The encyclopædia of practical cookery

Stewed Soft-shell Crabs with Okras. — Brown in a saucepan with Joz. of butter, a chopped onion, about loz. of raw ham cut into dice, half a green-pepper pod (also cut into small dice), J table-spoonful of salt, and 1 teaspoonful of pepper ; moisten this with lqt. of white broth or consomme, add 1 tablespoonful of uncooked rice, six sliced okras, and a sliced tomato. Let all cook thoroughly for about twenty minutes, and five minutes before serving add the flesh of three wellwashed, minced, Soft-shell Crabs. Oyster-Crabs are best known in America, where they form a very high-class dish. The modes of preparing them for the table are limited, and the Crabs themselves are none too plentiful for their quality. Fried Oyster-Crabs. — Wash and dry 1J pints of Oyster- Crabs, dip them first in flour, then in cold milk, and finally in cracker-dust or finely-sifted breadcrumbs ; shake them well in a colander, and fry in hot fat for three minutes. Serve in croustades made of short-paste (see Fig. 542), garnish with parsley, and sprinkle a little salt over before serving. Stewed Oyster-Crabs a la Foulette. — Remove all the meat from 1J pints of Oyster-Crabs, put it into a saucepan with a little of the liquor from them, and add loz. of butter, a little each of salt and pepper ; parboil for three or four minutes, add gently 1 breakfast-cupful of Hollandaise sauce, stew for two minutes longer (but without boiling), add the juice of half a lemon and 1 teaspoonful of finely-chopped parsley ; stir gently, turn the whole out on to a dish, and serve. CRAB-APPLES. — The fruit of the wild apple-tree is generally known by this name ; but the American Crabapple ( Pyrus coronaria) is a cultivated tree bearing longstalked fruit, which grows in clusters or bunches (see Fig. 543). Another variety is the Siberian Crab ( Pyrus baccata), which is much smaller, cherry-like, and dark skinned; the ffesli being more or less red and pink throughout. Either of these is excellent for table purposes, when cooked and preserved. The following receipts are strongly recommended: American Crab-apple Cheese. — (1) Select as many Crabapples as will fill a large wide-mouthed jar, and after carefully wiping them, cut away such parts as are bruised or unsound For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, d-c., referred to, see under their special heads. Crab-apples— continued. in any way. Fill the jar to the shoulder, lay an inverted saucer over the top, and put it in a moderately hot oven. When the Crab-apples have stewed quite soft in their own steam, put them into a coarse canvas cloth and squeeze all the pulp and moisture that can be got out of them through the cloth. Weigh the result, and mix with it (stirring thoroughly) three-quarters of the weight of the pulp in caster sugar. Put the whole into an enamelled stewpan or preserving-pan, and boil gently for half-an-hour, removing the scum as it rises. When done, pour this into a mould or plain jar, and when it is set, it can be turned out on to a glass dish and served. (2) To make a clear cheese, the fruit must be cooked as for No. 1 ; but instead of being pressed it should be poured on to a cloth spread as for straining broth, and allowed to drain through. The fruit can afterwards be pressed to form a separate quantity. Proceed as before. Fig. 543. American Crab-apples.