"There you would make a great mistake," said
Alice, decidedly. " The pan must be dry, so that
the chicken will brown on the bottom ; and the
chicken must be dry, so it may broil, instead of
steam and stew. Besides, if the chicken was
basted with ])utter it Avould brown with less heat ;
and Cousin Kate says the secret of success in
this method, is in having the oven just as hot as
the chicken will ]:)ear without burning. It would
by no means be the same, in appearance or taste,
if done in a slow, or even a moderate oven."
"All birds that are good broiled, are better
Vv^hen cooked in a hot oven in the manner Alice
has just described," I remarked ; when the appear-
ance of Tom with the mail interrupted the conver-
sation. Among my letters was one from my
friend Mrs. Rose, containing some hints for my
cook-book. In. regard to quail, she wrote :
" ' I think there is no bird more delicate than
a quail broiled in this manner : Lay the bird on
a gridiron, and, when it begins to brown, dip it
into butter, seasoned with salt✪ Broiled Quail and pepper. Con-
128 COOKING AND CASTLE-BUILDING.
tinue to broil and dip, until it is done brown — a
nice yellow brown all over. Serve hot.' "
"You don't approve of that, Kate, do you?"
interrupted Emeline ; " it seems to clash with some
of your theories."
"At all events, Emeline, I shall not condemn
without trying it. And perhaps the use of the
butter here to hasten the browning, may be a
good thing, as otherwise the bird might be too
much done before it was properly browned. But
to return to the letter.
"^Wild ducks should be cooked as soon as
possible after they are shot. I know that large
quantities are sent to gentlemen in London, by
their friends in this country. But by the time
they reach them, I doubt not the English gen-
try think very much as Mrs. M. did, especially if
their ducks are cooked in the same manner hers
were. Her husband's brother sent her from
Washington a pair of canvas-backs for which he
paid $10 ; but she didn't think them as good as a
pair of tame ducks she could buy in her own
town for ten shillings. I asked her how she
cooked them. She said she stuffed them with
bread dressing, seasoned with onion, and baked
them an hour and a half✪ Baked Ducks. Now this is my recipe :
Draw out the entrails, and rinse the ducks ; but
don't soak them, as some ignorant cooks do, or
you will lose the juices. Kub inside with salt and
OMELET AND DAINTY DISHES. 129
pepper, and put in each duck a piece of butter
the size of an egg, and a teaspoonful of red wine.
Eoast twenty or twenty-five minutes. By no
means allow the birds to be moved while roasting,
lest their juices be spilled. When done they will
be full of a bright red gravy. Kemove carefully
to, and serve on, a hot dish. ✪ Terrapin Stew
Page 53 · 6 recipe records on this page
Presented as published in 1880. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
"There you would make a great mistake," said Alice, decidedly. " The pan must be dry, so that the chicken will brown on the bottom ; and the chicken must be dry, so it may broil, instead of steam and stew. Besides, if the chicken was basted with butter it would brown with less heat ; and Cousin Kate says the secret of success in this method, is in having the oven just as hot as the chicken will ]:)ear without burning. It would by no means be the same, in appearance or taste, if done in a slow, or even a moderate oven."
"All birds that are good broiled, are better when cooked in a hot oven in the manner Alice has just described," I remarked ; when the appearance of Tom with the mail interrupted the conversation. Among my letters was one from my friend Mrs. Rose, containing some hints for my cook-book. In. regard to quail, she wrote :
" ' I think there is no bird more delicate than a quail broiled in this manner : Lay the bird on a gridiron, and, when it begins to brown, dip it into butter, seasoned with salt and pepper. Continue to broil and dip, until it is done brown — a nice yellow brown all over. Serve hot.' "
"You don't approve of that, Kate, do you?" interrupted Emeline ; " it seems to clash with some of your theories."
"At all events, Emeline, I shall not condemn without trying it. And perhaps the use of the butter here to hasten the browning, may be a good thing, as otherwise the bird might be too much done before it was properly browned. But to return to the letter.
"Wild ducks should be cooked as soon as possible after they are shot. I know that large quantities are sent to gentlemen in London, by their friends in this country. But by the time they reach them, I doubt not the English gentry think very much as Mrs. M. did, especially if their ducks are cooked in the same manner hers were. Her husband's brother sent her from Washington a pair of canvas-backs for which he paid $10 ; but she didn't think them as good as a pair of tame ducks she could buy in her own town for ten shillings. I asked her how she cooked them. She said she stuffed them with bread dressing, seasoned with onion, and baked them an hour and a half. Now this is my recipe : Draw out the entrails, and rinse the ducks ; but don't soak them, as some ignorant cooks do, or you will lose the juices. Rub inside with salt and
pepper, and put in each duck a piece of butter the size of an egg, and a teaspoonful of red wine. Roast twenty or twenty-five minutes. By no means allow the birds to be moved while roasting, lest their juices be spilled. When done they will be full of a bright red gravy. Remove carefully to, and serve on, a hot dish.
Records on this page
Broiled ChickenBroiled QuailBaked DucksRoasted DucksTerrapin StewOmelet