Many persons accustomed to meat roasted before the open fire object to the flavor of baked meat. If the oven be very hot at first, and opened every five minutes just long enough for the basting, which is an essential part of the cooking process, the smoky odor escapes. If there be no damper to check the heat underneath the oven, put the grate or another pan under the dripping-pan, as no heat is required under the meat. This will prevent the fat in the pan from burning and smoking the meat. Place the meat with the skin side down at first ; then, if the juices begin to flow, the skin keeps them in ; and, when turned, it brings the side which is to be up in serving next the hottest part of the oven, for the final browning. All baked meat or fish should be salted and floured all over. Salt draws out the juices ; but the flour unites with them, making a paste which soon hardens, and keeps them within. Baste often, and dredge with salt and flour after basting. If there be no shelf attached to the stove near the oven, keep a box or frame of wood just the height of the oven, near by, and pushed up close to it; it will be found very convenient to pull the pan out upon it when basting or turning the meat. Frying. Fr^ang is cooking in hot fat, — not boiling fat, as it is so often called, for fat can be made much hotter than the temperature required for cooking, which is 385° ; the tem- perature for boiling fat is from 5G5^ to 600°. Frying, when properly done, is immersion in smoking-hot fat. The fat should be deep enough to entirely cover the articles to be cooked ; and as it may be used many times, it is not so extravagant as some suppose to use such a quantity. The prime secret of nice frying is to have the fat hot enough to harden instantly the albumen on the outer surface, and thus prevent the fat from soaking into the inside of what- ever is to be fried. As a much higher temperature is required than that for boiling or baking, the articles are The Boston Cook Booh. very quickly cooked ; and they have a flavor quite unlike that given by any other form of cooking. All articles to be fried should be thoroughly dried and slightly warmed. If very moist, or very cold, or too many articles be fried at a time, the fat becomes chilled, and the grease soaks into them. Then, as the moisture heats and boils, it causes such a commotion that the fat and water boil over, and there is great danger from the fat taking fire and spreading to your clothing, to say nothing of the trouble of cleaning the stove and floor. For this reason be careful not to let a drop of water, or of con- densed steam from another kettle, fall into the hot fat. Meat, fish, oysters, croquettes, etc., should be dried, and rolled in fine bread-crumbs, to absorb any moisture ; then rolled in beaten egg, and in fine crumbs again. The hot fat hardens the albumen of the egg instantly ; and that, with the crumbs, makes a fat-proof crust. Fish balls, fritters, and fried muffin mixtures contain egg and albumen sufficient to keep them from soaking fat, if the fat be only hot enough. A Scotch bowl, or deep iron or granite kettle, and a wire basket small enough to fit down into the kettle, are best to use in frying.

AI-modernized reading of the original text

Many persons accustomed to meat roasted before the open fire object to the flavor of baked meat. If the oven be very hot at first, and opened every five minutes just long enough for the basting, which is an essential part of the cooking process, the smoky odor escapes. If there be no damper to check the heat underneath the oven, put the grate or another pan under the dripping-pan, as no heat is required under the meat. This will prevent the fat in the pan from burning and smoking the meat. Place the meat with the skin side down at first ; then, if the juices begin to flow, the skin keeps them in ; and, when turned, it brings the side which is to be up in serving next the hottest part of the oven, for the final browning. All baked meat or fish should be salted and floured all over. Salt draws out the juices ; but the flour unites with them, making a paste which soon hardens, and keeps them within. Baste often, and dredge with salt and flour after basting. If there be no shelf attached to the stove near the oven, keep a box or frame of wood just the height of the oven, near by, and pushed up close to it; it will be found very convenient to pull the pan out upon it when basting or turning the meat. Frying. Frying is cooking in hot fat, — not boiling fat, as it is so often called, for fat can be made much hotter than the temperature required for cooking, which is 385° ; the temperature for boiling fat is from 565° to 600°. Frying, when properly done, is immersion in smoking-hot fat. The fat should be deep enough to entirely cover the articles to be cooked ; and as it may be used many times, it is not so extravagant as some suppose to use such a quantity. The prime secret of nice frying is to have the fat hot enough to harden instantly the albumen on the outer surface, and thus prevent the fat from soaking into the inside of whatever is to be fried. As a much higher temperature is required than that for boiling or baking, the articles are The Boston Cook Booh. very quickly cooked ; and they have a flavor quite unlike that given by any other form of cooking. All articles to be fried should be thoroughly dried and slightly warmed. If very moist, or very cold, or too many articles be fried at a time, the fat becomes chilled, and the grease soaks into them. Then, as the moisture heats and boils, it causes such a commotion that the fat and water boil over, and there is great danger from the fat taking fire and spreading to your clothing, to say nothing of the trouble of cleaning the stove and floor. For this reason be careful not to let a drop of water, or of condensed steam from another kettle, fall into the hot fat. Meat, fish, oysters, croquettes, etc., should be dried, and rolled in fine bread-crumbs, to absorb any moisture ; then rolled in beaten egg, and in fine crumbs again. The hot fat hardens the albumen of the egg instantly ; and that, with the crumbs, makes a fat-proof crust. Fish balls, fritters, and fried muffin mixtures contain egg and albumen sufficient to keep them from soaking fat, if the fat be only hot enough. A Scotch bowl, or deep iron or granite kettle, and a wire basket small enough to fit down into the kettle, are best to use in frying.

Mrs. Lincoln's Boston cook book