Gancel's culinary encyclopedia of modern cooking

Lay a few slices of fat of larding pork on the bottom of the braising'pan, place the chicken trussed for braising, or meat, on it. Lay the vegetables around it, with a few bones or trimmings of fresh meat. Cover the braising'pan closely, set it over a slow fire or in the oven, or on top of the range. After twenty minutes, add one pint or more of wine or stock, seasoning it to your taste, and let it cook slowly, according to the size of chicken or your meat. When it is done keep the meat hot while you strain the gravy and take off the fat, which you can do quicker by plunging the basin partly into cold water or ice; this makes the fat coagulate. Boil it up very quickly again until it thickens. Some cooks let the gravy adhere to the meat; this is done by boiling it down until it is reduced to just the quantity required for the purpose. Note: The ingredients should be very well proportioned, onions, carrots, turnips, celery, bay leaves, thyme, etc., peeled and washed and the stewing should go very slowly. HOW TO BOIL Joints to be boiled should be washed extremely clean and skewered into good shape; then they should be put in the saucepan and covered well with water or stock. They must be set over a moderate fire and let boil “slowly.” Just before the water reaches boiling point the scum will rise to the top, and must be carefully skimmed off; if not done at the moment of ebulition it will fall back on the joint boiling and disfigure — 467 — it. The pot will require skimming every time the scum rises; the saucepan must be kept covered all the time, however, the lid , being only removed for the cook to skim the pot. “Gentle: simmering,” not fast boiling, is most desirable for meat, as by quick boiling the outside is hardened before the joint is done, and the meat becomes hard and tough, from the chemical reasons already given. Salted meat requires longer boiling than fresh .meat; when smoked and dried, it takes longer still. Pickled or salted meat should be soaked before boiling in cold Water for a longer or shorter time, as its saltiness and size may require. Take care that the joint, if large, does not adhere to the bottom of the pot; to prevent this possibility cooks sometimes put a few wooden skewers at the bottom Under it. The time allowed for boiling is from a quarter of an hour to twenty minutes for each pound. (1) Supposing, of course, that the fire is kept up; (2) “see article roasting meat;’’ to an equal temperature all the time. Quick boiling is very much to be avoided, but the pot should never be allowed “to stop simmering.” First-rate cooks preserve the whiteness of their boiled meats, and save them from insipidity by “not” boiling them in water, but using instead a sort of broth called in French “poele,” or another called “a blanc.” But these preparations are very expensive, and are not required for ordinary use; however, we give them amongst the sauces in case they should be needed. For people who cannot afford expensive cooking, a well-floured cloth wrapped round the meat to be boiled will make it white; but the cloth must be kept very clean, and should be boiled in pure water after each time it is used; moreover, it must not be suffered to get damp, or it will give a musty flavor to the meat. HOW TO STEW