English and French cookery

Sucking-Pig.— To be in perfection, it should be killed in the morning to be eaten at dinner ; it requires very careful roasting. For the stuffing, take 5 ounces of bread and rub through a colander ; mince fine 2 ounces of sage and a large onion ; mix these together with an egg, some pepper and salt, and a bit of butter as big as an egg j fill the belly of the pig with this, and sew it up ; lay it to the fire and baste continuously with salad-oil till it is done. Roast it at a clear brisk fire at some distance. A small three weeks’ old pig will be done enough in about an hour and a half. Before taking it from the fire, cut off the head, and part that and the body down the middle ; chop the brains very fine with some boiled sage-leaves, and mix them with good veal gravy, or beef gravy, or what runs from the pig when you cut its head off. Send up a tureenful of Beef gravy sauce besides. MUTTON. Breast of Mutton. — Persons who can afford to purchase any other joint, usually reject the breast, although it may be prepared in several tasty ways. As a side dish it may be scored and boiled, with -plenty of pepper and salt, and served up with gravy ; or it may be devilled in the usual way, and eaten with either hot gravy or lemon- juice. To boil, put a middle-sized breast, not too fat, into a stewpan, with a carrot, a turnip, an onion stuck with two cloves, a bunch of sweet herbs. Add a pint of cold water. Cover the stewpan, and simmer over a slow fire until the bones can be easily separated. If served with green peas, add the peas, previously boiled, just before serving, and boil gently till the peas are done. Baked Breast of Mutton. — Sew the mutton up in a very thin cloth, lay it in a saucepan, nearly cover it with cold water, and stew gently, allowing 10 minutes to each pound. Take it out, unwrap, and lay it in a baking-dish ; brush over with butter or warm dripping, dredge with flour, and set in the oven for £ hour, basting freely with its own broth. A few minutes before taking it up, strew thickly with crumbs, fine and dry, dot bits of butter over it, and brown. -Serve garnished with slices of beetroot. Boiled Neck of Mutton. — Put the scrag end of a middle-sized neck of mutton into a saucepan, with 2 quarts of cold water ; place over the fire, and skim. When it boils add 2 small turnips, a carrot, an onion, I clove of garlic, some pepper and salt. Simmer gently for 4 hours. The broth should be served up with chopped parsley. Mutton Chops, a la Soyer. — Put an ounce of butter or lard into the frying-pan ; when melted, seize the chop at the bone end with a fork, and dip it for i minute into the fat ; then turn on one side, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and, if liked, finely-chopped shallot or onion, and savoury herbs. In 3 minutes turn, and serve the other side the same ; give the chop altogether not more than 10 minutes, if MEATS : JOINTS, STEAKS, CHOPS, ENTRIES, ETC. thick, but less if thin. A piece of garlic. Serve with plain or maitre d’hStel butter.