Manual for army cooks

6 pounds potatoes. 1 pound flour. 1 pound onions. 6 ounces salt. 1 pound celery. 6 ounces sugar. 1 pound turnip. 6 tablespoonfuls vinegar. 1 pound carrot. 3^ gallons water. Cut the meat into pieces one inch square, the fat into smaller pieces ; place them in the boiler ; when warm add the vegetables (except the potatoes)) cut very small, stir tliem round so that they do not "burn ; when they are on the point of doing so add the water by degrees ; peel the potatoes, put them in a net, and place them in the boiler ; when done take them out and mash them ; after the soup has been boiling two hours add the potatoes, with the seasoning and flour mixed, and the vinegar ; boil slowly for thirty minutes, keep stirring it, and serve. FRIED BREAD FOR SOUPS. Cut stale bread into dice, and fry in boiling fat until brown. It will take about half a minute. REMARKS ON FISH. Fresh fish are best when just taken from the water. They are fresh when the eyes are clear, the fins stifi", the gills red, and hard to open. Unless fish have been frozen or have inhabited muddy streams they should not be soaked. If frozen, soak them in ice-cold water to thaw. If they have inhabited muddy streams, after they have been cut up soak them in strong salt water. A fish or part of a fish of less than three pounds' weight except rockfish is too small for boiling. Exact time for boiling fish can not be given, as much depends upon the size and kind. A piece of fresh cod weighing three pounds will cook in from eighteen to twenty minutes. Salmon should be allowed a longer time, while six or seven minutes per pound will be enough for sheepshead, rockfish, etc. Mackerel need from ten to twelve minutes; herring and many other kinds of fish scarcely half so long. As a general rule fish with white flesh require less time for boiling than fish with dark flesh. It requires experience to know exactly how long to boil a fish, although it is claimed that by putting salt and vinegar into the water six minutes to the pound is enough for all kinds of fish, thick or thin. Care must be taken that the fish is not underdone, but if boiled too much or allowed to remain too long in the water it will be insipid. The fish is done when the meat separates easily from the backbone. Test with a fork. TO PREPARE FISH. Scrape off the scales, remove the entrails, etc., thoroughly wash the fish inside and out in cold water, and wipe it dry immediately with a cloth, inside and out. If the pot is small for the fish, skewer the tail into the mouth, then tie or pin the fish uj) in a clean towel or cloth and it is ready for boiling. BOILED FISH. Put the fish into enough boiling water to cover it about an inch, with two tablespoonfuls of salt and four tablespoonfuls of vinegar to a piece of fish of about five pounds weight. Simmer steadily until done. When cooked take up the fish, remove the cloth carefully, put the fish into a hot dish, pour a hot fish sauce over it (see Sauces for Boiled Fish), and serve, or send the sauce to table in a sej)arate dish. To boil the roes, wash and wipe with a soft cloth. Put them inside the fish, tied with a thread or light twine, and boil as above ; or they may be boiled separately wrapped in a cloth. FRIED FISH.