The Book of Household Management Part 20

_Mode_.--Put all the ingredients, except the force-meat b.a.l.l.s and lemon-juice, in an earthen jar, and stew for 6 hours. Do not open it till cold. When wanted for use, skim off all the fat, and strain carefully; place it on the fire, cut up the meat into inch-and-a-half squares, put it, with the force-meat b.a.l.l.s and lemon-juice, into the soup, and serve. It can be flavoured with a tablespoonful of anchovy, or Harvey's sauce.

_Time_.--6 hours. _Average cost_,1s. 4d. per quart.

_Seasonable_ in winter.

_Sufficient_ for 10 persons.

THE CALF--The flesh of this animal is called veal, and when young, that is, under two months old, yields a large quant.i.ty of soluble extract, and is, therefore, much employed for soups and broths. The Ess.e.x farmers have obtained a celebrity for fattening calves better than any others in England, where they are plentifully supplied with milk, a thing impossible to be done in the immediate neighbourhood of London.

MARJORAM.--There are several species of this plant; but that which is preferred for cookery is a native of Portugal, and is called sweet or knotted marjoram. When its leaves are dried, they have an agreeable aromatic flavour; and hence are used for soups, stuffings, &c.

BASIL.--This is a native of the East Indies, and is highly aromatic, having a perfume greatly resembling that of cloves. It is not much employed in English cookery, but is a favourite with French cooks, by whom its leaves are used in soups and salads.

MULLAGATAWNY SOUP.

174. INGREDIENTS.--2 tablespoonfuls of curry powder, 6 onions, 1 clove of garlic, 1 oz. of pounded almonds, a little lemon-pickle, or mango-juice, to taste; 1 fowl or rabbit, 4 slices of lean bacon; 2 quarts of medium stock, or, if wanted very good, best stock.

_Mode_.-=Slice and fry the onions of a nice colour; line the stewpan with the bacon; cut up the rabbit or fowl into small joints, and slightly brown them; put in the fried onions, the garlic, and stock, and simmer gently till the meat is tender; skim very carefully, and when the meat is done, rub the curry powder to a smooth batter; add it to the soup with the almonds, which must be first pounded with a little of the stock. Put in seasoning and lemon-pickle or mango-juice to taste, and serve boiled rice with it.

_Time_.--2 hours. _Average cost_, 1s. 6d. per quart, with stock No. 105.

_Seasonable_ in winter.

_Sufficient_ for 8 persons.

_Note_.--This soup can also be made with breast of veal, or calf's head.

Vegetable Mullagatawny is made with veal stock, by boiling and pulping chopped vegetable marrow, cuc.u.mbers, onions, and tomatoes, and seasoning with curry powder and cayenne. Nice pieces of meat, good curry powder, and strong stock, are necessary to make this soup good.

[Ill.u.s.tration: CORIANDER.]

CORIANDER.--This plant, which largely enters into the composition of curry powder with turmeric, originally comes from the East; but it has long been cultivated in England, especially in Ess.e.x, where it is reared for the use of confectioners and druggists. In private gardens, it is cultivated for the sake of its tender leaves, which are highly aromatic, and are employed in soups and salads. Its seeds are used in large quant.i.ties for the purposes of distillation.

A GOOD MUTTON SOUP.

175. INGREDIENTS.--A neck of mutton about 5 or 6 lbs., 3 carrots, 3 turnips, 2 onions, a large bunch of sweet herbs, including parsley; salt and pepper to taste; a little sherry, if liked; 3 quarts of water.

_Mode_.--Lay the ingredients in a covered pan before the fire, and let them remain there the whole day, stirring occasionally. The next day put the whole into a stewpan, and place it on a brisk fire. When it commences to boil, take the pan off the fire, and put it on one side to simmer until the meat is done. When ready for use, take out the meat, dish it up with carrots and turnips, and send it to table; strain the soup, let it cool, skim off all the fat, season and thicken it with a tablespoonful, or rather more, of arrowroot; flavour with a little sherry, simmer for 5 minutes, and serve.

_Time_.--15 hours. _Average cost_, including the meat, 1s. 3d. per quart.

_Seasonable_ at any time.

_Sufficient_ for 8 persons.

THE SHEEP.--This animal formed the princ.i.p.al riches of the patriarchs, in the days of old, and, no doubt, multiplied, until its species were spread over the greater part of Western Asia; but at what period it was introduced to Britain is not known. It is now found in almost every part of the globe, although, as a domestic animal, it depends almost entirely upon man for its support. Its value, however, amply repays him for whatever care and kindness he may bestow upon it; for, like the ox, there is scarcely a part of it that he cannot convert to some useful purpose. The fleece, which serves it for a covering, is appropriated by man, to serve the same end to himself, whilst its skin is also applied to various purposes in civilized life.

Its entrails are used as strings for musical instruments, and its bones are calcined, and employed as tests in the trade of the refiner. Its milk, being thicker than that of the cow, yields a greater quant.i.ty of b.u.t.ter and cheese, and its flesh is among the most wholesome and nutritive that can be eaten.

Thomson has beautifully described the appearance of the sheep, when bound to undergo the operation of being shorn of its wool.

"Behold, where bound, and of its robe bereft By needy man, that all-depending lord, How meek, how patient, the mild creature lies!

What softness in his melancholy face, What dumb complaining innocence appears!"

OX-CHEEK SOUP.

176. INGREDIENTS.--An ox-cheek, 2 oz. of b.u.t.ter, 3 or 4 slices of lean ham or bacon, 1 parsnip, 3 carrots, 2 onions, 3 heads of celery, 3 blades of mace, 4 cloves, a f.a.ggot of savoury herbs, 1 bay-leaf, a teaspoonful of salt, half that of pepper, 1 head of celery, browning, the crust of a French roll, 6 quarts of water.

_Mode_.--Lay the ham in the bottom of the stewpan, with the b.u.t.ter; break the bones of the cheek, wash it clean, and put it on the ham. Cut the vegetables small, add them to the other ingredients, and set the whole over a slow fire for 1/4 of an hour. Now put in the water, and simmer gently till it is reduced to 4 quarts; take out the fleshy part of the cheek, and strain the soup into a clean stewpan; thicken with flour, put in a head of sliced celery, and simmer till the celery is tender. If not a good colour, use a little browning. Cut the meat into small square pieces, pour the soup over, and serve with the crust of a French roll in the tureen. A gla.s.s of sherry much improves this soup.

_Time_.--3 to 4 hours. _Average cost_, 8d. per quart.

_Seasonable_ in winter.

_Sufficient_ for 12 persons.

THE OX.--Of the quadrupedal animals, the flesh of those that feed upon herbs is the most wholesome and nutritious for human food. In the early ages, the ox was used as a religious sacrifice, and, in the eyes of the Egyptians was deemed so sacred as to be worthy of exaltation to represent Taurus, one of the twelve signs of the zodiac. To this day, the Hindoos venerate the cow, whose flesh is forbidden to be eaten, and whose fat, supposed to have been employed to grease the cartridges of the Indian army, was one of the proximate causes of the great Sepoy rebellion of 1857. There are no animals of greater use to man than the tribe to which the ox belongs. There is hardly a part of them that does not enter into some of the arts and purposes of civilized life. Of their horns are made combs, knife-handles, boxes, spoons, and drinking-cups. They are also made into transparent plates for lanterns; an invention ascribed, in England, to King Alfred. Glue is made from their gristles, cartilages, and portions of their hides. Their bones often form a subst.i.tute for ivory; their skins, when calves, are manufactured into vellum; their blood is the basis of Prussian blue; their sinews furnish fine and strong threads, used by saddlers; their hair enters into various manufactures; their tallow is made into candles; their flesh is eaten, and the utility of the milk and cream of the cow is well known.

OX-TAIL SOUP.

177. INGREDIENTS.--2 ox-tails, 2 slices of ham, 1 oz. of b.u.t.ter, 2 carrots, 2 turnips, 3 onions, 1 leek, 1 head of celery, 1 bunch of savoury herbs, 1 bay-leaf, 12 whole peppercorns, 4 cloves, a tablespoonful of salt, 2 tablespoonfuls of ketchup, 1/2 gla.s.s of port wine, 3 quarts of water.

_Mode_.--Cut up the tails, separating them at the joints; wash them, and put them in a stewpan, with the b.u.t.ter. Cut the vegetables in slices, and add them, with the peppercorns and herbs. Put in 1/2 pint of water, and stir it over a sharp fire till the juices are drawn. Fill up the stewpan with the water, and, when boiling, add the salt. Skim well, and simmer very gently for 4 hours, or until the tails are tender. Take them out, skim and strain the soup, thicken with flour, and flavour with the ketchup and port wine. Put back the tails, simmer for 5 minutes, and serve.

_Time_.--4-1/2 hours. _Average cost_, 1s. 3d. per quart.

_Seasonable_ in winter.

_Sufficient_ for 10 persons.

PARTRIDGE SOUP.

178. INGREDIENTS.--2 partridges, 3 slices of lean ham, 2 shred onions, 1 head of celery, 1 large carrot, and 1 turnip cut into any fanciful shapes, 1 small lump of sugar, 2 oz. of b.u.t.ter, salt and pepper to taste, 2 quarts of stock No. 105, or common, No. 106.

_Mode_.--Cut the partridges into pieces, and braise them in the b.u.t.ter and ham until quite tender; then take out the legs, wings, and breast, and set them by. Keep the backs and other tr.i.m.m.i.n.gs in the braise, and add the onions and celery; any remains of cold game can be put in, and 3 pints of stock. Simmer slowly for 1 hour, strain it, and skim the fat off as clean as possible; put in the pieces that were taken out, give it one boil, and skim again to have it quite clear, and add the sugar and seasoning. Now simmer the cut carrot and turnip in 1 pint of stock; when quite tender, put them to the partridges, and serve.

_Time_.--2 hours. _Average cost_, 2s. or 1s. 6d. per quart.

_Seasonable_ from September to February.

_Sufficient_ for 8 persons.

_Note_.--The meat of the partridges may be pounded with the crumb of a French roll, and worked with the soup through a sieve. Serve with stewed celery cut in slices, and put in the tureen.

THE PARTRIDGE.--This is a timorous bird, being easily taken. It became known to the Greeks and Romans, whose tables it helped to furnish with food. Formerly, the Red was scarce in Italy, but its place was supplied by the White, which, at considerable expense, was frequently procured from the Alps. The Athenians trained this bird for fighting, and Severus used to lighten the cares of royalty by witnessing the spirit of its combats. The Greeks esteemed its leg most highly, and rejected the other portions as unfas.h.i.+onable to be eaten. The Romans, however, ventured a little further, and ate the breast, whilst we consider the bird as wholly palatable. It is an inhabitant of all the temperate countries of Europe, but, on account of the geniality of the climate, it abounds most in the Ukraine.

PHEASANT SOUP.

179. INGREDIENTS.--2 pheasants, 1/4 lb. of b.u.t.ter, 2 slices of ham, 2 large onions sliced, 1/2 head of celery, the crumb of two French rolls, the yolks of 2 eggs boiled hard, salt and cayenne to taste, a little pounded mace, if liked; 3 quarts of stock No. 105.

_Mode_.--Cut up the pheasants, flour and braise them in the b.u.t.ter and ham till they are of a nice brown, but not burnt. Put them in a stewpan, with the onions, celery, and seasoning, and simmer for 2 hours. Strain the soup; pound the b.r.e.a.s.t.s with the crumb of the roll previously soaked, and the yolks of the eggs; put it to the soup, give one boil, and serve.