A neck of mutton can be divided so as to form several
dishes — cutlets, Don Pedro pie, Irish stew, haricot mutton
boiled mutton, curry, Scotch broth, mutton pies, etc.
The scrag end makes a very good Irish stew, and it can
be eaten boiled with caper sauce.
A leg of mutton can be divided into three parts — the
knuckle end for boiling ; the middle part which makes a
capital steak; and the thick end which can be either
roasted as it is, or what is better, boned, stuffed and
rolled.
The basis of all cookery consists of roasting, boiling,
PLAIN COOKING
75
simmering, stewing, broiling, frying, and baking. We will
consider now the means of performing these functions.
Roasting is done either in front of the fire, or in the oven
of a close range. For myself I prefer roasting in front of
the fire with good basting, as I consider the flavour of roast
meat is so much better, and besides, the gravy from meat
cooked in the oven yields more grease. Meat roasted in
the oven requires an immense amount of care; the oven
should be very hot and twenty minutes to the pound of
meat should be allowed. There should be a double dripping-
pan with hot water placed in the lower compartment and
the meat should be laid on a trivet. The wrong side should
be placed upwards at first and the meat turned over when
it is about half done. Place it on the hottest part of the
oven for five minutes, so that the outside may harden to
prevent the juices going into the gravy ; then it should be
removed to the middle of the lower compartment, if fairly
hot, and basted constantly. When the outside is browned,
cover with greased paper, which must be removed just
before serving and the joint frothed. In cooking poultry
or game in a close range place them breast downwards
in the pan itself, not on the trivet ; cover the breasts
with dripping an inch thick, and place a large lump of
it in their insides ; the birds will then go up to table juicy
and tender.
To roast with an open range, the first thing necessary is
to have a good and clear fire, which should be kept up
during the process ; but care must be taken in putting on
fresh coals not to knock any into the dripping pan.
Place the dripping pan (into which a little melted fat has
been put to begin basting with) under the meat to catch the
dripping. Hang the meat on the bottle jack, the biggest
part downwards, and wind up the jack. The joint should be
placed close to the fire at starting, and basted with hot fat ;
in a quarter of an hour it should be drawn back a little,
but the meat must be constantly basted ; for the more it is
basted, the better it will be. The average time for cooking
beef or mutton is a quarter of an hour for every pound of
meat. The smaller the joint or bird, the quicker it should
be roasted. Lamb requires twenty minutes for each pound,
pork and veal half an hour. The colour of the joint must
76
THE housewife's EBFEKEE
Page 50
Presented as published in 1898. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
A neck of mutton can be divided so as to form several dishes — cutlets, Don Pedro pie, Irish stew, haricot mutton boiled mutton, curry, Scotch broth, mutton pies, etc.
The scrag end makes a very good Irish stew, and it can be eaten boiled with caper sauce.
A leg of mutton can be divided into three parts — the knuckle end for boiling ; the middle part which makes a capital steak; and the thick end which can be either roasted as it is, or what is better, boned, stuffed and rolled.
The basis of all cookery consists of roasting, boiling,
simmering, stewing, broiling, frying, and baking. We will consider now the means of performing these functions.
Roasting is done either in front of the fire, or in the oven of a close range. For myself I prefer roasting in front of the fire with good basting, as I consider the flavour of roast meat is so much better, and besides, the gravy from meat cooked in the oven yields more grease. Meat roasted in the oven requires an immense amount of care; the oven should be very hot and twenty minutes to the pound of meat should be allowed. There should be a double drippingpan with hot water placed in the lower compartment and the meat should be laid on a trivet. The wrong side should be placed upwards at first and the meat turned over when it is about half done. Place it on the hottest part of the oven for five minutes, so that the outside may harden to prevent the juices going into the gravy ; then it should be removed to the middle of the lower compartment, if fairly hot, and basted constantly. When the outside is browned, cover with greased paper, which must be removed just before serving and the joint frothed. In cooking poultry or game in a close range place them breast downwards in the pan itself, not on the trivet ; cover the breasts with dripping an inch thick, and place a large lump of it in their insides ; the birds will then go up to table juicy and tender.
To roast with an open range, the first thing necessary is to have a good and clear fire, which should be kept up during the process ; but care must be taken in putting on fresh coals not to knock any into the dripping pan. Place the dripping pan (into which a little melted fat has been put to begin basting with) under the meat to catch the dripping. Hang the meat on the bottle jack, the biggest part downwards, and wind up the jack. The joint should be placed close to the fire at starting, and basted with hot fat ; in a quarter of an hour it should be drawn back a little, but the meat must be constantly basted ; for the more it is basted, the better it will be. The average time for cooking beef or mutton is a quarter of an hour for every pound of meat. The smaller the joint or bird, the quicker it should be roasted. Lamb requires twenty minutes for each pound, pork and veal half an hour. The colour of the joint must
THE housewife's REFEREE