A year's cookery

Boiled Chicken. — Some people think that it would be impossible to boil less than a whole chicken to produce a satisfactory result. A half, or even a quarter of a fowl can, however, be prepared thus, and so both monotony and waste can be avoided. If possible, get a little second stock or veal broth to cover the chicken. If this is not at hand, an onion, a carrot, a bunch of herbs, and a few strips of bacon rind put into the water will help to give flavour. Bring the stock to the boil, put in the meat, boil for a minute, then draw the pan back and simmer gently until the chicken is tender. When it is dished, pour over it a little green parsley sauce, golden rain, or any sort of white sauce, and garnish with bacon rolls. {See p. 262.) If liked, the chicken can be taken up, and a sauce may be made by adding to one cupful of the stock in which it was boiled four tablespoonfuls of milk and a beaten egg. Stir the sauce over the fire for a minute or two, but do not let it boil, and serve while hot. Fillets of Chicken. — Cut as many neat slices of meat from the breast of a fowl as it is thought that the invalid can eat. Trim them neatly and press them with the flat side of a knife that has been dipped in cool water, and put them in a shallow tin. Season them with salt and a squeeze of lemon -juice, and lay a sheet of greased kitchen paper over them. Bake in a moderate oven for a few minutes till the meat is sufficiently cooked. If the fillets are cut carefully, the fowl from which they are taken can be boiled or roasted another time. Minced Chicken on Toast. — Stew part of a chicken till tender. Take the meat from the bones, and cut it with a sharp knife into small, neat pieces. Strain half a cupful of the stock in which the chicken was stewed, thicken it with a little flour, and add an equal measure of milk. Season pleasantly, and stir the sauce over the fire until it boils ; then put in the mince, let it remain by the side of the fire till hot through, and pour over a slice of lightly buttered toast. Slewed Chicken. — Take a half or a quarter of chicken that has been neatly trimmed. Melt a good tablespoonful of bacon fat in a stewpan which has a closely-fitting lid ; put in the portion of meat and turn it over and about till it is well browned all over. Add half a gill of good stock, cover the saucepan closely, draw it back, and cook as gently as possible for an hour. Take up the meat, clear the fat from the gravy (it will rise more readily if set in a basin of cold water), make it hot once more, and serve poured over the bird.