In Madagascar the ordinary dinner consists of rice, herbs,
xviii
INTRODUCTION TO THE MENUS
and small pieces of pork, but I have given particulars of a great
feast. All the dishes, vegetables, fish, and meats are eaten
separately. European cookery is gradually creeping in, much
to the displeasure of some of the old native dignitaries.
The Samoans cook their food in the same primitive fashion
as the natives in Hawaii, but, unlike them, do not make such an
elaborate ceremony of their feasts. It is well to know that the
old-fashioned dish of Baked Missionary, "long pig," as it is
locally called, has been " off" for some years.
The native feast in Hawaii (Sandwich Islands), is called a
" luau." It usually takes place out of doors, and the table is
thus prepared : — First of all rushes are strewn about, and on
top of these mats are laid, then " ti " leaves, and on top
again of the " ti " leaves, ferns, which may be said to form the
tablecloth, for on it are placed plates, calabashes with poi in
them, and all the dishes which comprise the feast, also glasses.
There are no knives or forks, the guests using their fingers. All
the foods are placed on the table at once, even to the sweets.
The latter are always served cold. Eaten with the usual dishes
are relishes, which are scattered all over the table in little plates.
In these plates we find red rock salt, ground kukui nut, dried
fish and dried squid, little red peppers and different kinds of
seaweed. The latter are very fine in texture, and some varieties
have a very fresh and refreshing taste. As to the liquid part
of a luau, the aboriginals used to drink the "awa" (made
from the root of the kava-kava or piper methysticum), or the
skalehau (made from the root of the ti plant). These are now
seldom seen. On arrival at a luau, cocktails are served (I use
the plural advisedly), and Holland's gin and luau beer flow
INTRODUCTION TO THE MENUS
freely. There is always music at a luau, string and vocal, and
the softness and the charm of Hawaiian music defy description.
A very pretty custom also obtains throughout these islands,
namely the wearing of leis or garlands of flowers, usually
carnations. The incomparable climate, the table with its green
ferns and innumerable calabashes, the flower-bedecked guests
seated on the ground, the music of the singing boys, and
perhaps the softer sound of the distant sea, or of the cocoanut
palms waving under the warm tropic moon, all combine to form
a picture of pleasant memory to anyone who has been fortunate
enough to partake, in the Paradise of the Pacific, of a native
feast or luau.
The Americans are tremendously keen on kickshaws, the
variety of their dishes being wide and varied. Many of them
are made from materials purely indigenous to the country,
such as clams, terapin, canvass-back ducks, etc. Nowadays,
however, these can easily be procured from the large stores,
professional or otherwise, done up in tins. One would have
liked to have given the recipes for preparing the chickens of
Maryland, the rooster of Tennessee, the turkeys of the Wild
West, and the subtle preparation of the lobster cooked in brandy
with tomato and chutney sauce, which insists upon the diner
licking his fingers, so seductive is its savour.
Page 8
Presented as published in 1911. 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
In Madagascar the ordinary dinner consists of rice, herbs,
xviii
and small pieces of pork, but I have given particulars of a great feast. All the dishes, vegetables, fish, and meats are eaten separately. European cookery is gradually creeping in, much to the displeasure of some of the old native dignitaries.
The Samoans cook their food in the same primitive fashion as the natives in Hawaii, but, unlike them, do not make such an elaborate ceremony of their feasts. It is well to know that the old-fashioned dish of Baked Missionary, "long pig," as it is locally called, has been " off" for some years.
The native feast in Hawaii (Sandwich Islands), is called a " luau." It usually takes place out of doors, and the table is thus prepared : — First of all rushes are strewn about, and on top of these mats are laid, then " ti " leaves, and on top again of the " ti " leaves, ferns, which may be said to form the tablecloth, for on it are placed plates, calabashes with poi in them, and all the dishes which comprise the feast, also glasses. There are no knives or forks, the guests using their fingers. All the foods are placed on the table at once, even to the sweets. The latter are always served cold. Eaten with the usual dishes are relishes, which are scattered all over the table in little plates. In these plates we find red rock salt, ground kukui nut, dried fish and dried squid, little red peppers and different kinds of seaweed. The latter are very fine in texture, and some varieties have a very fresh and refreshing taste. As to the liquid part of a luau, the aboriginals used to drink the "awa" (made from the root of the kava-kava or piper methysticum), or the skalehau (made from the root of the ti plant). These are now seldom seen. On arrival at a luau, cocktails are served (I use the plural advisedly), and Holland's gin and luau beer flow
freely. There is always music at a luau, string and vocal, and the softness and the charm of Hawaiian music defy description. A very pretty custom also obtains throughout these islands, namely the wearing of leis or garlands of flowers, usually carnations. The incomparable climate, the table with its green ferns and innumerable calabashes, the flower-bedecked guests seated on the ground, the music of the singing boys, and perhaps the softer sound of the distant sea, or of the coconut palms waving under the warm tropic moon, all combine to form a picture of pleasant memory to anyone who has been fortunate enough to partake, in the Paradise of the Pacific, of a native feast or luau.
The Americans are tremendously keen on kickshaws, the variety of their dishes being wide and varied. Many of them are made from materials purely indigenous to the country, such as clams, terapin, canvass-back ducks, etc. Nowadays, however, these can easily be procured from the large stores, professional or otherwise, done up in tins. One would have liked to have given the recipes for preparing the chickens of Maryland, the rooster of Tennessee, the turkeys of the Wild West, and the subtle preparation of the lobster cooked in brandy with tomato and chutney sauce, which insists upon the diner licking his fingers, so seductive is its savour.