667. Sourcrout, Bavarian way.—Well wash one quart of sourcrout, and put it into an earthen pan with a quarter of a bottle of Rhenish wine or any other light wine, and stew it for three hours; then add some veal gravy, well seasoned, and stew for three hours longer, and serve with sausages, or when you add the veal stock, put in a duck or a goose, and serve with it.
668. Laver is a marine plant (the Ulvœ Lactuca), which is obtained, in London, from the West of England; in Dublin, from Malahide; Edinburgh, from Aberdeen. It is merely washed, boiled, pulped, and potted by the fishermen’s wives. It is considered wholesome, but I see nothing particular in it that can make it so unless it is the small quantity of iodine that it contains. It should be dressed like spinach (No. 658), and sent up very hot in a dish over a spirit-lamp, and is generally served with mutton. The following is a new plan I have introduced for cooking it, which has been liked by those persons who formerly disliked it.
Have some mashed potatoes as No. 672, roll it out the thickness of a quarter of an inch, cover it with some cold stewed laver nicely seasoned, put another layer of mashed potatoes over, and allow it to get quite cold, when cut it in square pieces, egg, bread-crumb, and proceed as for ramifolles.
POTATOES.—This root still bears its original American name, signifying earth-apple, and is divided into many species. Amongst those most common in use are the regent, ash-leaf, kidney; but, in the sister kingdom, Ireland, many other varieties are in use; as the lumper, reds, and blacks. There are as many different ways of cooking them as there are different species, which I will now describe.
669. Plain Boiled or Steamed Potatoes.—Well wash the potatoes and peel them, and throw them into cold water (that depends upon the kind, if new or young, or a kidney, they should be cooked immediately after they are peeled, whilst others require to remain a long time in soak); have ready a steamer with boiling water in it, put the potatoes on the top, and steam for twenty to thirty minutes, and serve. Should you not have a steamer, and are obliged to boil them, do so by putting them into plenty of boiling water, and boil till tender or breaking, then pour them out into a colander, put a cloth over them, and put them in the screen, or before the fire, until you are ready to serve them; they ought always to be sent to table very hot.
670. Baked Potatoes.—This is a very favorite dish with many persons; they ought to be of a large size, called Regents, and when cooked very floury. Mr. B. tells me he sometimes lunches at a house in the city where the proprietor grows that sort in particular for the use of his customers, and he finds them better if he leaves them in the ground where they grow until wanted, and he has about three days’ consumption taken up at a time. They are merely well washed, and put into a slow oven for about thirty minutes, or longer if large, and served with a pat of butter in a plate.
671. Fried Potatoes.—The long kidney potato is the best for this purpose; they should be washed and peeled, and cut into very thin slices, and thrown into boiling fat until a nice light brown color; dish up very hot, throwing a little salt over. The remains of cold ones may be cut into slices and fried in the same way, or they may be dipped into batter, and fried like fritters.
672. Mashed Potatoes.—Steam about ten fine potatoes for about thirty-five minutes, put them into a stewpan or bowl, with two ounces of butter, one teaspoonful of salt, a smaller spoonful of pepper, and half a pint of milk, and beat them very well up with a large fork, then add by degrees a gill of milk, and continue beating, and dish them lightly on a dish. Should you require to keep them warm, do so in a stewpan. I do not approve of putting them into moulds and then in the oven, as it makes them heavy.
673. Potatoes à la Maître d’Hôtel.—With young potatoes they are excellent. Boil ten middle-sized ones cut in slices of a quarter of an inch thick, put in the stewpan half a pint of milk or the same of broth, a little salt, pepper, grated nutmeg, and a tablespoonful of fresh chopped parsley, then simmer on fire; when boiling, add a quarter of a pound of fresh butter, the juice of a lemon, stir well for a few minutes; when each piece is well covered with the sauce, dish up, and high in the centre, as they must appear light.
674. Lyonnaise.—The remains of cold potatoes may be used thus:—Put three ounces of butter in an omelette pan, in which you fry rather white three sliced onions; put on the potatoes, cut in thin slices about the size of half a crown, and sauté them now and then until they have a nice yellow color; add a spoonful of chopped parsley, salt, pepper, and the juice of a lemon, sauté well that it should mix well together, dish and serve very hot; they are excellent to serve with chop, steak, or any joint.
675. Irish way of boiling.—In Ireland, where this root has been for so long a period the chief nourishment of the people, and where it takes the place of bread and other more substantial food, it is cooked so that it may have, as they call it, a bone in it; that is, that the middle of it should not be quite cooked. They are done thus:—Put a gallon of water with two ounces of salt, in a large iron pot, boil for about ten minutes, or until the skin is loose, pour the water out of the pot, put a dry cloth on the top of the potatoes, and place it on the side of the fire without water for about twenty minutes, and serve. In Ireland turf is the principal article of fuel, which is burnt on the flat hearth; a little of it is generally scraped up round the pot so as to keep a gradual heat, by this plan the potato is both boiled and baked. Even in those families where such a common art of civilized life as cooking ought to have made some progress, the only improvement they have upon this plan is, that they leave the potatoes in the dry pot longer, by which they lose the bone. They are always served up with the skins on, and a small plate is placed by the side of each guest.
676. To blanch Macaroni.—Have half a gallon of water in a stewpan, in which put two ounces of butter and an ounce of salt; when boiling, throw in a pound of macaroni, which boil until tender, being careful that it is not too much done; the time of boiling depends principally upon the quality, the Genoa macaroni taking the longest time, and the Neapolitan the shortest, which last, if too much done, will fall in purée.
677. Macaroni à l’Italienne.—Boil half a pound of macaroni as above; when done, lay it on a sieve to dry for one minute, put it in a pan, with four spoonfuls of white sauce, add half a teaspoonful of salt, a quarter ditto of pepper, a little cayenne, toss the macaroni over the fire; when boiling, add two ounces each of grated Parmesan and Gruyère cheese, toss round and round until well mixed, then serve with a gill of very strong gravy around it.
678. Macaroni au Gratin.—Proceed the same as above; but after you have put the macaroni on the dish, omit the gravy, and cover it slightly with bread-crumbs, and about the same quantity of Parmesan cheese grated, a little butter, and then put in a hot oven for a quarter of an hour; if not hot enough, pass the salamander over it, and serve very hot.
679. Macaroni à la Napolitaine.—Boil half a pound of the best quality of macaroni for half an hour, as at No. 736; when tender, lay one quarter of it on the dish you intend to serve; have ready two ounces of grated Parmesan cheese, which you divide into four parts to lay over each layer of macaroni, then put over it two tablespoonfuls of strong gravy, made of half glaze and consommé, put the dish in the oven for ten minutes, and serve very hot.
680. The real Italian method (called à l’Estoufade).—Boil and proceed as before, but make the gravy as follows, and use it instead of the preceding. Take two pounds of rump of beef larded through, put in a small stewpan, with one quarter of a pound of butter, fry gently for one hour, turning almost continually; when forming a glaze add half a pint of broth, let simmer another hour, take the fat off, and use that gravy instead of that above described; a little tomato may be introduced if handy, serve the beef at the same time in a separate dish.
681. Fried Mashed Potatoes in various shapes.—Roast twelve fine potatoes; when done, take out the interior, which form into a ball; when cold, put them into a mortar, with a piece of butter half the size of the ball; pound them well together, season with a little salt, pepper, chopped eschalots, chopped parsley, and grated nutmeg, mix them with the yolks of six, and two whole eggs; then form them into croquettes about the size and shape of a small egg, and bread-crumb them twice over, and fry them to a light brown color in a stewpan of hot lard, and serve as garniture where required.
682. To boil Rice.—Wash well in two separate waters a pound of the best Carolina rice, then have two quarts of water boiling in a stewpan, into which throw your rice, boil it until three parts done, then drain it on a sieve; butter the interior of a stewpan, in which put your rice, place the lid on tight, and put it in a warm oven upon a trivet until the rice is perfectly tender, or by the side of the fire; serve it separate with curry, or any other dish where required. Prepared thus, every grain will be separate and quite white.
683. Chopping of Herbs, &c.—This may appear a very simple thing to do well, yet it is often done badly, by which the flavor is lost. They should be well washed and dried, and then take the leaves in the left hand, pressing upon the leaves with your fingers, and chop as fine as possible, not by placing the point of the knife on the board and raising it and letting it fall, but with a good sharp cut, so that they are cut, not pressed. Onions should be peeled, and cut in halves lengthwise, and then with a thin knife cut each half in slices, leaving them joined at the root; again cut into slices contrarywise, and then from top to bottom; thus having cut into very small squares, chop it with both hands with the knife. You may also wash them; when half-chopped press them in a cloth, and chop them still finer.