A French chef is authority for the statement that the most
economical cook is a woman who keeps her pantry lavishly
supplied with all sorts of seasonings, both the cheap and the
expensive. His argument is that a tough piece of meat, care-
fully cooked and most alluringly seasoned, may result in a dish
of even finer flavor than filet of beef at one dollar a pound.
Among the seasonings which it is good to have constantly
in stock are bay leaves, whole mace, peppercorns, cloves, all-
spice, berries, sage, summer savory, thyme, sweet marjoram,
cayenne, paprika, Worcestershire sauce, kitchen bouquet,
curry, mushroom, tomato and walnut catsup, celery salt, and,
I might add, a box of green parsley growing in a sunny win-
dow of the kitchen.
This list may sound formidable and expensive to the house-
wife who places her whole dependence on pepper and salt.
Experience will teach her, however, that it is cheap. If the
seasonings are put in tightly closed cans, or bottled, they
ITEMS OF VALUE 399
will keep perfectly for almost any length of time. Buy herbs
— such as sage, bay leaves, etc. — in the smallest quantities, and
be sure they are fresh. The advantage of having a goodly
array of seasonings at hand is that you can find a different
flavor for meat dishes every day. A variety may be given to
meats which would almost fail to be palatable if they were
not excellently seasoned.
HOW TO DRY HERBS
In drying herbs from your garden, do not cut and dry them
in the sun. Neither tie them in bunches and hang the bunches
up under cover. In the first instance, you dry out the herb's
peculiar oil or virtue. By the second method, the leaves dis-
color by their own dampness, mould, or fermentation.
The right way in drying herbs for your kitchen and possible
medicinal use is to gather them as soon as they begin to open
their flowers, and to lay them on some netting in a dry shed or
room where the air will get at them on all sides. Be sure they
are dry and not moist when you cut or pick them, and free
them from dirt and decayed leaves. After they are entirely
dried out, put them in paper bags upon which you have written
the name of the herb and the date of tieing it up. Hang them
where the air is dry and there is no chance of their moulding.
POWDERS OF SAVORY HERBS
Strip the leaves from the stalks, pound, sift out the
coarse pieces, put the powder in bottles, and cork tight. Label
with exactness every bottle. If, for the convenience of instant
use in gravies, soups, etc., you wish different herbs mixed,
pound the leaves together when you make them into powders.
Celery seed, dried lemon-peel, and other spicy things can thus
be combined and ready for the moment's call.
ABOUT PEPPER
Of peppers, the white and cayenne are thought the most
harmless. In cooking for the sick, or for persons of weak
digestion, it is well to leave out the pepper altogether. If,
400 THE HOME COOK BOOK
Page 217
Presented as published in 1905. 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
A French chef is authority for the statement that the most economical cook is a woman who keeps her pantry lavishly supplied with all sorts of seasonings, both the cheap and the expensive. His argument is that a tough piece of meat, carefully cooked and most alluringly seasoned, may result in a dish of even finer flavor than filet of beef at one dollar a pound. Among the seasonings which it is good to have constantly in stock are bay leaves, whole mace, peppercorns, cloves, allspice, berries, sage, summer savory, thyme, sweet marjoram, cayenne, paprika, Worcestershire sauce, kitchen bouquet, curry, mushroom, tomato and walnut catsup, celery salt, and, I might add, a box of green parsley growing in a sunny window of the kitchen.
This list may sound formidable and expensive to the housewife who places her whole dependence on pepper and salt. Experience will teach her, however, that it is cheap. If the seasonings are put in tightly closed cans, or bottled, they
will keep perfectly for almost any length of time. Buy herbs — such as sage, bay leaves, etc. — in the smallest quantities, and be sure they are fresh. The advantage of having a goodly array of seasonings at hand is that you can find a different flavor for meat dishes every day. A variety may be given to meats which would almost fail to be palatable if they were not excellently seasoned.
HOW TO DRY HERBS
In drying herbs from your garden, do not cut and dry them in the sun. Neither tie them in bunches and hang the bunches up under cover. In the first instance, you dry out the herb's peculiar oil or virtue. By the second method, the leaves discolor by their own dampness, mould, or fermentation.
The right way in drying herbs for your kitchen and possible medicinal use is to gather them as soon as they begin to open their flowers, and to lay them on some netting in a dry shed or room where the air will get at them on all sides. Be sure they are dry and not moist when you cut or pick them, and free them from dirt and decayed leaves. After they are entirely dried out, put them in paper bags upon which you have written the name of the herb and the date of tieing it up. Hang them where the air is dry and there is no chance of their moulding.
POWDERS OF SAVORY HERBS Strip the leaves from the stalks, pound, sift out the coarse pieces, put the powder in bottles, and cork tight. Label with exactness every bottle. If, for the convenience of instant use in gravies, soups, etc., you wish different herbs mixed, pound the leaves together when you make them into powders. Celery seed, dried lemon-peel, and other spicy things can thus be combined and ready for the moment's call.
ABOUT PEPPER Of peppers, the white and cayenne are thought the most harmless. In cooking for the sick, or for persons of weak digestion, it is well to leave out the pepper altogether. If,