To pickle Oysters, Cockles and Mussels

The Art Of Cookery · Hannah Glasse · 1747
Source
The Art Of Cookery
Status
success · extracted 12 days ago
Not a recipe
No
Ingredients (12)
For Oysters
For Cockles
For Mussels
Instructions (29)
Pickling Oysters
  1. Open oysters, saving their liquor.
  2. Cut off the black verge of the oysters, saving the rest.
  3. Put oysters into their own liquor.
  4. Boil oysters and liquor on a very gentle fire for about half an hour, very slowly.
  5. Skim the oysters as the scum rises.
  6. Take oysters off the fire and remove them from the liquor.
  7. Strain the liquor through a fine cloth.
  8. Put the oysters back into the strained liquor.
  9. Take out a pint of the hot liquor.
  10. Add mace and cloves to the pint of liquor.
  11. Boil the liquor with spices once.
  12. Add the spiced liquor to the oysters.
  13. Stir the spices well among the oysters.
  14. Add about a spoonful of salt.
  15. Add three quarters of a pint of the best white wine vinegar.
  16. Add a quarter of an ounce of whole pepper.
  17. Let the mixture stand until cold.
  18. Put as many oysters as possible into a barrel.
  19. Add enough liquor to fill the barrel.
  20. Let them settle a while; they will soon be fit to eat.
  21. Alternatively, put oysters into stone jars, cover close with a bladder and leather, ensuring they are completely cold before covering.
Pickling Cockles and Mussels
  1. For cockles and mussels, follow the same process as oysters.
  2. Cockles are small; for them, use at least two quarts of the spice mixture.
  3. Mussels must be two quarts.
  4. Wash cockles and mussels in several waters to clean from grit.
  5. Put washed cockles and mussels in a stew-pan by themselves.
  6. Cover the stew-pan close.
  7. When cockles and mussels are open, pick them out of the shells.
  8. Strain the liquor from cockles and mussels.
Original Text
To pickle Oyſters, Cockles and Muſſels. TAKE two hundred of oysters, the newest and best you can get, be careful to save the liquor in some pan, as you open them, cut off the black verge, saving the rest, put them into their own liquor, then put all the liquor and oysters into a kettle; boil them about half an hour, on a very gentle fire, to them very slowly, skimming them as the scum rises, then take them off the fire, take out the oysters, strain the liquor through a fine cloth, then put in the oysters again; then take out a pint of the liquor whilst it is hot, put thereto three quarters of an ounce of mace, and half an ounce of cloves. Just give it one boil, then put it to the oysters, and stir up the spices well among the oysters, then put in about a spoonful of salt, three quarters of a pint of the best white wine vinegar, and a quarter of an ounce of whole pepper, then let them stand till they be cold; then put the oysters as many as you well can into a barrel, put in as much liquor as the barrel will hold, letting them settle a while, and they will soon be fit to eat; you may put them into stone jars, cover them close with a bladder and leather, and be sure they be quite cold before you cover them up. Thus do cockles and mussels, only this, cockles are small, and to this spice you must have at least two quarts, nor is there any thing to pick off them. Mussels you must have two quarts, take great care to pick the crab out under the tongue, and a little gut which grows at the root of the tongue. The two latter, cockles and mussels, must be washed in several waters, to clean them from the grit, put them in a stew-pan by themselves; cover them close, and when they are open, pick them out of the shells and strain the liquor.
Notes
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