There are many American vegetables which
may be cooked without a twang. They are
all in tins or bottles, bearing plain directions.
Among others I can speak from personal
experience of Sugar Corn, Green Corn,
Oyster Corn, Boston Beans, Lima Beans, and
Succotash. This last is a meal in itself, and
of most excellent flavour and convenience.
Green corn, too, reminds those who know
the South African mealie in all its toothsome-
ness, of many a hearty supper of Kaffir
mealies roasted in the embers of a camp fire,
or even in that most primitive of ovens, an
ant-heap, which, believe it or not as you will,
turns out better cooked meats than some of
your very patent, very modern, very " gad-
getty " kitchen ranges, although not better,
I ween, than my chaste Chaffinda.
From vegetables to salads is but one step.
I do not see any valid reason for apologising
for the inclusion of salads in a Chafing-Dish
book. They are not cooked in a Chafing
Dish, it is true, but it is part of my religion
that no meal is complete without a salad,
126 THE CHAFING DISH
green for choice, but anyhow a salad. I do
not insist on salad for breakfast, although on
a blazing hot July day, after a swim or a
tramp, or both, I can imagine worse things
than an omelette, some kidneys and bacon,
and a slice of real ham, and a green salad to
top up with. But no dinner is really a
dinner without a salad, and by that I do not
mean three scraggy lettuce leaves, soused in
vinegar, which as Salade de saison is the usual
accompaniment to that disastrous hen, 'Poulet
au cresson, which is a centipede as to legs and
has no breast or liver wing.
As this screed is, after all, a plain record
of personal likes and dislikes, I see no reason
for concealing the fact that I have no use
whatever, no manner of use in the wide wide
world, for mayonnaise with salad. The
Americans swear by it ; I swear at it. My
salad mixture, which goes with everything —
absolutely everything — is simplicity itself.
Eccoio I
VEGETABLES AND SALADS 127
Salad Mixture.
Into a large bowl put half a teaspoon of
salt, same of Paprika, a dash of black pepper,
freshly ground by a hand-mill, and a tea-
spoon of made English mustard. Mix them
up well. Now add very gradually the very
best quality of olive oil, almost drop by drop,
to the quantity of three tablespoons, mixing
all the time until the ingredients assume
the consistency of cream ; now thin this
with one tablespoon of good wine vinegar,
and amalgamate thoroughly. That is all I
use.
Now and again, by way of extra titillation
of the jaded palate, you may add half a
tablespoon of Tarragon vinegar✪ Salad Mixture, herbs to
taste, Spring onions, chives, French mustard,
olives (French only), hard-boiled eggs, dande-
lion leaves, nasturtium leaves, and celery
salt.
But there are half a dozen rules which I
would seriously enjoin the salad mixer to
bear in mind.
Only use a wooden spoon and fork for
mixing.
128 THE CHAFING DISH
Never cut a lettuce ; always break it with
the fingers.
Dry the lettuce thoroughly in a serviette
or in a salad-basket before breaking.
Make the salad ten minutes before eating
it. Neither more nor less.
Do not bother about garnishing the top of
a salad ; see the ingredients are well mixed.
The decoration will look after itself and be
much more artistic if left natural than if
fussed into geometrical designs.
Make your mixture proportionate to your
salad. This is a matter of intuition and
experience combined. The test of right
mixing is that no fluid should remain at the
bottom of the bowl when finally mixed.
The " fatiguing " or turning over and
over, that is, the actual mixing of the salad,
should be very thoroughly done for just as
long as is bearable to the verge of impatience.
Rub a crust of bread with garlic or onion,
put it in the bottom of the bowl and take it
out just before serving. This is a chafon.
Page 35 · 1 recipe record on this page
Presented as published in 1904. 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 are many American vegetables which may be cooked without a twang. They are all in tins or bottles, bearing plain directions. Among others I can speak from personal experience of Sugar Corn, Green Corn, Oyster Corn, Boston Beans, Lima Beans, and Succotash. This last is a meal in itself, and of most excellent flavour and convenience. Green corn, too, reminds those who know the South African mealie in all its toothsomeness, of many a hearty supper of Kaffir mealies roasted in the embers of a camp fire, or even in that most primitive of ovens, an ant-heap, which, believe it or not as you will, turns out better cooked meats than some of your very patent, very modern, very " gadgetty " kitchen ranges, although not better, I ween, than my chaste Chaffinda.
From vegetables to salads is but one step. I do not see any valid reason for apologising for the inclusion of salads in a Chafing-Dish book. They are not cooked in a Chafing Dish, it is true, but it is part of my religion that no meal is complete without a salad,
green for choice, but anyhow a salad. I do not insist on salad for breakfast, although on a blazing hot July day, after a swim or a tramp, or both, I can imagine worse things than an omelette, some kidneys and bacon, and a slice of real ham, and a green salad to top up with. But no dinner is really a dinner without a salad, and by that I do not mean three scraggy lettuce leaves, soused in vinegar, which as Salade de saison is the usual accompaniment to that disastrous hen, 'Poulet au cresson, which is a centipede as to legs and has no breast or liver wing.
As this screed is, after all, a plain record of personal likes and dislikes, I see no reason for concealing the fact that I have no use whatever, no manner of use in the wide wide world, for mayonnaise with salad. The Americans swear by it ; I swear at it. My salad mixture, which goes with everything — absolutely everything — is simplicity itself. Eccoio I
Salad Mixture.
Into a large bowl put half a teaspoon of salt, same of Paprika, a dash of black pepper, freshly ground by a hand-mill, and a teaspoon of made English mustard. Mix them up well. Now add very gradually the very best quality of olive oil, almost drop by drop, to the quantity of three tablespoons, mixing all the time until the ingredients assume the consistency of cream ; now thin this with one tablespoon of good wine vinegar, and amalgamate thoroughly. That is all I use.
Now and again, by way of extra titillation of the jaded palate, you may add half a tablespoon of Tarragon vinegar, herbs to taste, Spring onions, chives, French mustard, olives (French only), hard-boiled eggs, dandelion leaves, nasturtium leaves, and celery salt.
But there are half a dozen rules which I would seriously enjoin the salad mixer to bear in mind.
Only use a wooden spoon and fork for mixing.
Never cut a lettuce ; always break it with the fingers.
Dry the lettuce thoroughly in a serviette or in a salad-basket before breaking.
Make the salad ten minutes before eating it. Neither more nor less.
Do not bother about garnishing the top of a salad ; see the ingredients are well mixed. The decoration will look after itself and be much more artistic if left natural than if fussed into geometrical designs.
Make your mixture proportionate to your salad. This is a matter of intuition and experience combined. The test of right mixing is that no fluid should remain at the bottom of the bowl when finally mixed.
The " fatiguing " or turning over and over, that is, the actual mixing of the salad, should be very thoroughly done for just as long as is bearable to the verge of impatience. Rub a crust of bread with garlic or onion, put it in the bottom of the bowl and take it out just before serving. This is a chafon.
Records on this page
Salad Mixture