Cookery for every household

To Serve Cold. — Lift the meat out of the saucepan and remove the bones. Tie it neatly together, and press it between two large dishes, or boards, with a weight on the top, until cold. Reduce some of the liquid in which the meat was cooked, and add to it a small piece of glaze ; then unbind the meat and brush it over with this, giving it two or three coatings if necessary. (See To Glaze Meat, p. 210.) Serve garnished with fresh parsley or watercress, and a few pieces of red tomato. Note. — When the meat is served cold, the vegetables may either be served separately as a hot vegetable, or cut in smaller pieces and used for soup. Time to cook, 4 to 5 hours. 824. Salt Beef with Dumplings Choose a nice piece of salt beef from the aitch bone, round, or brisket, &c. Wash it, and if it is likely to be too salt, soak it overnight, or for a few hours, in cold water. Then trim it neatly and bind it firmly with tape to prevent it having a ragged appearance when cooked. Weigh it and put it into a saucepan with cold or tepid water to cover it. If the joint is a large one use cold water, but if small, tepid water will be better. Bring the meat fairly quickly to the boil, then draw the saucepan to the side of the fire, or reduce the heat, and carefully remove all scum that has risen. Now allow the meat to simmer slowly until it is quite tender, skimming when necessary. The time for cooking will vary from 20 to 30 minutes to the pound, and from 20 to 30 minutes over, according to the size and shape of the meat. It is usual to serve vegetables with this dish, as well as the dumplings. Prepare some nice pieces of carrot, turnip, and parsnip if in season, cutting them in convenient-sized pieces and regulating the quantity according to the size of the joint. Cook these along with the meat, putting them in after the first scum has been removed ; or, if the meat is a very large piece, rather later, just allowing sufficient time to cook the vegetables thoroughly without reducing them to a pulpy state. Small suet dumplings (see below) are also a favourite accompaniment to this dish ; or a pease pudding, if preferred, may be served separately. To Serve. — Lift the meat on to a hot dish and remove the tape. A silver skewer may be put in to keep it together. Garnish with the vegetables and dumplings placed alternately round the dish. Strain a little of the liquor round, and serve an extra supply in a sauce boat. A dish of green vegetables should be served separately. 825. Dumplings to Serve with Meat 6 oz. flour. 2 oz. suet. I £ tea-sp. baking powder. 1 tea-sp. salt. I A little milk or water. Chop the suet very finely, and mix it lightly with the flour, salt, and baking powder. Bind all together with water or milk, and knead lightly. The dough must be soft without being sticky. Make it up into small balls, using a little dry flour to prevent the dough sticking to the hands. Cook them for 15 to 20 minutes along with the meat with which they are to be served. The water must be kept simmering all the time they are in it, or the dumplings will be heavy. Note. — The dry ingredients should not be moistened until it is time to cook the dumplings. 826. Roast Beef (Boeuf Roti, Rosbif)