The art of cookery

To Broil Steak or Chops on a Griddle. — Use a castiron or steel griddle. Have it smoking hot. Lay upon it the steak or chops to be cooked, and press the meat close to the griddle. When the side next the griddle is brown, turn and let the other side brown, and so turn and let brown as often as is necessary to keep the surface seared and the juices within the meat. If left too long upon the same side the heat of the griddle will force the juices through the upper surface of the meat, but if the article being cooked is turned frequently enough the juices may be retained within, as perfectly as when the broiling is done in a broiler over the coals. For broiling steak or chops on a griddle most successfully it is better to have them only of medium thickness, and it may frequently be desirable to remove the bone before placing upon the griddle. It is certainly always best to do so when the bone projects enough to prevent the surface of the meat adhering to the griddle. A thick steak, after both sides have been seared on the griddle, may without removal therefrom be thoroughly cooked by being put into a very hot oven for eight or ten minutes. If the broiling has been skilfully done, when the steak or chop is lifted to the platter a small piece of butter can be put on the griddle, which should stand in a cool place, and with a spoon or knife Broiling. 43 the brown juices of the meat that adhere thereto can be removed, mingled with the melted butter, and poured over the steak or chop. To Broil Oysters on a Griddle. — Drain the oysters in a colander or sieve, dip each oyster in melted butter that has been clarified, and lay upon a plate for convenient handling. Have a griddle clean, smoking hot, and perfectly dry. Fill it quickly with the drained oysters, laying them closely together upon it. By the time the griddle is filled, if the fire is sufficiently hot, the oysters first laid upon it will be browned and broiled. With a limber knife and a fork turn the oysters upon the griddle, in the order in which they were laid upon it. As soon as they are turned begin removing those first put upon the griddle, and so proceed until they are all lifted upon a warm platter on which salt, pepper, and butter have been placed. Or they can be laid upon thin slices of toast and seasoned with salt, pepper, and melted butter. OVEN BROILING. Experiments prove that many articles of food can be broiled perfectly in the oven of an ordinary range, by the application of hot air. And although there are many that cannot be so broiled, notably all meats with cut surfaces, no reason exists why the things that can be broiled better and more conveniently in an oven than over coals should not be so broiled, and this method of cooking be known as oven broiling — which it actually is — rather than baking or roasting. The temperature of an oven for successful broiling 44 The Art of Cookery. should be at least five hundred degrees — considerablyhigher than for baking bread or roasting meats — and should remain so until the article to be broiled has begun to brown nicely, when the heat can be lessened and the cooking finished at a lower temperature.