Soups in tins can be turned to excellent account in conjunction with fresh stock in this way :—Kill a good full-sized fowl,
take off all the meat of the breast and use it for a little entrée ;
cut the rest of the bird up, and put it, giblets and all, with a
teaspoonful of salt, into a stew-pan ; fry the pieces in butter
or clarified dripping till slightly coloured, then add half a pint
of water with a tablespoonful of marsala or sherry and one of
good ketchup. Reduce the liquid, turning the pieces of fowl
about to prevent catching until the glaze forms, then cover all
with tepid water, and let the contents of the vessel come very
slowly to the boil, skimming off the scum which may rise
during that time to assist the operation, and adding a little cold water from time to time to assist the operation, and retard the boiling : when clear
of scum and the boiling stage has been attained, put into the
pan a couple of medium-sized onions, say four ounces, cut into
quarters, any fresh vegetables you may be able to add, with a bag
containing a teaspoonful of mixed sweet herbs, a clove of garlic,
a dozen peppercorns, a pinch of parsley-seed, a few drops of
celery essence, a tablespoonful of mushroom ketchup, a tea-
spoonful of sugar, and another teaspoonful of salt. Now, let
the pan come to the boil again, and then reduce the fire for the
simmering stage, which should continue till the onion is soft.
When the pieces of fowl are nice and tender the broth is ready : long cooking will avail nothing : so lift up your pan, and strain
off the broth into a bowl, it will be beautifully bright and clear
if the skimming was carefully attended to at first. Served hot,
with the meat of the legs and thighs, and a separately prepared
dessertspoonful of julienne, this consommé de volaille will be
found sufficient for two hungry men.