The Book of Household Management
by
Mrs. Isabella Beeton
Part 14 out of 34
with those of a bear, and with remains of a large cervus. These
mammalian remains were found with the ordinary fossils of the
red crag: they had undergone the same process of trituration,
and were impregnated with the same colouring matter as the
associated bones and teeth of fishes acknowledged to be derived
from the regular strata of the red crag. These mammaliferous
beds have been proved by Mr. Lyell to be older than the
fluvio-marine, or Norwich crag, in which remains of the
mastodon, rhinoceros, and horse have been discovered; and still
older than the fresh-water pleistocene deposits, from which the
remains of the mammoth, rhinoceros, &c. are obtained in such
abundance. I have met," says the professor, in addition, "with
some satisfactory instances of the association of fossil remains
of a species of hog with those of the mammoth, in the newer
pliocene freshwater formations of England."
TO DRY PIGS' CHEEKS.
830. INGREDIENTS.--Salt, 4 oz. of saltpetre, 2 oz. of bay-salt, 4 oz. of
coarse sugar.
_Mode_.--Cut out the snout, remove the brains, and split the head,
taking off the upper bone to make the jowl a good shape; rub it well
with salt; next day take away the brine, and salt it again the following
day; cover the head with saltpetre, bay-salt, and coarse sugar, in the
above proportion, adding a little common salt. Let the head be often
turned, and when it has been in the pickle for 10 days, smoke it for a
week or rather longer.
_Time_.--To remain in the pickle 10 days; to be smoked 1 week.
_Seasonable_.--Should be made from September to March.
_Note_.--A pig's check, or Bath chap, will take about 2 hours after the
water boils.
PIG'S LIVER (a Savoury and Economical Dish).
831. INGREDIENTS.--The liver and lights of a pig, 6 or 7 slices of
bacon, potatoes, 1 large bunch of parsley, 2 onions, 2 sage-leaves,
pepper and salt to taste, a little broth or water.
_Mode_.--Slice the liver and lights, and wash these perfectly clean, and
parboil the potatoes; mince the parsley and sage, and chop the onion
rather small. Put the meat, potatoes, and bacon into a deep tin dish, in
alternate layers, with a sprinkling of the herbs, and a seasoning of
pepper and salt between each; pour on a little water or broth, and bake
in a moderately-heated oven for 2 hours.
_Time_.--2 hours. _Average cost_, 1s. 6d.
_Sufficient_ for 6 or 7 persons.
_Seasonable_ from September to March.
PIG'S PETTITOES.
832. INGREDIENTS.--A thin slice of bacon, 1 onion, 1 blade of mace, 6
peppercorns, 3 or 4 sprigs of thyme, 1 pint of gravy, pepper and salt to
taste, thickening of butter and flour.
_Mode_.--Put the liver, heart, and pettitoes into a stewpan with the
bacon, mace, peppercorns, thyme, onion, and gravy, and simmer these
gently for 1/4 hour; then take out the heart and liver, and mince them
very fine. Keep stewing the feet until quite tender, which will be in
from 20 minutes to 1/2 hour, reckoning from the time that they boiled up
first; then put back the minced liver, thicken the gravy with a little
butter and flour, season with pepper and salt, and simmer over a gentle
fire for 5 minutes, occasionally stirring the contents. Dish the mince,
split the feet, and arrange them round alternately with sippets of
toasted bread, and pour the gravy in the middle.
_Time_.--Altogether 40 minutes.
_Sufficient_ for 3 or 4 persons.
_Seasonable_ from September to March.
TO PICKLE PORK.
833. INGREDIENTS.--1/4 lb. of saltpetre; salt.
_Mode_.--As pork does not keep long without being salted, cut it into
pieces of a suitable size as soon as the pig is cold. Rub the pieces of
pork well with salt, and put them into a pan with a sprinkling of it
between each piece: as it melts on the top, strew on more. Lay a coarse
cloth over the pan, a board over that, and a weight on the board, to
keep the pork down in the brine. If excluded from the air, it will
continue good for nearly 2 years.
_Average cost_, 10d. per lb. for the prime parts.
_Seasonable_.--The best time for pickling meat is late in the autumn.
THE UNIVERSALITY OF THE HOG.--A singular circumstance in the
domestic history of the hog, is the extent of its distribution
over the surface of the earth; being found even in insulated
places, where the inhabitants are semi-barbarous, and where the
wild species is entirely unknown. The South-Sea islands, for
example, were found on their discovery to be well stocked with a
small black hog; and the traditionary belief of the people was
that these animals were coeval with the origin of themselves.
Yet they possessed no knowledge of the wild boar, or any other
animal of the hog kind, from which the domestic breed might be
supposed to be derived. In these islands the hog is the
principal quadruped, and the fruit of the bread-tree is its
principal food, although it is also fed with yams, eddoes, and
other vegetables. This nutritious diet, which it has in great
abundance, is, according to Foster, the reason of its flesh
being so delicious, so full of juice, and so rich in fat, which
is not less delicate to the taste than the finest butter.
TO BOIL PICKLED PORK.
834. INGREDIENTS.--Pork; water.
_Mode_.--Should the pork be very salt, let it remain in water about 2
hours before it is dressed; put it into a saucepan with sufficient cold
water to cover it, let it gradually come to a boil, then gently simmer
until quite tender. Allow ample time for it to cook, as nothing is more
disagreeable than underdone pork, and when boiled fast, the meat becomes
hard. This is sometimes served with boiled poultry and roast veal,
instead of bacon: when tender, and not over salt, it will be found
equally good.
_Time_.--A piece of pickled pork weighing 2 lbs., 1-1/4 hour; 4 lbs.,
rather more than 2 hours.
_Average cost_, 10d. per lb. for the primest parts.
_Seasonable_ at any time.
THE ANTIQUITY OF THE HOG.--By what nation and in what period the
hog was reclaimed, is involved in the deepest obscurity. So far
back as we have any records of history, we find notices of this
animal, and of its flesh being used as the food of man. By some
nations, however, its flesh was denounced as unclean, and
therefore prohibited to be used, whilst by others it was
esteemed as a great delicacy. By the Mosaic law it was forbidden
to be eaten by the Jews, and the Mahometans hold it in utter
abhorrence. Dr. Kitto, however, says that there does not appear
to be any reason in the law of Moses why the hog should be held
in such peculiar abomination. There seems nothing to have
prevented the Jews, if they had been so inclined, to rear pigs
for sale, or for the use of the land. In the Talmud there are
some indications that this was actually done; and it was,
probably, for such purposes that the herds of swine mentioned in
the New Testament were kept, although it is usual to consider
that they were kept by the foreign settlers in the land. Indeed,
the story which accounts for the peculiar aversion of the
Hebrews to the hog, assumes that it did not originate until
about 130 years before Christ, and that, previously, some Jews
were in the habit of rearing hogs for the purposes indicated.
PORK PIES (Warwickshire Recipe).
835. INGREDIENTS.--For the crust, 5 lbs. of lard to 14 lbs. of flour,
milk, and water. For filling the pies, to every 3 lbs. of meat allow 1
oz. of salt, 2-1/4 oz. of pepper, a small quantity of cayenne, 1 pint of
water.
_Mode_.--Rub into the flour a portion of the lard; the remainder put
with sufficient milk and water to mix the crust, and boil this gently
for 1/4 hour. Pour it boiling on the flour, and knead and beat it till
perfectly smooth. Now raise the crust in either a round or oval form,
cut up the pork into pieces the size of a nut, season it in the above
proportion, and press it compactly into the pie, in alternate layers of
fat and lean, and pour in a small quantity of water; lay on the lid, cut
the edges smoothly round, and pinch them together. Bake in a brick oven,
which should be slow, as the meat is very solid. Very frequently, the
inexperienced cook finds much difficulty in raising the crust. She
should bear in mind that it must not be allowed to get cold, or it will
fall immediately: to prevent this, the operation should be performed as
near the fire as possible. As considerable dexterity and expertness are
necessary to raise the crust with the hand only, a glass bottle or small
jar may be placed in the middle of the paste, and the crust moulded on
this; but be particular that it is kept warm the whole time.
_Sufficient_.--The proportions for 1 pie are 1 lb. of flour and 3 lbs.
of meat.
_Seasonable_ from September to March.
THE FLESH OF SWINE IN HOT CLIMATES.--It is observed by M.
Sonini, that the flesh of swine, in hot climates, is considered
unwholesome, and therefore may account for its proscription by
the legislators and priests of the East. In Egypt, Syria, and
even the southern parts of Greece, although both white and
delicate, it is so flabby and surcharged with fat, that it
disagrees with the strongest stomachs. Abstinence from it in
general was, therefore, indispensable to health under the
burning suns of Egypt and Arabia. The Egyptians were permitted
to eat it only once a year,--on the feast of the moon; and then
they sacrificed a number of these animals to that planet. At
other seasons, should any one even touch a hog, he was obliged
immediately to plunge into the river Nile, as he stood, with his
clothes on, in order to purify himself from the supposed
contamination he had contracted by the touch.
LITTLE RAISED PORK PIES.
836. INGREDIENTS.--2 lbs. of flour, 1/2 lb. of butter, 1/2 lb. of mutton
suet, salt and white pepper to taste, 4 lbs. of the neck of pork, 1
dessertspoonful of powdered sage.
_Mode_.--Well dry the flour, mince the suet, and put these with the
butter into a saucepan, to be made hot, and add a little salt. When
melted, mix it up into a stiff paste, and put it before the fire with a
cloth over it until ready to make up; chop the pork into small pieces,
season it with white pepper, salt, and powdered sage; divide the paste
into rather small pieces, raise it in a round or oval form, fill with
the meat, and bake in a brick oven. These pies will require a fiercer
oven than those in the preceding recipe, as they are made so much
smaller, and consequently do not require so soaking a heat.
_Time_.--If made small, about 1-1/2 hour.
_Seasonable_ from September to March.
SWINEHERDS OF ANTIQUITY.--From the prejudice against the hog
among the ancients, those who tended them formed an isolated
class, and were esteemed as the outcasts of society. However
much the flesh of the animal was esteemed by the Greeks and
Romans, yet the swineherd is not mentioned by either the classic
writers or the poets who, in ancient Greece and Rome, painted
rural life. We have no descriptions of gods or heroes descending
to the occupation of keeping swine. The swineherd is never
introduced into the idyls of Theocritus, nor has Virgil admitted
him into his eclogues. The Eumaeus of Homer is the only
exception that we have of a swineherd meeting with favour in the
eyes of a poet of antiquity. This may be accounted for, on the
supposition that the prejudices of the Egyptians relative to
this class of men, extended to both Greece and Italy, and
imparted a bias to popular opinion.
TO MAKE SAUSAGES.
(_Author's Oxford Recipe_.)
837. INGREDIENTS.--1 lb. of pork, fat and lean, without skin or gristle;
1 lb. of lean veal, 1 lb. of beef suet, 1/2 lb. of bread crumbs, the
rind of 1/2 lemon, 1 small nutmeg, 6 sage-leaves, 1 teaspoonful of
pepper, 2 teaspoonfuls of salt, 1/2 teaspoonful of savory, 1/2
teaspoonful of marjoram.
_Mode_.--Chop the pork, veal, and suet finely together, add the bread
crumbs, lemon-peel (which should be well minced), and a small nutmeg
grated. Wash and chop the sage-leaves very finely; add these with the
remaining ingredients to the sausage-meat, and when thoroughly mixed,
either put the meat into skins, or, when wanted for table, form it into
little cakes, which should be floured and fried.
_Average cost_, for this quantity, 2s. 6d.
_Sufficient_ for about 30 moderate-sized sausages.
_Seasonable_ from October to March.
THE HOG IN ENGLAND.--From time immemorial, in England, this
animal has been esteemed as of the highest importance. In the
Anglo-Saxon period, vast herds of swine were tended by men, who
watched over their safety, and who collected them under shelter
at night. At that time, the flesh of the animal was the staple
article of consumption in every family, and a large portion of
the wealth of the rich freemen of the country consisted of these
animals. Hence it was common to make bequests of swine, with
lands for their support; and to these were attached rights and
privileges in connection with their feeding, and the extent of
woodland to be occupied by a given number was granted in
accordance with established rules. This is proved by an ancient
Saxon grant, quoted by Sharon Turner, in his "History of the
Anglo-Saxons," where the right of pasturage is conveyed in a
deed by the following words:--"I give food for seventy swine in
that woody allotment which the countrymen call Wolferdinlegh."
FRIED SAUSAGES.
[Illustration: FRIED SAUSAGES.]
838. INGREDIENTS.--Sausages; a small piece of butter.
_Mode_.--Prick the sausages with a fork (this prevents them from
bursting), and put them into a frying-pan with a small piece of butter.
Keep moving the pan about, and turn the sausages 3 or 4 times. In from
10 to 12 minutes they will be sufficiently cooked, unless they are _very
large_, when a little more time should be allowed for them. Dish them
with or without a piece of toast under them, and serve very hot. In some
counties, sausages are boiled and served on toast. They should be
plunged into boiling water, and simmered for about 10 or 12 minutes.
_Time_.--10 to 12 minutes.
_Average cost_, 10d. per lb.
_Seasonable_.--Good from September to March.
_Note_.--Sometimes, in close warm weather, sausages very soon turn sour;
to prevent this, put them in the oven for a few minutes with a small
piece of butter to keep them moist. When wanted for table, they will not
require so long frying as uncooked sausages.
THE SAXON SWINEHERD.--The men employed in herding swine during
the Anglo-Saxon period of our history were, in general, thralls
or born slaves of the soil, who were assisted by powerful dogs,
capable even of singly contending with the wolf until his master
came with his spear to the rescue. In the "Ivanhoe" of Sir
Walter Scott, we have an admirable picture, in the character of
Gurth, an Anglo-Saxon swineherd, as we also have of his master,
a large landed proprietor, a great portion of whose wealth
consisted of swine, and whose rude but plentiful board was
liberally supplied with the flesh.
SAUSAGE-MEAT CAKES.
839. INGREDIENTS.--To every lb. of lean pork, add 3/4 lb. of fat bacon,
1/4 oz. of salt, 1 saltspoonful of pepper, 1/4 teaspoonful of grated
nutmeg, 1 teaspoonful of minced parsley.
_Mode_.--Remove from the pork all skin, gristle, and bone, and chop it
finely with the bacon; add the remaining ingredients, and carefully mix
altogether. Pound it well in a mortar, make it into convenient-sized
cakes, flour these, and fry them a nice brown for about 10 minutes. This
is a very simple method of making sausage-meat, and on trial will prove
very good, its great recommendation being, that it is so easily made.
_Time_.--10 minutes.
_Seasonable_ from September to March.
TO SCALD A SUCKING-PIG.
840. Put the pig into cold water directly it is killed; let it remain
for a few minutes, then immerse it in a large pan of boiling water for 2
minutes. Take it out, lay it on a table, and pull off the hair as
quickly as possible. When the skin looks clean, make a slit down the
belly, take out the entrails, well clean the nostrils and ears, wash the
pig in cold water, and wipe it thoroughly dry. Take off the feet at the
first joint, and loosen and leave sufficient skin to turn neatly over.
If not to be dressed immediately, fold it in a wet cloth to keep it from
the air.
THE LEARNED PIG.--That the pig is capable of education, is a
fact long known to the world; and though, like the ass,
naturally stubborn and obstinate, that he is equally amenable
with other animals to caresses and kindness, has been shown from
very remote time; the best modern evidence of his docility,
however, is the instance of the learned pig, first exhibited
about a century since, but which has been continued down to our
own time by repeated instances of an animal who will put
together all the letters or figures that compose the day, month,
hour, and date of the exhibition, besides many other
unquestioned evidences of memory. The instance already given of
breaking a sow into a pointer, till she became more stanch even
than the dog itself, though surprising, is far less wonderful
than that evidence of education where so generally obtuse an
animal may be taught not only to spell, but couple figures and
give dates correctly.
ROAST SUCKING-PIG.
841. INGREDIENTS.--Pig, 6 oz. of bread crumbs, 16 sage-leaves, pepper
and salt to taste, a piece of butter the size of an egg, salad oil or
butter to baste with, about 1/2 pint of gravy, 1 tablespoonful of
lemon-juice.
[Illustration: ROAST SUCKING-PIG.]
_Mode_.--A sucking-pig, to be eaten in perfection, should not be more
than three weeks old, and should be dressed the same day that it is
killed. After preparing the pig for cooking, as in the preceding recipe,
stuff it with finely-grated bread crumbs, minced sage, pepper, salt, and
a piece of butter the size of an egg, all of which should be well mixed
together, and put into the body of the pig. Sew up the slit neatly, and
truss the legs back, to allow the inside to be roasted, and the under
part to be crisp. Put the pig down to a bright clear fire, not too near,
and let it lay till thoroughly dry; then have ready some butter tied up
in a piece of thin cloth, and rub the pig with this in every part. Keep
it well rubbed with the butter the whole of the time it is roasting, and
do not allow the crackling to become blistered or burnt. When half-done,
hang a pig-iron before the middle part (if this is not obtainable, use a
flat iron), to prevent its being scorched and dried up before the ends
are done. Before it is taken from the fire, cut off the head, and part
that and the body down the middle. Chop the brains and mix them with the
stuffing; add 1/2 pint of good gravy, a tablespoonful of lemon-juice,
and the gravy that flowed from the pig; put a little of this on the dish
with the pig, and the remainder send to table in a tureen. Place the pig
back to back in the dish, with one half of the head on each side, and
one of the ears at each end, and send it to table as hot as possible.
Instead of butter, many cooks take salad oil for basting, which makes
the crackling crisp; and as this is one of the principal things to be
considered, perhaps it is desirable to use it; but be particular that it
is very pure, or it will impart an unpleasant flavour to the meat. The
brains and stuffing may be stirred into a tureen of melted butter
instead of gravy, when the latter is not liked. Apple sauce and the
old-fashioned currant sauce are not yet quite obsolete as an
accompaniment to roast pig.
_Time_.--1-1/2 to 2 hours for a small pig.
_Average cost_, 5s. to 6s.
_Sufficient_ for 9 or 10 persons.
_Seasonable_ from September to February.
HOW ROAST PIG WAS DISCOVERED.--Charles Lamb, who, in the early
part of this century, delighted the reading public by his quaint
prose sketches, written under the title of "Essays of Elia,"
has, in his own quiet humorous way, devoted one paper to the
subject of _Roast Pig_, and more especially to that luxurious
and toothsome dainty known as "CRACKLING;" and shows, in a
manner peculiarly his own, _how crackling first came into the
world._
According to this erudite authority, man in the golden age, or
at all events the primitive age, eat his pork and bacon raw, as,
indeed, he did his beef and mutton; unless, as Hudibras tells
us, he was an epicure, when he used to make a saddle of his
saddle of mutton, and after spreading it on his horse's back,
and riding on it for a few hours till thoroughly warmed, he sat
down to the luxury of a dish cooked to a turn. At the epoch of
the story, however, a citizen of some Scythian community had the
misfortune to have his hut, or that portion of it containing his
live stock of pigs, burnt down. In going over the _debris_ on
the following day, and picking out all the available salvage,
the proprietor touched something unusually or unexpectedly hot,
which caused him to shake his hand with great energy, and clap
the tips of his suffering fingers to his mouth. The act was
simple and natural, but the result was wonderful. He rolled his
eyes in ecstatic pleasure, his frame distended, and, conscious
of a celestial odour, his nostrils widened, and, while drawing
in deep inspirations of the ravishing perfume, he sucked his
fingers with a gusto he had never, in his most hungry moments,
conceived. Clearing away the rubbish from beneath him, he at
last brought to view the carcase of one of his pigs, _roasted to
death_. Stooping down to examine this curious object, and
touching its body, a fragment of the burnt skin was detached,
which, with a sort of superstitious dread, he at length, and in
a spirit of philosophical inquiry, put into his mouth. Ye gods!
the felicity he then enjoyed, no pen can chronicle! Then it was
that he--the world--first tasted _crackling_. Like a miser with
his gold, the Scythian hid his treasure from the prying eyes of
the world, and feasted, in secret, more sumptuously than the
gods. When he had eaten up all his pig, the poor man fell into a
melancholy; he refused the most tempting steak, though cooked on
the horse's back, and turned every half-hour after his own
favourite recipe; he fell, in fact, from his appetite, and was
reduced to a shadow, till, unable longer to endure the torments
of memory he hourly suffered, he rose one night and secretly set
fire to his hut, and once more was restored to flesh and
manhood. Finding it impossible to live in future without
roast-pig, he set fire to his house every time his larder became
empty; till at last his neighbours, scandalized by the frequency
of these incendiary acts, brought his conduct before the supreme
council of the nation. To avert the penalty that awaited him, he
brought his judges to the smouldering ruins, and discovering the
secret, invited them to eat; which having done, with tears of
gratitude, the august synod embraced him, and, with an
overflowing feeling of ecstasy, dedicated a statue to the memory
of the man who first _instituted roast pork_.
PORK CARVING.
SUCKING-PIG.
[Illustration: SUCKING-PIG.]
842. A sucking-pig seems, at first sight, rather an elaborate dish, or
rather animal, to carve; but by carefully mastering the details of the
business, every difficulty will vanish; and if a partial failure be at
first made, yet all embarrassment will quickly disappear on a second
trial. A sucking-pig is usually sent to table in the manner shown in the
engraving (and also in coloured plate S), and the first point to be
attended to is to separate the shoulder from the carcase, by carrying
the knife quickly and neatly round the circular line, as shown by the
figures 1, 2, 3;--the shoulder will then easily come away. The next step
is to take off the leg; and this is done in the same way, by cutting
round this joint in the direction shown by the figures 1, 2, 3, in the
same way as the shoulder. The ribs then stand fairly open to the knife,
which should be carried down in the direction of the line 4 to 5; and
two or three helpings will dispose of these. The other half of the pig
is served, of course, in the same manner. Different parts of the pig are
variously esteemed; some preferring the flesh of the neck; others, the
ribs; and others, again, the shoulders. The truth is, the whole of a
sucking-pig is delicious, delicate eating; but, in carving it, the host
should consult the various tastes and fancies of his guests, keeping the
larger joints, generally, for the gentlemen of the party.
HAM.
[Illustration: HAM.]
843. In cutting a ham, the carver must be guided according as he desires
to practise economy, or have, at once, fine slices out of the prime
part. Under the first supposition, he will commence at the knuckle end,
and cut off thin slices towards the thick part of the ham. To reach the
choicer portion, the knife, which must be very sharp and thin, should be
carried quite down to the bone, in the direction of the line 1 to 2. The
slices should be thin and even, and always cut down to the bone. There
are some who like to carve a ham by cutting a hole at the top, and then
slicing pieces off inside the hole, gradually enlarging the circle; but
we think this a plan not to be recommended. A ham, when hot, is usually
sent to table with a paper ruffle round the knuckle; when cold, it is
served in the manner shown by coloured plate P.
LEG OF PORK.
[Illustration: LEG OF PORK.]
844. This joint, which is such a favourite one with many people, is easy
to carve. The knife should be carried sharply down to the bone, clean
through the crackling, in the direction of the line 1 to 2. Sago and
onion and apple sauce are usually sent to table with this
dish,--sometimes the leg of pork is stuffed,--and the guests should be
asked if they will have either or both. A frequent plan, and we think a
good one, is now pursued, of sending sage and onion to table separately
from the joint, as it is not everybody to whom the flavour of this
stuffing is agreeable.
_Note_.--The other dishes of pork do not call for any special remarks as
to their carving or helping.
CHAPTER XVIII.
GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ON THE CALF.
845. ANY REMARKS MADE ON THE CALF OR THE LAMB must naturally be in a
measure supplementary to the more copious observations made on the
parent stock of either. As the calf, at least as far as it is identified
with veal, is destined to die young,--to be, indeed, cut off in its
comparative infancy,--it may, at first sight, appear of little or no
consequence to inquire to what particular variety, or breed of the
general stock, his sire or dam may belong. The great art, however, in
the modern science of husbandry has been to obtain an animal that shall
not only have the utmost beauty of form of which the species is capable,
but, at the same time, a constitution free from all taint, a frame that
shall rapidly attain bulk and stature, and a disposition so kindly that
every _quantum_ of food it takes shall, without drawback or
procrastination, be eliminated into fat and muscle. The breed, then, is
of very considerable consequence in determining, not only the quality of
the meat to the consumer, but its commercial value to the breeder and
butcher.
846. UNDER THE ARTIFICIAL SYSTEM adopted in the rearing of domestic
cattle, and stock in general, to gratify the arbitrary mandates of
luxury and fashion, we can have veal, like lamb, at all seasons in the
market, though the usual time in the metropolis for veal to make its
appearance is about the beginning of February.
847. THE COW GOES WITH YOUNG FOR NINE MONTHS, and the affection and
solicitude she evinces for her offspring is more human in its tenderness
mid intensity than is displayed by any other animal; and her distress
when she hears its bleating, and is not allowed to reach it with her
distended udders, is often painful to witness, and when the calf has
died, or been accidentally killed, her grief frequently makes her refuse
to give down her milk. At such times, the breeder has adopted the
expedient of flaying the dead carcase, and, distending the skin with
hay, lays the effigy before her, and then taking advantage of her
solicitude, milks her while she is caressing the skin with her tongue.
848. IN A STATE OF NATURE, the cow, like the deer, hides her young in
the tall ferns and brakes, and the most secret places; and only at
stated times, twice or thrice a day, quits the herd, and, hastening to
the secret cover, gives suck to her calf, and with the same,
circumspection returns to the community.
849. IN SOME COUNTRIES, to please the epicurean taste of vitiated
appetites, it is the custom to kill the calf for food almost immediately
after birth, and any accident that forestalls that event, is considered
to enhance its value. We are happy to say, however, that in this
country, as far as England and Scotland are concerned, the taste for
very young veal has entirely gone out, and "Staggering Bob," as the poor
little animal was called in the language of the shambles, is no longer
to be met with in such a place.
850. THE WEANING OF CALVES is a process that requires a great amount of
care and judgment; for though they are in reality not weaned till
between the eighth and the twelfth week, the process of rearing them by
hand commences in fact from the birth, the calf never being allowed to
suck its dam. As the rearing of calves for the market is a very
important and lucrative business, the breeder generally arranges his
stock so that ten or a dozen of his cows shall calve about the same
time; and then, by setting aside one or two, to find food for the entire
family, gets the remaining eight or ten with their full fountains of
milk, to carry on the operations of his dairy. Some people have an idea
that skimmed milk, if given in sufficient quantity, is good enough for
the weaning period of calf-feeding; but this is a very serious mistake,
for the cream, of which it has been deprived, contained nearly all the
oleaginous principles, and the azote or nitrogen, on which the vivifying
properties of that fluid depends. Indeed, so remarkably correct has this
fact proved to be, that a calf reared on one part of new milk mixed with
five of water, will thrive and look well; while another, treated with
unlimited skimmed milk, will be poor, thin, and miserable.
851. IT IS SOMETIMES A MATTER OF CONSIDERABLE TROUBLE to induce the
blundering calf--whose instinct only teaches him to suck, and that he
will do at anything and with anything--acquire the knowledge of
imbibition, that for the first few days it is often necessary to fill a
bottle with milk, and, opening his mouth, pour the contents down his
throat. The manner, however, by which he is finally educated into the
mystery of suction, is by putting his allowance of milk into a large
wooden bowl; the nurse then puts her hand into the milk, and, by bending
her fingers upwards, makes a rude teat for the calf to grasp in his
lips, when the vacuum caused by his suction of the fingers, causes the
milk to rise along them into his mouth. In this manner one by one the
whole family are to be fed three times a day; care being taken, that
new-born calves are not, at first, fed on milk from a cow who has some
days calved.
852. AS THE CALF PROGRESSES TOWARDS HIS TENTH WEEK, his diet requires to
be increased in quantity and quality; for these objects, his milk can be
thickened with flour or meal, and small pieces of softened oil-cake are
to be slipped into his mouth after sucking, that they may dissolve
there, till he grows familiar with, and to like the taste, when it may
be softened and scraped down into his milk-and-water. After a time,
sliced turnips softened by steam are to be given to him in tolerable
quantities; then succulent grasses; and finally, hay may be added to the
others. Some farmers, desirous of rendering their calves fat for the
butcher in as short a time as possible, forget both the natural weakness
of the digestive powers, and the contracted volume of the stomach, and
allow the animals either to suck _ad libitum_, or give them, if brought
up at the pail or by hand, a larger quantity of milk than they can
digest. The idea of overloading the stomach never suggests itself to
their minds. They suppose that the more food the young creature
consumes, the sooner it will be fat, and they allow it no exercise
whatever, for fear it should denude its very bones of their flesh. Under
such circumstances, the stomach soon becomes deranged; its functions are
no longer capable of acting; the milk, subjected to the acid of the
stomach, coagulates, and forms a hardened mass of curd, when the muscles
become affected with spasms, and death frequently ensues.
853. THERE WAS NO SPECIES OF SLAUGHTERING practised in this country so
inhuman and disgraceful as that, till very lately, employed in killing
this poor animal; when, under the plea of making the flesh _white_, the
calf was bled day by day, till, when the final hour came, the animal was
unable to stand. This inhumanity is, we believe, now everywhere
abolished, and the calf is at once killed, and with the least amount of
pain; a sharp-pointed knife is run through the neck, severing all the
large veins and arteries up to the vertebrae. The skin is then taken off
to the knee, which is disjointed, and to the head, which is removed; it
is then reflected backwards, and the carcase having been opened and
dressed, is kept apart by stretchers, and the thin membrane, the caul,
extended over the organs left in the carcase, as the kidneys and
sweet-bread; some melted fat is then scattered suddenly over the whole
interior, giving that white and frosted appearance to the meat, that is
thought to add to its beauty; the whole is then hung up to cool and
harden.
854. THE MANNER OF CUTTING UP VEAL for the English market is to divide
the carcase into four quarters, with eleven ribs to each fore quarter;
which are again subdivided into joints as exemplified on the cut.
[Illustration: SIDE OF A CALF, SHOWING THE SEVERAL JOINTS.]
_Hind quarter_:--
1. The loin.
2. The chump, consisting of the rump
and hock-bone.
3. The fillet.
4. The hock, or hind knuckle.
_Fore quarter_:--
5. The shoulder.
6. The neck.
7. The breast.
8. The fore knuckle.
855. THE SEVERAL PARTS OF A MODERATELY-SIZED WELL-FED CALF, about eight
weeks old, are nearly of the following weights:--loin and chump 18 lbs.,
fillet 12-1/2 lbs., hind knuckle 5-1/2 lbs., shoulder 11 lbs, neck 11
lbs., breast 9 lbs., and fore knuckle 5 lbs.; making a total of 144 lbs.
weight. The London mode of cutting the carcase is considered better than
that pursued in Edinburgh, as giving three roasting joints, and one
boiling, in each quarter; besides the pieces being more equally divided,
as regards flesh, and from the handsomer appearance they make on the
table.
RECIPES.
CHAPTER XIX.
BAKED VEAL (Cold Meat Cookery).
856. INGREDIENTS.--1/2 lb. of cold roast veal, a few slices of bacon, 1
pint of bread crumbs, 1/2 pint of good veal gravy, 1/2 teaspoonful of
minced lemon-peel, 1 blade of pounded mace, cayenne and salt to taste, 4
eggs.
_Mode_.--Mince finely the veal and bacon; add the bread crumbs, gravy,
and seasoning, and stir these ingredients well together. Beat up the
eggs thoroughly; add these, mix the whole well together, put into a
dish, and bake from 3/4 to 1 hour. When liked, a little good gravy may
be served in a tureen as an accompaniment.
_Time_.--From 3/4 to 1 hour.
_Average cost_, exclusive of the cold meat, 6d.
_Sufficient_ for 3 or 4 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
ROAST BREAST OF VEAL.
[Illustration: BREAST OF VEAL.]
857. INGREDIENTS.--Veal; a little flour.
_Mode_.--Wash the veal, well wipe it, and dredge it with flour; put it
down to a bright fire, not too near, as it should not be scorched. Baste
it plentifully until done; dish it, pour over the meat some good melted
butter, and send to table with it a piece of boiled bacon and a cut
lemon.
_Time_.--From 1-1/2 to 2 hours.
_Average cost_, 8-1/2d. per lb. _Sufficient_ for 5 or 6 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
STEWED BREAST OF VEAL AND PEAS.
858. INGREDIENTS.--Breast of veal, 2 oz. of butter, a bunch of savoury
herbs, including parsley; 2 blades of pounded mace, 2 cloves, 5 or 6
young onions, 1 strip of lemon-peel, 6 allspice, 1/4 teaspoonful of
pepper, 1 teaspoonful of salt, thickening of butter and flour, 2
tablespoonfuls of sherry, 2 tablespoonfuls of tomato sauce, 1
tablespoonful of lemon-juice, 2 tablespoonfuls of mushroom ketchup,
green peas.
_Mode_.--Cut the breast in half, after removing the bone underneath, and
divide the meat into convenient-sized pieces. Put the butter into a
frying-pan, lay in the pieces of veal, and fry until of a nice brown
colour. Now place these in a stewpan with the herbs, mace, cloves,
onions, lemon-peel, allspice, and seasoning; pour over them just
sufficient boiling water to cover the meat; well close the lid, and let
the whole simmer very gently for about 2 hours. Strain off as much gravy
as is required, thicken it with butter and flour, add the remaining
ingredients, skim well, let it simmer for about 10 minutes, then pour it
over the meat. Have ready some green peas, boiled separately; sprinkle
these over the veal, and serve. It may be garnished with forcemeat
balls, or rashers of bacon curled and fried. Instead of cutting up the
meat, many persons prefer it dressed whole;--in that case it should be
half-roasted before the water, &c. are put to it.
_Time_.--2-1/4 hours. _Average cost_, 8-1/2d. per lb.
_Sufficient_ for 5 or 6 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
BREEDING OF CALVES.--The forwarding of calves to maturity,
whether intended to be reared for stock, or brought to an early
market as veal, is always a subject of great importance, and
requires a considerable amount of intelligence in the selection
of the best course, to adopt for either end. When meant to be
reared as stock, the breeding should be so arranged that the cow
shall calve about the middle of May. As our subject, however,
has more immediate reference to the calf as _meat_ than as
_stock_, we shall confine our remarks to the mode of procedure
adopted in the former case; and here, the first process adopted
is that of weaning; which consists in separating the calf
_entirely_ from the cow, but, at the same time, rearing it on
the mother's milk. As the business of the dairy would be
suspended if every cow were allowed to rear its young, and
butter, cheese, and cream become _desiderata_,--things to be
desired, but not possessed, a system of economical husbandry
becomes necessary, so as to retain our dairy produce, and yet,
for some weeks at least, nourish the calf on its mother's milk,
but without allowing the animal to draw that supply for itself:
this, with the proper substituted food on which to rear the
young animal, is called weaning.
VEAL CAKE (a Convenient Dish for a Picnic).
859. INGREDIENTS.--A few slices of cold roast veal, a few slices of cold
ham, 2 hard-boiled eggs, 2 tablespoonfuls of minced parsley, a little
pepper, good gravy.
_Mode_.--Cut off all the brown outside from the veal, and cut the eggs
into slices. Procure a pretty mould; lay veal, ham, eggs, and parsley in
layers, with a little pepper between each, and when the mould is full,
get some _strong_ stock, and fill up the shape. Bake for 1/2 hour, and
when cold, turn it out.
_Time_.--1/2 hour.
_Seasonable_ at any time.
BOILED CALF'S FEET AND PARSLEY AND BUTTER.
860. INGREDIENTS.--2 calf's feet, 2 slices of bacon, 2 oz. of butter, 2
tablespoonfuls of lemon-juice, salt and whole pepper to taste, 1 onion,
a bunch of savoury herbs, 4 cloves, 1 blade of mace, water, parsley and
butter No. 493.
_Mode_.--Procure 2 white calf's feet; bone them as far as the first
joint, and put them into warm water to soak for 2 hours. Then put the
bacon, butter, lemon-juice, onion, herbs, spices, and seasoning into a
stewpan; lay in the feet, and pour in just sufficient water to cover the
whole. Stew gently for about 3 hours; take out the feet, dish them, and
cover with parsley and butter, made by recipe No. 493. The liquor they
were boiled in should be strained and put by in a clean basin for use:
it will be found very good as an addition to gravies, &c. &c.
_Time_.--Rather more than 3 hours.
_Average cost_, in full season, 9d. each. _Sufficient_ for 4 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
WHEN A CALF SHOULD BE KILLED.--The age at which a calf ought to
be killed should not be under four weeks: before that time the
flesh is certainly not wholesome, wanting firmness, due
development of muscular fibre, and those animal juices on which
the flavour and nutritive properties of the flesh depend,
whatever the unhealthy palate of epicures may deem to the
contrary. In France, a law exists to prevent the slaughtering of
calves under _six weeks_ of age. The calf is considered in prime
condition at ten weeks, when he will weigh from sixteen to
eighteen stone, and sometimes even twenty.
FRICASSEED CALF'S FEET.
861. INGREDIENTS.--A set of calf's feet; for the batter allow for each
egg 1 tablespoonful of flour, 1 tablespoonful of bread crumbs, hot lard
or clarified dripping, pepper and salt to taste.
_Mode_.--If the feet are purchased uncleaned, dip them into warm water
repeatedly, and scrape off the hair, first one foot and then the other,
until the skin looks perfectly clean, a saucepan of water being kept by
the fire until they are finished. After washing and soaking in cold
water, boil them in just sufficient water to cover them, until the bones
come easily away. Then pick them out, and after straining the liquor
into a clean vessel, put the meat into a pie-dish until the next day.
Now cut it down in slices about 1/2 inch thick, lay on them a stiff
batter made of egg, flour, and bread crumbs in the above proportion;
season with pepper and salt, and plunge them into a pan of boiling lard.
Fry the slices a nice brown, dry them before the fire for a minute or
two, dish them on a napkin, and garnish with tufts of parsley. This
should be eaten with melted butter, mustard, and vinegar. Be careful to
have the lard boiling to set the batter, or the pieces of feet will run
about the pan. The liquor they were boiled in should be saved, and will
be found useful for enriching gravies, making jellies, &e. &e.
_Time_.--About 3 hours to stew the feet, 10 or 15 minutes to fry them.
_Average cost_, in full season, 9d. each.
_Sufficient_ for 8 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
_Note_.--This dish can be highly recommended to delicate persons.
COLOUR OF VEAL.--As whiteness of flesh is considered a great
advantage in veal, butchers, in the selection of their calves,
are in the habit of examining the inside of its mouth, and
noting the colour of the calf's eyes; alleging that, from the
signs they there see, they can prognosticate whether the veal
will be white or florid.
COLLARED CALF'S HEAD.
862. INGREDIENTS.--A calf's head, 4 tablespoonfuls of minced parsley, 4
blades of pounded mace, 1/2 teaspoonful of grated nutmeg, white pepper
to taste, a few thick slices of ham, the yolks of 6 eggs boiled hard.
_Mode_.--Scald the head for a few minutes; take it out of the water, and
with a blunt knife scrape off all the hair. Clean it nicely, divide the
head and remove the brains. Boil it tender enough to take out the bones,
which will be in about 2 hours. When the head is boned, flatten it on
the table, sprinkle over it a thick layer of parsley, then a layer of
ham, and then the yolks of the eggs cut into thin rings and put a
seasoning of pounded mace, nutmeg, and white pepper between each layer;
roll the head up in a cloth, and tie it up as tightly as possible. Boil
it for 4 hours, and when it is taken out of the pot, place a heavy
weight on the top, the same as for other collars. Let it remain till
cold; then remove the cloth and binding, and it will be ready to serve.
_Time_.--Altogether 6 hours. _Average cost_, 5s. to 7s. each.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
FEEDING A CALF.--The amount of milk necessary for a calf for
some time, will be about four quarts a day, though, after the
first fortnight, that quantity should be gradually increased,
according to its development of body, when, if fed exclusively
on milk, as much as three gallons a day will be requisite for
the due health and requirements of the animal. If the weather
is fine and genial, it should be turned into an orchard or small
paddock for a few hours each day, to give it an opportunity to
acquire a relish for the fresh pasture, which, by the tenth or
twelfth week, it will begin to nibble and enjoy. After a certain
time, the quantity of milk may be diminished, and its place
supplied by water thickened with meal. Hay-tea and linseed-jelly
are also highly nutritious substances, and may be used either as
adjuncts or substitutes.
FRICASSEED CALF'S HEAD (an Entree).
863. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of a boiled calf's head, 1-1/2 pint of
the liquor in which the head was boiled, 1 blade of pounded mace, 1
onion minced, a bunch of savoury herbs, salt and white pepper to taste,
thickening of butter and flour, the yolks of 2 eggs, 1 tablespoonful of
lemon-juice, forcemeat balls.
_Mode_.--Remove all the bones from the head, and cut the meat into nice
square pieces. Put 1-1/2 pint of the liquor it was boiled in into a
saucepan, with mace, onion, herbs, and seasoning in the above
proportion; let this simmer gently for 3/4 hour, then strain it and put
in the meat. When quite hot through, thicken the gravy with a little
butter rolled in flour, and, just before dishing the fricassee, put in
the beaten yolks of eggs and lemon-juice; but be particular, after these
two latter ingredients are added, that the sauce does not boil, or it
will curdle. Garnish with forcemeat balls and curled slices of broiled
bacon. To insure the sauce being smooth, it is a good plan to dish the
meat first, and then to add the eggs to the gravy: when these are set,
the sauce may be poured over the meat.
_Time_.--Altogether, 1-1/4 hour.
_Average cost_, exclusive of the meat, 6d.
CALF'S HEAD a la Maitre d'Hotel.
864. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of a cold calf's head, rather more than
1/2 pint of Maitre d'hotel sauce No. 466.
_Mode_.--Make the sauce by recipe No. 466, and have it sufficiently
thick that it may nicely cover the meat; remove the bones from the head,
and cut the meat into neat slices. When the sauce is ready, lay in the
meat; let it _gradually_ warm through, and, after it boils up, let it
simmer very gently for 5 minutes, and serve.
_Time_.--Rather more than 1-1/2 hour.
_Average cost_, exclusive of the meat, 1s. 2d.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
THE CALF IN AMERICA.--In America, the calf is left with the
mother for three or four days, when it is removed, and at once
fed on barley and oats ground together and made into a gruel, 1
quart of the meal being boiled for half an hour in 12 quarts of
water. One quart of this certainly nutritious gruel, is to be
given, lukewarm, morning and evening. In ten days, a bundle of
soft hay is put beside the calf, which he soon begins to eat,
and, at the same time, some of the dry meal is placed in his
manger for him to lick. This process, gradually increasing the
quantity of gruel twice a day, is continued for two months, till
the calf is fit to go to grass, and, as it is said, with the
best possible success. But, in this country, the mode pointed
out in No. 862 has received the sanction of the best experience.
CURRIED VEAL (Cold Meat Cookery).
865. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of cold roast veal, 4 onions, 2 apples
sliced, 1 tablespoonful of curry-powder, 1 dessertspoonful of flour, 1/2
pint of broth or water, 1 tablespoonful of lemon-juice.
_Mode_.--Slice the onions and apples, and fry them in a little butter;
then take them out, cut the meat into neat cutlets, and fry these of a
pale brown; add the curry-powder and flour, put in the onion, apples,
and a little broth or water, and stew gently till quite tender; add the
lemon-juice, and serve with an edging of boiled rice. The curry may be
ornamented with pickles, capsicums, and gherkins arranged prettily on
the top.
_Time_.--3/4 hour. _Average cost_, exclusive of the meat, 4d.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
VEAL CUTLETS (an Entree).
866. INGREDIENTS.--About 3 lbs. of the prime part of the leg of veal,
egg and bread crumbs, 3 tablespoonfuls of minced savoury herbs, salt and
popper to taste, a small piece of butter.
[Illustration: VEAL CUTLETS.]
_Mode_.--Have the veal cut into slices about 3/4 of an inch in
thickness, and, if not cut perfectly even, level the meat with a
cutlet-bat or rolling-pin. Shape and trim the cutlets, and brush them
over with egg. Sprinkle with bread crumbs, with which have been mixed
minced herbs and a seasoning of pepper and salt, and press the crumbs
down. Fry them of a delicate brown in fresh lard or butter, and be
careful not to burn them. They should be very thoroughly done, but not
dry. If the cutlets be thick, keep the pan covered for a few minutes at
a good distance from the fire, after they have acquired a good colour:
by this means, the meat will be done through. Lay the cutlets in a dish,
keep them hot, and make a gravy in the pan as follows: Dredge in a
little flour, add a piece of butter the size of a walnut, brown it, then
pour as much boiling water as is required over it, season with pepper
and salt, add a little lemon-juice, give one boil, and pour it over the
cutlets. They should be garnished with slices of broiled bacon, and a
few forcemeat balls will be found a very excellent addition to this
dish.
_Time_.--For cutlets of a moderate thickness, about 12 minutes; if very
thick, allow more time.
_Average cost_, 10d. per lb. _Sufficient_ for 6 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
_Note_.--Veal cutlets may be merely floured and fried of a nice brown;
the gravy and garnishing should be the same as in the preceding recipe.
They may also be cut from the loin or neck, as shown in the engraving.
BROILED VEAL CUTLETS a l'Italienne (an Entree).
867. INGREDIENTS.--Neck of veal, salt and pepper to taste, the yolk of 1
egg, bread crumbs, 1/2 pint of Italian sauce No. 453.
_Mode_.--Cut the veal into cutlets, flatten and trim them nicely; powder
over them a little salt and pepper; brush them over with the yolk of an
egg, dip them into bread crumbs, then into clarified butter, and,
afterwards, in the bread crumbs again; broil or fry them over a clear
fire, that they may acquire a good brown colour. Arrange them in the
dish alternately with rashers of broiled ham, and pour the sauce, made
by recipe No. 453, in the middle.
_Time_.--10 to 15 minutes, according to the thickness of the cutlets.
_Average cost_, 10d. per lb.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
THE CALF'S-HEAD CLUB.--When the restoration of Charles II. took
the strait waistcoat off the minds and morose religion of the
Commonwealth period, and gave a loose rein to the
long-compressed spirits of the people, there still remained a
large section of society wedded to the former state of things.
The elders of this party retired from public sight, where,
unoffended by the reigning saturnalia, they might dream in
seclusion over their departed Utopia. The young bloods of this
school, however, who were compelled to mingle in the world, yet
detesting the politics which had become the fashion, adopted a
novel expedient to keep alive their republican sentiments, and
mark their contempt of the reigning family. They accordingly
met, in considerable numbers, at some convenient inn, on the
30th of January in each year,--the anniversary of Charles's
death, and dined together off a feast prepared from _calves'
heads_, dressed in every possible variety of way, and with an
abundance of wine drank toasts of defiance and hatred to the
house of Stuart, and glory to the memory of old Holl Cromwell;
and having lighted a large bonfire in the yard, the club of fast
young Puritans, with their white handkerchiefs stained _red_ in
wine, and one of the party in a mask, bearing an axe, followed
by the chairman, carrying a _calf's head_ pinned up in a napkin,
marched in mock procession to the bonfire, into which, with
great shouts and uproar, they flung the enveloped head. This odd
custom was continued for some time, and even down to the early
part of this century it was customary for men of republican
politics always to dine off calf's head on the 30th of January.
VEAL CUTLETS a la Maintenon (an Entree).
868. INGREDIENTS.--2 or 3 lbs. of veal cutlets, egg and bread crumbs, 2
tablespoonfuls of minced savoury herbs, salt and pepper to taste, a
little grated nutmeg.
_Mode_.--Cut the cutlets about 3/4 inch in thickness, flatten them, and
brush them over with the yolk of an egg; dip them into bread crumbs and
minced herbs, season with pepper and salt and grated nutmeg, and fold
each cutlet in a piece of buttered paper. Broil them, and send them to
table with melted butter or a good gravy.
_Time_.--From 15 to 18 minutes. _Average cost_, 10d. per lb.
_Sufficient_ for 5 or 6 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
VEAL A LA BOURGEOISE.
(_Excellent_.)
869. INGREDIENTS.--2 to 3 lbs. of the loin or neck of veal, 10 or 12
young carrots, a bunch of green onions, 2 slices of lean bacon, 2 blades
of pounded mace, 1 bunch of savoury herbs, pepper and salt to taste, a
few new potatoes, 1 pint of green peas.
_Mode_.--Cut the veal into cutlets, trim them, and put the trimmings
into a stewpan with a little butter; lay in the cutlets and fry them a
nice brown colour on both sides. Add the bacon, carrots, onions, spice,
herbs, and seasoning; pour in about a pint of boiling water, and stew
gently for 2 hours on a very slow fire. When done, skim off the fat,
take out the herbs, and flavour the gravy with a little tomato sauce and
ketchup. Have ready the peas and potatoes, boiled _separately_; put them
with the veal, and serve.
_Time_.--2 hours. _Average cost_, 2s. 9d.
_Sufficient_ for 5 or 6 persons.
_Seasonable_ from June to August with peas;--rather earlier when these
are omitted.
SCOTCH COLLOPS (Cold Meat Cookery).
870. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of cold roast veal, a little butter,
flour, 1/2 pint of water, 1 onion, 1 blade of pounded mace, 1
tablespoonful of lemon-juice, 1/2 teaspoonful of finely-minced
lemon-peel, 2 tablespoonfuls of sherry, 1 tablespoonful of mushroom
ketchup.
_Mode_.--Cut the veal the same thickness as for cutlets, rather larger
than a crown-piece; flour the meat well, and fry a light brown in
butter; dredge again with flour, and add 1/2 pint of water, pouring it
in by degrees; set it on the fire, and when it boils, add the onion and
mace, and let it simmer very gently about 3/4 hour; flavour the gravy
with lemon-juice, peel, wine, and ketchup, in the above proportion; give
one boil, and serve.
_Time_.--3/4 hour.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
SCOTCH COLLOPS, WHITE (Cold Meat Cookery).
871. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of cold roast veal, 1/2 teaspoonful of
grated nutmeg, 2 blades of pounded mace, cayenne and salt to taste, a
little butter, 1 dessertspoonful of flour, 1/4 pint of water, 1
teaspoonful of anchovy sauce, 1 tablespoonful of lemon-juice, 1
teaspoonful of lemon-peel, 1 tablespoonful of mushroom ketchup, 3
tablespoonfuls of cream, 1 tablespoonful of sherry.
_Mode_.--Cut the veal into thin slices about 3 inches in width; hack
them with a knife, and grate on them the nutmeg, mace, cayenne, and
salt, and fry them in a little butter. Dish them, and make a gravy in
the pan by putting in the remaining ingredients. Give one boil, and pour
it over the collops; garnish with lemon and slices of toasted bacon,
rolled. Forcemeat balls may be added to this dish. If cream is not at
hand, substitute the yolk of an egg beaten up well with a little milk.
_Time_.--About 5 or 7 minutes.
_Seasonable_ from May to October.
COOKING COLLOPS.--Dean Ramsay, who tells us, in his
"Reminiscences of Scottish Life and Character," a number of
famous stories of the strong-headed, warm-hearted, and
plain-spoken old dames of the north, gives, amongst them, the
following:--A strong-minded lady of this class was inquiring the
character of a cook she was about to hire. The lady who was
giving the character entered a little upon the cook's moral
qualifications, and described her as a very decent woman; to
which the astounding reply--this was 60 years ago, and a Dean
tells the story--"Oh, d--n her decency; can she make good
collops?"
ROAST FILLET OF VEAL.
872. INGREDIENTS.--Veal, forcemeat No. 417, melted butter.
_Mode_.--Have the fillet cut according to the size required; take out
the bone, and after raising the skin from the meat, put under the flap a
nice forcemeat, made by recipe No. 417. Prepare sufficient of this, as
there should be some left to eat cold, and to season and flavour a mince
if required. Skewer and bind the veal up in a round form; dredge well
with flour, put it down at some distance from the fire at first, and
baste continually. About 1/2 hour before serving, draw it nearer the
fire, that it may acquire more colour, as the outside should be of a
rich brown, but not burnt. Dish it, remove the skewers, which replace by
a silver one; pour over the joint some good melted butter, and serve
with either boiled ham, bacon, or pickled pork. Never omit to send a cut
lemon to table with roast veal.
[Illustration: FILLET OF VEAL.]
_Time_.--A fillet of veal weighing 12 lbs., about 4 hours.
_Average cost_, 9d. per lb.
_Sufficient_ for 9 or 10 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
STEWED FILLET OF VEAL.
873. INGREDIENTS.--A small fillet of veal, forcemeat No. 417, thickening
of butter and flour, a few mushrooms, white pepper to taste, 2
tablespoonfuls of lemon-juice, 2 blades of pounded mace, 1/2 glass of
sherry.
_Mode_.--If the whole of the leg is purchased, take off the knuckle to
stew, and also the square end, which will serve for cutlets or pies.
Remove the bone, and fill the space with a forcemeat No. 417. Roll and
skewer it up firmly; place a few skewers at the bottom of a stewpan to
prevent the meat from sticking, and cover the veal with a little weak
stock. Let it simmer very _gently_ until tender, as the more slowly veal
is stewed, the better. Strain and thicken the sauce, flavour it with
lemon-juice, mace, sherry, and white pepper; give one boil, and pour it
over the meat. The skewers should be removed, and replaced by a silver
one, and the dish garnished with slices of cut lemon.
_Time_.--A. fillet of veal weighing 6 lbs., 3 hours' very gentle
stewing.
_Average cost_, 9d. per lb.
_Sufficient_ for 5 or 6 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
THE GOLDEN CALF.--We are told in the book of Genesis, that Aaron, in the
lengthened absence of Moses, was constrained by the impatient people to
make them an image to worship; and that Aaron, instead of using his
delegated power to curb this sinful expression of the tribes, and
appease the discontented Jews, at once complied with their demand, and,
telling them to bring to him their rings and trinkets, fashioned out of
their willing contributions a calf of gold, before which the multitude
fell down and worshipped. Whether this image was a solid figure of gold,
or a wooden effigy merely, coated with metal, is uncertain. To suppose
the former,--knowing the size of the image made from such trifling
articles as rings, we must presuppose the Israelites to have spoiled the
Egyptians most unmercifully: the figure, however, is of more consequence
than the weight or size of the idol. That the Israelite brought away
more from Goshen than the plunder of the Egyptians, and that they were
deeply imbued with Egyptian superstition, the golden calf is only one,
out of many instances of proof; for a gilded ox, covered with a pall,
was in that country an emblem of Osiris, one of the gods of the Egyptian
trinity. Besides having a sacred cow, and many varieties of the holy
bull, this priest-ridden people worshipped the ox as a symbol of the
sun, and offered to it divine honours, as the emblem of frugality,
industry, and husbandry. It is therefore probable that, in borrowing so
familiar a type, the Israelites, in their calf-worship, meant, under a
well-understood cherubic symbol, to acknowledge the full force of those
virtues, under an emblem of divine power and goodness. The prophet Hosea
is full of denunciations against calf-worship in Israel, and alludes to
the custom of kissing these idols, Hosea, viii, 4-6.
FRICANDEAU OF VEAL (an Entree).
874. INGREDIENTS.--A piece of the fat side of a leg of veal (about 3
lbs.), lardoons, 2 carrots, 2 large onions, a faggot of savoury herbs, 2
blades of pounded mace, 6 whole allspice, 2 bay-leaves, pepper to taste,
a few slices of fat bacon, 1 pint of stock No. 107.
[Illustration: FRICANDEAU OF VEAL.]
_Mode_.--The veal for a fricandeau should be of the best quality, or it
will not be good. It may be known by the meat being white and not
thready. Take off the skin, flatten the veal on the table, then at one
stroke of the knife, cut off as much as is required, for a fricandeau
with an uneven surface never looks well. Trim it, and with a sharp knife
make two or three slits in the middle, that it may taste more of the
seasoning. Now lard it thickly with fat bacon, as lean gives a red
colour to the fricandeau. Slice the vegetables, and put these, with the
herbs and spices, in the _middle_ of a stewpan, with a few slices of
bacon at the top: these should form a sort of mound in the centre for
the veal to rest upon. Lay the fricandeau over the bacon, sprinkle over
it a little salt, and pour in just sufficient stock to cover the bacon,
&c., without touching the veal. Let it gradually come to a boil; then
put it over a slow and equal fire, and let it _simmer very_ gently for
about 2-1/2 hours, or longer should it be very large. Baste it
frequently with the liquor, and a short time before serving, put it into
a brisk oven, to make the bacon firm, which otherwise would break when
it was glazed. Dish the fricandeau, keep it hot, skim off the fat from
the liquor, and reduce it quickly to a glaze, with which glaze the
fricandeau, and serve with a puree of whatever vegetable happens to be
in season--spinach, sorrel, asparagus, cucumbers, peas, &c.
_Time_.--2-1/2 hours. If very large, allow more time.
_Average cost_, 3s. 6d.
_Sufficient_ for an entree.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
FRICANDEAU OF VEAL (_More economical_.)
875. INGREDIENTS.--The best end of a neck of veal (about 2-1/2 lbs.),
lardoons, 2 carrots, 2 onions, a faggot of savoury herbs, 2 blades of
mace, 2 bay-leaves, a little whole white pepper, a few slices of fat
bacon.
_Mode_.--Cut away the lean part of the best end of a neck of veal with a
sharp knife, scooping it from the bones. Put the bones in with a little
water, which will serve to moisten the fricandeau: they should stew
about 1-1/2 hour. Lard the veal, proceed in the same way as in the
preceding recipe, and be careful that the gravy does not touch the
fricandeau. Stew very gently for 3 hours; glaze, and serve it on sorrel,
spinach, or with a little gravy in the dish.
_Time_.--3 hours.
_Average cost_, 2s. 6d.
_Sufficient_ for an entree.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
_Note_.--When the prime part of the leg is cut off, it spoils the whole;
consequently, to use this for a fricandeau is rather extravagant. The
best end of the neck answers the purpose nearly or quite as well.
BOILED CALF'S HEAD (with the Skin on).
876. INGREDIENTS.--Calf's head, boiling water, bread crumbs, 1 large
bunch of parsley, butter, white pepper and salt to taste, 4
tablespoonfuls of melted butter, 1 tablespoonful of lemon-juice, 2 or 3
grains of cayenne.
_Mode_.--Put the head into boiling water, and let it remain by the side
of the fire for 3 or 4 minutes; take it out, hold it by the ear, and
with the back of a knife, scrape off the hair (should it not come off
easily, dip the head again into boiling water). When perfectly clean,
take the eyes out, cut off the ears, and remove the brain, which soak
for an hour in warm water. Put the head into hot water to soak for a few
minutes, to make it look white, and then have ready a stewpan, into
which lay the head; cover it with cold water, and bring it gradually to
boil. Remove the scum, and add a little salt, which assists to throw it
up. Simmer it very gently from 2-1/2 to 3 hours, and when nearly done,
boil the brains for 1/4 hour; skin and chop them, not too finely, and
add a tablespoonful of minced parsley which has been previously scalded.
Season with pepper and salt, and stir the brains, parsley, &c., into
about 4 tablespoonfuls of melted butter; add the lemon-juice and
cayenne, and keep these hot by the side of the fire. Take up the head,
cut out the tongue, skin it, put it on a small dish with the brains
round it; sprinkle over the head a few bread crumbs mixed with a little
minced parsley; brown these before the fire, and serve with a tureen of
parsley and butter, and either boiled bacon, ham, or pickled pork as an
accompaniment.
_Time_.--2-1/2 to 3 hours.
_Average cost_, according to the season, from 3s. to 7s. 6d.
_Sufficient_ for 8 or 9 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
BOILED CALF'S HEAD (without the Skin).
877. INGREDIENTS.--Calf's head, water, a little salt, 4 tablespoonfuls
of melted butter, 1 tablespoonful of minced parsley, pepper and salt to
taste, 1 tablespoonful of lemon-juice.
[Illustration: CALF'S HEAD.]
[Illustration: HALF A CALF'S HEAD.]
_Mode_.--After the head has been thoroughly cleaned, and the brains
removed, soak it in warm water to blanch it. Lay the brains also into
warm water to soak, and let them remain for about an hour. Put the head
into a stewpan, with sufficient cold water to cover it, and when it
boils, add a little salt; take off every particle of scum as it rises,
and boil the head until perfectly tender. Boil the brains, chop them,
and mix with them melted butter, minced parsley, pepper, salt, and
lemon-juice in the above proportion. Take up the head, skin the tongue,
and put it on a small dish with the brains round it. Have ready some
parsley and butter, smother the head with it, and the remainder send to
table in a tureen. Bacon, ham, pickled pork, or a pig's cheek, are
indispensable with calf's head. The brains are sometimes chopped with
hard-boiled eggs, and mixed with a little Bechamel or white sauce.
_Time_.--From 1-1/2 to 2-1/4 hours.
_Average cost_, according to the season, from 3s. to 5s.
_Sufficient_ for 6 or 7 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
_Note_.--The liquor in which the head was boiled should be saved: it
makes excellent soup, and will be found a nice addition to gravies, &c.
Half a calf's head is as frequently served as a whole one, it being a
more convenient-sized joint for a small family. It is cooked in the same
manner, and served with the same sauces, as in the preceding recipe.
HASHED CALF'S HEAD (Cold Meat Cookery).
878. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of a cold boiled calf's head, 1 quart of
the liquor in which it was boiled, a faggot of savoury herbs, 1 onion, 1
carrot, a strip of lemon-peel, 2 blades of pounded mace, salt and white
pepper to taste, a very little cayenne, rather more than 2
tablespoonfuls of sherry, 1 tablespoonful of lemon-juice, 1
tablespoonful of mushroom ketchup, forcemeat balls.
_Mode_.--Cut the meat into neat slices, and put the bones and trimmings
into a stewpan with the above proportion of liquor that the head was
boiled in. Add a bunch of savoury herbs, 1 onion, 1 carrot, a strip of
lemon-peel, and 2 blades of pounded mace, and let these boil for 1 hour,
or until the gravy is reduced nearly half. Strain it into a clean
stewpan, thicken it with a little butter and flour, and add a flavouring
of sherry, lemon-juice, and ketchup, in the above proportion; season
with pepper, salt, and a little cayenne; put in the meat, let it
_gradually_ warm through, but not boil more than _two_ or _three_
minutes. Garnish the dish with forcemeat balls and pieces of bacon
rolled and toasted, placed alternately, and send it to table very hot.
_Time_.--Altogether 1-1/2 hour.
_Average cost_, exclusive of the remains of the head, 6d.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
VEAL COLLOPS (an Entree).
879. INGREDIENTS.--About 2 lbs. of the prime part of the leg of veal, a
few slices of bacon, forcemeat No. 417, cayenne to taste, egg and bread
crumbs, gravy.
_Mode_.--Cut the veal into long thin collops, flatten them, and lay on
each a piece of thin bacon of the same size; have ready some forcemeat,
made by recipe No. 417, which spread over the bacon, sprinkle over all a
little cayenne, roll them up tightly, and do not let them be more than 2
inches long. Skewer each one firmly, egg and bread crumb them, and fry
them a nice brown in a little butter, turning them occasionally, and
shaking the pan about. When done, place them on a dish before the fire;
put a small piece of butter in the pan, dredge in a little flour, add
1/4 pint of water, 2 tablespoonfuls of lemon-juice, a seasoning of salt,
pepper, and pounded mace; let the whole boil up, and pour it over the
collops.
_Time_.--From 10 to 15 minutes.
_Average cost_, 10d. per lb.
_Sufficient_ for 5 or 6 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
CALF'S LIVER AUX FINES HERBES & SAUCE PIQUANTE.
880. INGREDIENTS.--A calf's liver, flour, a bunch of savoury herbs,
including parsley; when liked, 2 minced shalots; 1 teaspoonful of flour,
1 tablespoonful of vinegar, 1 tablespoonful of lemon-juice, pepper and
salt to taste, 1/4 pint water.
_Mode_.--Procure a calf's liver as white as possible, and cut it into
slices of a good and equal shape. Dip them in flour, and fry them of a
good colour in a little butter. When they are done, put them on a dish,
which keep hot before the fire. Mince the herbs very fine, put them in
the frying-pan with a little more butter; add the remaining ingredients,
simmer gently until the herbs are done, and pour over the liver.
_Time_.--According to the thickness of the slices, from 5 to 10 minutes.
_Average cost_, 10d. per lb. _Sufficient_ for 7 or 8 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
CALF'S LIVER AND BACON.
881. INGREDIENTS.--2 or 3 lbs. of liver, bacon, pepper and salt to
taste, a small piece of butter, flour, 2 tablespoonfuls of lemon-juice,
1/4 pint of water.
_Mode_.--Cut the liver in thin slices, and cut as many slices of bacon
as there are of liver; fry the bacon first, and put that on a hot dish
before the fire. Fry the liver in the fat which comes from the bacon,
after seasoning it with pepper and salt and dredging over it a very
little flour. Turn the liver occasionally to prevent its burning, and
when done, lay it round the dish with a piece of bacon between each.
Pour away the bacon fat, put in a small piece of butter, dredge in a
little flour, add the lemon-juice and water, give one boil, and pour it
in the _middle_ of the dish. It may be garnished with slices of cut
lemon, or forcemeat balls.
_Time_.--According to the thickness of the slices, from 5 to 10 minutes.
_Average cost_, 10d. per lb. _Sufficient_ for 6 or 7 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
CALF'S LIVER LARDED AND ROASTED (an Entree).
882. INGREDIENTS.--A calf's liver, vinegar, 1 onion, 3 or 4 sprigs of
parsley and thyme, salt and pepper to taste, 1 bay-leaf, lardoons, brown
gravy.
_Mode_.--Take a fine white liver, and lard it the same as a fricandeau;
put it into vinegar with an onion cut in slices, parsley, thyme,
bay-leaf, and seasoning in the above proportion. Let it remain in this
pickle for 24 hours, then roast and baste it frequently with the
vinegar, &c.; glaze it, serve under it a good brown gravy, or sauce
piquante, and send it to table very hot.
_Time_.--Rather more than 1 hour. _Average cost_, 10d. per lb.
_Sufficient_ for 7 or 8 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
_Note_.--Calf's liver stuffed with forcemeat No. 417, to which has been
added a little fat bacon, will be found a very savoury dish. It should
be larded or wrapped in buttered paper, and roasted before a clear fire.
Brown gravy and currant jelly should be served with it.
FILLET OF VEAL AU BECHAMEL (Cold Meat Cookery).
883. INGREDIENTS.--A small fillet of veal, 1 pint of Bechamel sauce No.
367, a few bread crumbs, clarified butter.
_Mode_.--A fillet of real that has been roasted the preceding day will
answer very well for this dish. Cut the middle out rather deep, leaving
a good margin round, from which to cut nice slices, and if there should
be any cracks in the veal, fill them up with forcemeat. Mince finely the
meat that was taken out, mixing with it a little of the forcemeat to
flavour, and stir to it sufficient Bechamel to make it of a proper
consistency. Warm the veal in the oven for about an hour, taking care to
baste it well, that it may not be dry; put the mince in the place where
the meat was taken out, sprinkle a few bread crumbs over it, and drop a
little clarified butter on the bread crumbs; put it into the oven for
1/4 hour to brown, and pour Bechamel round the sides of the dish.
_Time_.--Altogether 1-1/2 hour.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
TO RAGOUT A KNUCKLE OF VEAL.
884. INGREDIENTS.--Knuckle of veal, pepper and salt to taste, flour, 1
onion, 1 head of celery, or a little celery-seed, a faggot of savoury
herbs, 2 blades of pounded mace, thickening of butter and flour, a few
young carrots, 1 tablespoonful of ketchup, 1 tablespoonful of tomato
sauce, 3 tablespoonfuls of sherry, the juice of 1/4 lemon.
_Mode_.--Cut the meat from a knuckle of veal into neat slices, season
with pepper and salt, and dredge them with flour. Fry them in a little
butter of a pale brown, and put them into a stewpan with the bone (which
should be chopped in several places); add the celery, herbs, mace, and
carrots; pour over all about 1 pint of hot water, and let it simmer very
gently for 2 hours, over a slow but clear fire. Take out the slices of
meat and carrots, strain and thicken the gravy with a little butter
rolled in flour; add the remaining ingredients, give one boil, put back
the meat and carrots, let these get hot through, and serve. When in
season, a few green peas, _boiled separately_, and added to this dish at
the moment of serving, would be found a very agreeable addition.
_Time_.--2 hours. _Average cost_, 5d. to 6d. per lb.
_Sufficient_ for 4 or 6 persons.
STEWED KNUCKLE OF VEAL AND RICE.
885. INGREDIENTS.--Knuckle of veal, 1 onion, 2 blades of mace, 1
teaspoonful of salt, 1/2 lb. of rice.
[Illustration: KNUCKLE OF VEAL.]
_Mode_.--Have the knuckle cut small, or cut some cutlets from it, that
it may be just large enough to be eaten the same day it is dressed, as
cold boiled veal is not a particularly tempting dish. Break the
shank-bone, wash it clean, and put the meat into a stewpan with
sufficient water to cover it. Let it gradually come to a boil, put in
the salt, and remove the scum as fast as it rises. When it has simmered
gently for about 3/4 hour, add the remaining ingredients, and stew the
whole gently for 2-1/4 hours. Put the meat into a deep dish, pour over
it the rice, &c., and send boiled bacon, and a tureen of parsley and
butter to table with it.
_Time_.--A knuckle of veal weighing 6 lbs., 3 hours' gentle stewing.
_Average cost_, 5d. to 6d. per lb.
_Sufficient_ for 5 or 6 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
_Note_.--Macaroni, instead of rice, boiled with the veal, will be found
good; or the rice and macaroni may be omitted, and the veal sent to
table smothered in parsley and butter.
ROAST LOIN OF VEAL.
[Illustration: LOIN OF VEAL.]
886. INGREDIENTS.--Veal; melted butter.
_Mode_.--Paper the kidney fat; roll in and skewer the flap, which makes
the joint a good shape; dredge it well with flour, and put it down to a
bright fire. Should the loin be very large, skewer the kidney back for a
time to roast thoroughly. Keep it well basted, and a short time before
serving, remove the paper from the kidney, and allow it to acquire a
nice brown colour, but it should not be burnt. Have ready some melted
butter, put it into the dripping-pan after it is emptied of its
contents, pour it over the veal, and serve. Garnish the dish with slices
of lemon and forcemeat balls, and send to table with it, boiled bacon,
ham, pickled pork, or pig's cheek.
_Time_.--A large loin, 3 hours.
_Average cost_, 9-1/2d. per lb.
_Sufficient_ for 7 or 8 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
_Note_.--A piece of toast should be placed under the kidney when the
veal is dished.
LOIN OF VEAL AU BECHAMEL (Cold Meat Cookery).
887. INGREDIENTS.--Loin of veal, 1/2 teaspoonful of minced lemon-peel,
rather more than 1/2 pint of Bechamel or white sauce.
_Mode_.--A loin of veal which has come from table with very little taken
off, answers very well for this dish. Cut off the meat from the inside,
mince it, and mix with it some minced lemon-peel; put it into sufficient
Bechamel to warm through. In the mean time, wrap the joint in buttered
paper, and place it in the oven to warm. When thoroughly hot, dish the
mince, place the loin above it, and pour over the remainder of the
Bechamel.
_Time_.--1-1/2 hour to warm the meat in the oven.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
LOIN OF VEAL, a la Daube.
888. INGREDIENTS.--The chump end of a loin of veal, forcemeat No. 417, a
few slices of bacon, a bunch of savoury herbs, 2 blades of mace, 1/2
teaspoonful of whole white pepper, 1 pint of veal stock or water, 5 or 6
green onions.
_Mode_.--Cut off the chump from a loin of veal, and take out the bone;
fill the cavity with forcemeat No. 417, tie it up tightly, and lay it in
a stewpan with the bones and trimmings, and cover the veal with a few
slices of bacon. Add the herbs, mace, pepper, and onions, and stock or
water; cover the pan with a closely-fitting lid, and simmer for 2 hours,
shaking the stewpan occasionally. Take out the bacon, herbs, and onions;
reduce the gravy, if not already thick enough, to a glaze, with which
glaze the meat, and serve with tomato, mushroom, or sorrel sauce.
_Time_.--2 hours.
_Average cost_, 9d. per lb.
_Sufficient_ for 4 or 5 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
MINCED VEAL, with Bechamel Sauce (Cold Meat Cookery).
(_Very Good_.)
889. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of a fillet of veal, 1 pint of Bechamel
sauce No. 367, 1/2 teaspoonful of minced lemon-peel, forcemeat balls.
_Mode_.--Cut--but do not _chop_--a few slices of cold roast veal as
finely as possible, sufficient to make rather more than 1 lb., weighed
after being minced. Make the above proportion of Bechamel, by recipe No.
367; add the lemon-peel, put in the veal, and let the whole gradually
warm through. When it is at the point of simmering, dish it, and garnish
with forcemeat balls and fried sippets of bread.
_Time_.--To simmer 1 minute.
_Average cost_, exclusive of the cold meat, 1s. 4d.
_Sufficient_ for 5 or 6 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
MINCED VEAL.
(_More Economical_.)
890. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of cold roast fillet or loin of veal,
rather more than 1 pint of water, 1 onion, 1/2 teaspoonful of minced
lemon-peel, salt and white pepper to taste, 1 blade of pounded mace, 2
or 3 young carrots, a faggot of sweet herbs, thickening of butter and
flour, 1 tablespoonful of lemon-juice, 3 tablespoonfuls of cream or
milk.
_Mode_.--Take about 1 lb. of veal, and should there be any bones, dredge
them with flour, and put them into a stewpan with the brown outside, and
a few meat trimmings; add rather more than a pint of water, the onion
cut in slices, lemon-peel, seasoning, mace, carrots, and herbs; simmer
these well for rather more than 1 hour, and strain the liquor. Rub a
little flour into some butter; add this to the gravy, set it on the
fire, and, when it boils, skim well. Mince the veal finely by _cutting_,
and not chopping it; put it in the gravy; let it get warmed through
gradually; add the lemon-juice and cream, and, when it is on the point
of boiling, serve. Garnish the dish with sippets of toasted bread and
slices of bacon rolled and toasted. Forcemeat balls may also be added.
If more lemon-peel is liked than is stated above, put a little very
finely minced to the veal, after it is warmed in the gravy.
_Time_.--1 hour to make the gravy.
_Average cost_, exclusive of the cold meat, 6d.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
THE CALF A SYMBOL OF DIVINE POWER.--A singular symbolical
ceremony existed among the Hebrews, in which the calf performed
a most important part. The calf being a type or symbol of Divine
power, or what was called the _Elohim_,--the Almighty
intelligence that brought them out of Egypt,--was looked upon
much in the same light by the Jews, as the cross subsequently
was by the Christians, a mystical emblem of the Divine passion
and goodness. Consequently, an oath taken on either the calf or
the cross was considered equally solemn and sacred by Jew or
Nazarene, and the breaking of it a soul-staining perjury on
themselves, and an insult and profanation directly offered to
the Almighty. To render the oath more impressive and solemn, it
was customary to slaughter a dedicated calf in the temple, when,
the priests having divided the carcase into a certain number of
parts, and with intervening spaces, arranged the severed limbs
on the marble pavement, the one, or all the party, if there were
many individuals, to be bound by the oath, repeating the words
of the compact, threaded their way in and out through the
different spaces, till they had taken the circuit of each
portion of the divided calf, when the ceremony was concluded. To
avert the anger of the Lord, when Jerusalem was threatened by
Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian host, the Jews had made a
solemn to God, ratified by the ceremony of the calf, if He
released them from their dreaded foe, to cancel the servitude of
their Hebrew brethren. After investing the city for some time,
and reducing the inhabitants to dreadful suffering and
privation, the Babylonians, hearing that Pharaoh, whom the Jews
had solicited for aid, was rapidly approaching with a powerful
army, hastily raised the siege, and, removing to a distance,
took up a position where they could intercept the Egyptians, and
still cover the city. No sooner did the Jews behold the retreat
of the enemy, than they believed all danger was past, and, with
their usual turpitude, they repudiated their oath, and refused
to liberate their oppressed countrymen. For this violation of
their covenant with the Lord, they were given over to all the
horrors of the sword, pestilence, and famine--Jeremiah, xxxiv.
15-17.
MINCED VEAL AND MACARONI.
(_A pretty side or corner dish_.)
891. INGREDIENTS.--3/4 lb. of minced cold roast veal, 3 oz. of ham, 1
tablespoonful of gravy, pepper and salt to taste, 3 teaspoonful of
grated nutmeg, 1/4 lb. of bread crumbs, 1/4 lb. of macaroni, 1 or 2 eggs
to bind, a small piece of butter.
_Mode_.--Cut some nice slices from a cold fillet of veal, trim off the
brown outside, and mince the meat finely with the above proportion of
ham: should the meat be very dry, add a spoonful of good gravy. Season
highly with pepper and salt, add the grated nutmeg and bread crumbs, and
mix these ingredients with 1 or 2 eggs well beaten, which should bind
the mixture and make it like forcemeat. In the mean time, boil the
macaroni in salt and water, and drain it; butter a mould, put some of
the macaroni at the bottom and sides of it, in whatever form is liked;
mix the remainder with the forcemeat, fill the mould up to the top, put
a plate or small dish on it, and steam for 1/2 hour. Turn it out
carefully, and serve with good gravy poured round, but not over, the
meat.
_Time_.--1/2 hour. _Average cost_, exclusive of the cold meat, 10d.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
_Note_.--To make a variety, boil some carrots and turnips separately in
a little salt and water; when done, cut them into pieces about 1/8 inch
in thickness; butter an oval mould, and place these in it, in white and
red stripes alternately, at the bottom and sides. Proceed as in the
foregoing recipe, and be very careful in turning it out of the mould.
MOULDED MINCED VEAL (Cold Meat Cookery).
892. INGREDIENTS.--3/4 lb. of cold roast veal, a small slice of bacon,
1/4 teaspoonful of minced lemon-peel, 1/2 onion chopped fine, salt,
pepper, and pounded mace to taste, a slice of toast soaked in milk, 1
egg.
_Mode_.--Mince the meat very fine, after removing from it all skin and
outside pieces, and chop the bacon; mix these well together, adding the
lemon-peel, onion, seasoning, mace, and toast. When all the ingredients
are thoroughly incorporated, heat up an egg, with which bind the
mixture. Butter a shape, put in the meat, and hake for 3/4 hour; turn it
out of the mould carefully, and pour round it a good brown gravy. A
sheep's head dressed in this manner is an economical and savoury dish.
_Time_.--3/4 hour. _Average cost_, exclusive of the meat, 6d.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
BRAISED NECK OF VEAL.
893. INGREDIENTS.--The best end of the neck of veal (from 3 to 4 lbs.),
bacon, 1 tablespoonful of minced parsley, salt, pepper, and grated
nutmeg to taste; 1 onion, 2 carrots, a little celery (when this is not
obtainable, use the seed), 1/2 glass of sherry, thickening of butter and
flour, lemon-juice, 1 blade of pounded mace.
_Mode_.--Prepare the bacon for larding, and roll it in minced parsley,
salt, pepper, and grated nutmeg; lard the veal, put it into a stewpan
with a few slices of lean bacon or ham, an onion, carrots, and celery;
and do not quite cover it with water. Stew it gently for 2 hours, or
until it is quite tender; strain off the liquor; stir together over the
fire, in a stewpan, a little flour and butter until brown; lay the veal
in this, the upper side to the bottom of the pan, and let it remain till
of a nice brown colour. Place it in the dish; pour into the stewpan as
much gravy as is required, boil it up, skim well, add the wine, pounded
mace, and lemon-juice; simmer for 3 minutes, pour it over the meat, and
serve.
_Time_.--Rather more than 2 hours.
_Average cost_, 8d. per lb.
_Sufficient_ for 5 or 6 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
BIRTH OF CALVES.--The cow seldom produces more than a single
calf; sometimes, twins, and, very rarely, three. A French
newspaper, however,--the "Nouveau Bulletin des Sciences,"--gave
a trustworthy but extraordinary account of a cow which produced
nine calves in all, at three successive births, in three
successive years. The first year, four cow calves; the second
year, three calves, two of them females; the third year, two
calves, both females. With the exception of two belonging to the
first birth, all were suckled by the mother.
ROAST NECK OF VEAL.
894. INGREDIENTS.--Veal, melted butter, forcemeat balls.
_Mode_.--Have the veal cut from the best end of the neck; dredge it with
flour, and put it down to a bright clear fire; keep it well basted; dish
it, pour over it some melted butter, and garnish the dish with fried
forcemeat balls; send to table with a cut lemon. The scrag may be boiled
or stewed in various ways, with rice, onion-sauce, or parsley and
butter.
_Time_.--About 2 hours. _Average cost_, 8d. per lb.
_Sufficient_.--4 or 5 lbs. for 5 or 6 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
VEAL OLIVE PIE (Cold Meat Cookery).
895. INGREDIENTS.--A few thin slices of cold fillet of veal, a few thin
slices of bacon, forcemeat No. 417, a cupful of gravy, 4 tablespoonfuls
of cream, puff-crust.
_Mode_.--Cut thin slices from a fillet of veal, place on them thin
slices of bacon, and over them a layer of forcemeat, made by recipe No.
417, with an additional seasoning of shalot and cayenne; roll them
tightly, and fill up a pie-dish with them; add the gravy and cream,
cover with a puff-crust, and bake for 1 to 1-1/2 hour: should the pie be
very large, allow 2 hours. The pieces of rolled veal should be about 3
inches in length, and about 3 inches round.
_Time_.--Moderate-sized pie, 1 to 1-1/2 hour.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
FRIED PATTIES (Cold Meat Cookery).
896. INGREDIENTS.--Cold roast veal, a few slices of cold ham, 1 egg
boiled hard, pounded mace, pepper and salt to taste, gravy, cream, 1
teaspoonful of minced lemon-peel, good puff-paste.
_Mode_.--Mince a little cold veal and ham, allowing one-third ham to
two-thirds veal; add an egg boiled hard and chopped, and a seasoning of
pounded mace, salt, pepper, and lemon-peel; moisten with a little gravy
and cream. Make a good puff-paste; roll rather thin, and cut it into
round or square pieces; put the mince between two of them, pinch the
edges to keep in the gravy, and fry a light brown. They may be also
baked in patty-pans: in that case, they should be brushed over with the
yolk of an egg before they are put in the oven. To make a variety,
oysters may be substituted for the ham.
_Time_.--15 minutes to fry the patties.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
VEAL PIE.
897. INGREDIENTS.--2 lbs. of veal cutlets, 1 or 2 slices of lean bacon
or ham, pepper and salt to taste, 2 tablespoonfuls of minced savoury
herbs, 2 blades of pounded mace, crust, 1 teacupful of gravy.
_Mode_.--Cut the cutlets into square pieces, and season them with
pepper, salt, and pounded mace; put them in a pie-dish with the savoury
herbs sprinkled over, and 1 or 2 slices of lean bacon or ham placed at
the top: if possible, this should be previously cooked, as undressed
bacon makes the veal red, and spoils its appearance. Pour in a little
water, cover with crust, ornament it in any way that is approved; brush
it over with the yolk of an egg, and bake in a well-heated oven for
about 1-1/2 hour. Pour in a good gravy after baking, which is done by
removing the top ornament, and replacing it after the gravy is added.
_Time_.--About 1-1/2 hour. _Average cost_, 2s. 6d.
_Sufficient_ for 5 or 6 persons.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
A VERY VEAL DINNER.--At a dinner given by Lord Polkemmet, a
Scotch nobleman and judge, his guests saw, when the covers were
removed, that the fare consisted of veal broth, a roasted fillet
of veal, veal cutlets, a veal pie, a calf's head, and
calf's-foot jelly. The judge, observing the surprise of his
guests, volunteered an explanation.--"Oh, ay, it's a' cauf;
when we kill a beast, we just eat up ae side, and doun the
tither."
VEAL AND HAM PIE.
898. INGREDIENTS.--2 lbs. of veal cutlets, 1/2 lb. of boiled ham, 2
tablespoonfuls of minced savoury herbs, 1/4 teaspoonful of grated
nutmeg, 2 blades of pounded mace, pepper and salt to taste, a strip of
lemon-peel finely minced, the yolks of 2 hard-boiled eggs, 1/2 pint of
water, nearly 1/2 pint of good strong gravy, puff-crust.
_Mode_.--Cut the veal into nice square pieces, and put a layer of them
at the bottom of a pie-dish; sprinkle over these a portion of the herbs,
spices, seasoning, lemon-peel, and the yolks of the eggs cut in slices;
cut the ham very thin, and put a layer of this in. Proceed in this
manner until the dish is full, so arranging it that the ham comes at the
top. Lay a puff-paste on the edge of the dish, and pour in about 1/2
pint of water; cover with crust, ornament it with leaves, brush it over
with the yolk of an egg, and bake in a well-heated oven for 1 to 1-1/2
hour, or longer, should the pie be very large. When it is taken out of
the oven, pour in at the top, through a funnel, nearly 1/2 pint of
strong gravy: this should be made sufficiently good that, when cold, it
may cut in a firm jelly. This pie may be very much enriched by adding a
few mushrooms, oysters, or sweetbreads; but it will be found very good
without any of the last-named additions.
_Time_.--1-1/2 hour, or longer, should the pie be very large. _Average
cost_, 3s. _Sufficient_ for 5 or 6 persons. _Seasonable_ from March to
October.
POTTED VEAL (for Breakfast).
899. INGREDIENTS.--To every lb. of veal allow 1/4 lb. of ham, cayenne
and pounded mace to taste, 6 oz. of fresh butter; clarified butter.
_Mode_.--Mince the veal and ham together as finely as possible, and
pound well in a mortar, with cayenne, pounded mace, and fresh butter in
the above proportion. When reduced to a perfectly smooth paste, press it
into potting-pots, and cover with clarified butter. If kept in a cool
place, it will remain good some days.
_Seasonable_ from March to October.
NAMES OF CALVES, &c.--During the time the young male calf is
suckled by his mother, he is called a bull-or ox-calf; when
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