My motive for introducing the directions for larding at the commencement
of this work, is to give it the importance which it deserves, it having
in all former works been generally omitted, or lost amongst a multitude
of receipts, which has made me desirous of placing it in a conspicuous
place, in the hope that many families in the middle classes of society
may be able to partake of that very inexpensive luxury.
Nothing but experience and practice would enable a person to lard well,
I have, therefore, given the few following directions, so that a person
might improve himself after once commencing. I have been induced to do
so from the fact of having had many female cooks with me for
improvement, many of whom could send up very good dinners, but few of
them have scarcely known, or had any idea of larding, being in the habit
of having it done by their poulterer whilst in London, and in the
country avoiding it entirely: I shall, therefore, endeavour to explain,
first, the choice of the bacon; secondly, the manner of cutting it; and
lastly, the best mode of larding.
Choose the firmest bacon you can obtain, quite fat, and not at all red,
or it would break and cause a deal of trouble. To cut it, take off the
piece of lean at the bottom, lay it upon a board with the rind upwards,
and beat gently with a cutlet-bat, trim the sides, and cut it into bands
the breadth that you may require your lardons in length; if for a fillet
of beef, two inches; for fricandeau, turkey, poularde, fowl, pheasant,
or sweetbread, an inch and a half; and for lamb’s sweatbreads much
smaller. Take one of the bands, place it before you with the rind
downwards, and with a sharp knife cut it in slices, (but not separating
it from the rind), of the thickness you require for the article you are
about to lard, then place your hand at the top, press lightly, and draw
your knife straight along as if cutting the bacon in slices, so as to
form the lardons square at each end, commencing cutting from the heel of
the knife, and finishing at the point.
To lard, the French method is so familiar to me that I cannot but
recommend it, especially to inexperienced hands. If a fricandeau, lay it
lengthwise upon a clean napkin across your hand, forming a kind of
bridge with your thumb at the part you are about to commence at, having
previously taken all the skin from the veal with a knife, then with the
point of your larding-needle make three distinct lines across, half an
inch apart, run your needle into the third line (at the further side of
the fricandeau), and bring it out at the first, placing one of the
lardons in it, draw the needle through, leaving out a quarter of an inch
of the end of the bacon at each line: proceed thus to the end of the
row; then make another line half an inch distant, stick in another row
of lardons, bringing them out at the second line, leaving the ends of
the bacon out all of the same length; make the next row again at the
same distance, bringing the ends out between the lardons of the first
row, proceeding in like manner until you have larded the whole surface
in chequered rows: proceed in a similar way with everything you lard,
the difference being only in the size of the lardons, and in the case of
poultry or game, previously scald the breasts. By following closely the
above simple directions any cook may be able, if not to lard well, at
any rate to lard well enough for every-day use, which would give
practice, and likewise competence, to lard articles required upon more
particular occasions.