Recipes for the million

SAUCE (LOBSTER). — Cut a lobster into small dice; pound the spawn with a little butter and four anchovies, and rub through a hair sieve. Put the lobster into a stew-pan with half a pint of gravy and a bit of butter rolled in flour ; set over a slow fire and stir till it boils. If not thick enough add a little more flour, and boil again. Put the spawn in and simmer it, but do not let it boil, as it might spoil the colour of the sauce. Add a little lemon pickle or lemon juice. SAUCE (MAITRE D'HOTEL), for Fish.— Put into a stew-pan some finely-chopped parsley, a small shallot, and a piece of butter ; sweat them over the fire, dry up the butter with flour, then add some good stock and a slice of ham ; boil together ; strain through a tammy, and season with lemon, cayenne, salt, and a pinch of sugar. SAUCE (MINT). — Wash the mint, pick the leaves from the stalks and dry them, chop them finely, and put about two tablespoonfuls into a tureen with two teaspoonfuls of moist sugar, a pinch of salt, and a gill of vinegar, and stir until the sugar is dissolved. It should be prepared two or three hours before it is wanted. SAUCE (MUSHROOM). — Make some rather thin cream sauce, add a few young mushrooms ; stew to the proper consistence, and serve. SAUCE (ONION). — Peel four large onions, put them into a stewpan, cover with water, and boil till half done, then pour off the water and add fresh ; when boiled tender, strain off the second water, put the onions on a board, and chop finely. Melt in a saucepan one ounce of butter ; mix in half an ounce of flour, and stir it over the fire for one minute ; then pour in gradually half a pint of milk, stir until it boils and thickens, add the onions with a saltspoonful of salt, simmer for a few minutes, and serve hot. Time, about one hour. SAUCE (OYSTER), for Fish or Fowl. — Open two dozen oysters, and put them, with their liquor, into a stew-pan, adding a spoonful of water. When the liquor boils the oysters are done. Take them out with a spoon, and drain them on a hair sieve. Let the liquor settle, and pour it off clear into another vessel. Beard the oysters, and wash them again in the liquor, to remove all grit and sand ; then put a pound of fresh butter into a saucepan with a spoonful or two of flour ; when the flour is fried a little, moisten it with the oyster liquor and a pint of cream ; let this boil fifteen minutes, and add to it a small bit of glaze. If the sauce be wanted for fish add a little essence of anchovies ; if for fowl omit it. SAUCE (OYSTER), made from Powder. — Put into a saucepan two ounces of butter, half a pint of milk, and half an ounce of oyster powder ; set it on a slow fire, stir till it boils, then season with salt. If not thick enough add a small piece of butter rolled in flour. SAUCE (PARSLEY). — Pound the required quantity of parsley, and put it into a saucepan with some good mutton broth ; simmer for a quarter of an hour, and run it through a sieve ; thicken with butter rolled in flour, and just before sending it to table stir in a little lemon juice. SAUCE (POOR MAN’S). — Chop up half a dozen shallots and a little parsley, and simmer them in gravy with a spoonful of vinegar ; season with cayenne pepper and salt.