyme, one of celery, a bay-leaf,
two cloves; the latter five tied together. Cover the whole with broth or
water; boil gently till about half done, then add the pieces of pigeons,
and salt and pepper; continue boiling till the whole is done.
Dish the pigeons, throw away the seasonings, mash the carrot, onions,
and turnips through a colander, which you mix with the sauce. Place the
mixture around the pieces of pigeons, and serve warm.
_Stuffed._--It is stuffed, cooked, and served like a stuffed chicken.
_The same, stewed._--Put a piece of butter the size of a walnut in a
stewpan, and set it on a good fire; when hot, add two ounces of bacon
cut in dice, then place in four pigeons, leave thus till of a fine
golden color, and then take pigeons and bacon off the pan. Put again in
the stewpan the same quantity of butter as before; when melted, sprinkle
in, little by little, a teaspoonful of flour, stirring with a wooden
spoon, and when of a proper thickness, and of a brownish color, put the
pigeons and bacon back in, add four small onions, two sprigs of parsley,
one of thyme, a bay-leaf, a pinch of allspice, salt, pepper, half a
glass of broth, same of claret wine; simmer about an hour, take off
parsley, thyme, and bay-leaf, and send to the table.
_The same, roasted._--Envelop each pigeon in thin slices of bacon tied
with twine, place them on a spit before a moderate fire, baste often
with the drippings, and, when cooked, serve them with the gravy, at the
same time sprinkling a few drops of lemon-juice on them. It takes from
thirty to thirty-five minutes to roast them.
To roast or bake they are trussed like a chicken, as seen in the cut
below. To carve pigeons is easy, they are merely split in two,
lengthwise.
[Illustration]
_Baked._--Place a thin slice of fat salt pork or bacon on the breast of
each pigeon, after being cleaned, prepared, and salted; place them in a
bakepan, on their back; cover the bottom of the pan with cold water and
put in a hot oven, baste often, and when done serve them with
water-cress and lemon-juice.
The pigeons are placed on the dish the same as they were in the bakepan;
place water-cress between each, also all around and in the middle of
them; sprinkle lemon-juice all over, and serve warm.
_With Green Peas._--When cleaned and prepared, truss the pigeons and put
them in a saucepan with about two ounces of butter for half a dozen,
stir now and then till turning rather brown all around and take off;
then put in the saucepan about two ounces of salt pork cut in dice,
stir, and, when partly fried, take it off also. The pan being still on
the fire, put into it a good tablespoonful of flour, stir till it turns
brown, when you add about a quart of broth, stir and mix; put pigeons
and salt pork back into the pan, season with a bunch of seasonings,
composed of half a dozen stalks of parsley, one of thyme, two
bay-leaves, a clove, and one clove of garlic. Boil gently till nearly
half done, and then add a quart of green peas, blanched previously; boil
again gently till the whole is done; remove the bunch of seasonings and
the clove of garlic; dish the pigeons, turn the peas in the same dish,
but in the middle of the pigeons, which can be tastefully placed all
around the dish; strain the sauce over the whole, and serve warm.
_With Mushrooms._--Prepare and truss the pigeons the same as for the
above, and proceed also as for the above in every particular, except
that you do not put in the saucepan quite as much broth, a pint is
sufficient, and boil gently till done, but do not add peas.
Ten minutes before taking from the fire, add a dozen mushrooms, whole or
sliced, and half a gill of claret wine, if handy.
Dish the pigeons, place the mushrooms in the middle of the dish, strain
the sauce over the whole, and serve warm.
_Fried._--Take four pigeons, cut each in four pieces, put two ounces of
butter in a stewpan and set it on the fire; when melted, put the pigeons
in with two or three sprigs of parsley, a small sprig of thyme, a
bay-leaf, a pinch of allspice, salt, pepper, and half a pint of broth.
Take the pigeons off when half cooked, and, as soon as they are cool,
dip each piece in beaten eggs and roll it in bread-crumbs. Strain the
butter that may be left in the stewpan, and put it in a frying-pan with
about an ounce more, and fry the birds for about two minutes; serve with
water-cress or parsley all around.
_In Compote._--Roast six pigeons as directed. Then cut one of them in
dice, put it in a mortar and pound it. Put half an ounce of butter in a
saucepan, and, when melted, fry half an onion chopped fine in it; then
add to the pounded pigeon about a gill of gravy, a gill of good broth,
salt, pepper, a bunch of seasonings, composed of three stalks of
parsley, one of thyme, a bay-leaf, and a clove; also about a gill of
Madeira wine or white wine, boil gently till reduced about one-third,
strain. Put back on the fire, add butter, and when melted stir and set
it on the corner of the range to keep warm while the rest is prepared.
Cut the other five pigeons in two, lengthwise. Cut ten pieces of bread
square, or of an oval shape, and about the size of a half pigeon, fry
them with a little butter, and place them on a dish. While the bread is
frying, put the pigeons in an oven to warm them; place half a pigeon on
each slice of bread, or one lapping over the other; have the slices and
pigeons so arranged that they fill the dish, leaving only a small space
in the middle, into which you pour the sauce; serve the whole hot.
_In Crapaudine._--When prepared, split open the backs of the pigeons;
cut the legs at the first joints and run them through the skin so that
the ends come out on the inside; dip the bird in beaten eggs, roll them
in bread-crumbs, and broil them.
While they are broiling, knead butter, chopped parsley, and lemon-juice
together; spread some on the pigeons when they are dished, and serve
warm.