Terrapin

Ingredients

• a quart of water
• half a pound of butter
• three heaped tablespoonfuls of flour
• salt to taste
• half a saltspoonful of powdered mace
• the same of red pepper
• one teaspoonful of good butter
• two tablespoonfuls of brown sugar
• half a pint of best sherry

Method

1. 1

   Boil the live terrapin in water until the skin can be pulled off.

2. 2

   Cool, then remove the shell and livers.

3. 3

   Cut the meat into pieces.

4. 4

   In a saucepan, boil the reserved water, add butter mixed with flour, salt, mace, and red pepper, stirring until thickened.

5. 5

   Add the terrapin and let it heat.

6. 6

   In a frying pan, melt butter and brown sugar, then add water.

7. 7

   Stir into the terrapin mixture, remove from heat, and add sherry.

8. 8

   Serve immediately.

As published

This recipe was extracted from The housewife's referee (1898) by Harriet Anne de Salis, University of Leeds Library, page 84. The excerpt below is the record exactly as published.

Terrapin. — When a pot of water is boiling hard, drop the live terrapin in, and boil from one-half to three-quarters of an hour or more, until the skin can be pulled off their feet and the upper and lower shells are coming apart. Then take them out of the pot and set them to cool (they must be fairly warm or they will not pick apart well) ; reserve a quart of water in which they have boiled. Open the shell of the terrapin and quickly pull off the head and remove the two livers ; the largest liver contains the gall in a small round sac, which must be care- fully cut loose and removed without breaking (hold it off^ some distance from the terrapin, for the least drop will spoil everything), wash the livers and cut them up in medium-sized pieces, then all the rest of the terrapin, entrails included, is good. Cut the latter in pieces an inch 122 THE HOUSEWIFE^S EEFEKEE long. Kemove the two sand bags (small bladders adhering to the top shells) and throw them away. Skin the feet, and throw away the skin and toe nails. All the meat on the neck is good ; also the bones. Put the quart of water they were boiled in into a saeepan; when it boils, add half a pound of butter mixed carefully with three heaped tablespoonfuls of flour, salt to taste, half a saltspoonful of powdered mace, the same of red pepper, and keep stirring till it thickens; then pour in the terrapin, and let it boil up once, then set the saucepan on one side of the fire, when it must be kept hot but not boil. Next take a frying-pan, put in one teaspoonful of good butter and tAvo tablespoonfuls of brown sugar, and stir quickly and without ceasing till it is a dark brown colour (almost black), but must not burn ; then add two tablespoonfuls of water, still stirring. Then take one dessertspoonful of this and stir it into the saucepan of terrapin, which must be hot ; then take it off the fire, and add half a pint of best sherry

Cook this with the app: pantry check, scaling, and the assistant.