The Art of Living in Australia Part 34

STEWED FISH

* 2 Fish--9d.

* 1/2 pint Stock *

* 1 blade of Mace *

* 2 Cloves *

* 1/2 oz. Flour--1/2d.

* 2 tablespoonful Ketchup *

* 1 Onion--1d.

* 1 Egg--1d.

* Bread Crumbs *

* 1 doz. Peppercorns--1/2d.

* Total Cost--1s.

* Time--One Hour and a Quarter *

Fillet the fish and fry them in egg and bread crumbs; slice and fry the onion, lay this and the fish in a tin dish. Cover with stock, put in the cloves, peppercorns, and mace, cover over, and put into a moderate oven for an hour. Mix the flour and ketchup together and stir it in; put back into the oven for ten minutes. Dish the fish and strain the sauce over it.

OYSTERS AND MACARONI

* 2 oz. Macaroni--1 1/2d.

* 1 bottle Oysters--1s.

* 1 gill Milk or Melted b.u.t.ter Sauce--1d.

* Cayenne *

* Salt *

* Bread Crumbs--1d.

* Total Cost--1s. 31/2 d.

* Time--Half an Hour.

Boil the macaroni in the oyster liquor or in weak stock till quite soft. Rub a little b.u.t.ter on a dish, cut the macaroni into pieces two inches long and lay it at the bottom. On this place the oysters, and season them with cayenne, salt, and a little lemon juice or nutmeg.

Pour over the milk or sauce, cover with bread crumbs, and brown it in a quick oven. A few little pieces of b.u.t.ter laid on top of the crumbs make a richer dish. It must be served very hot.

CHAPTER XIX.

FIFTY RECIPES FOR MEAT DISHES

COOKERY OF MEAT.

The princ.i.p.al methods of cooking meat are roasting, baking, boiling, stewing, broiling, braising, and frying. Of these methods roasting and baking are conducted on the same principle--dry heat; boiling and stewing are often spoken of as if they were the same, but this is quite a mistake. When we boil a joint we plunge it into boiling water, and this water should cover it completely; but when meat is stewed it must be cooked in a very small quant.i.ty of water, and never allowed to boil.

Water boils at 212, but simmering heat is 180, and meat cannot be properly stewed if it is cooked quicker than this. One of the great faults of English cooks is that they cook too quickly, and it is particularly necessary in stewing to cook slowly, because we want to extract and blend all the different flavours of the various substances, which are necessary for a good and savoury stew. When boiling meat for table plunge it into boiling water, and then reduce the heat; but when broth or soup is to be made it must be put into cold water, so that the goodness may be drawn from it. Corned beef or pork should also be placed in cold water and heated gradually, so that some of the salt is drawn out. The frying-pan should be discarded from the kitchen, at least as far as steaks and chops are concerned; grilling or broiling is by far the best method of cooking them. Meat unless it is very carefully fried is tough and greasy, yet the same piece of meat if grilled or stewed would be tender and nutritious. There is often a prejudice against meat twice cooked, but the most delicate ENTREES that are so highly esteemed by many are only re-cooked meat. It is the time and care expended on it that makes it so delicious. Even in plain cooking there is no reason why the homely dish of hash should not be appetizing and wholesome. I trust that the following recipes, if carefully carried out, will prove this to be true.

STEAK AND KIDNEY PIE

* 2 lbs. Steak--5d.

* 2 Kidneys--1 1/2d.

* 1 lb. Flour *

* 1/2 lb. Dripping *

* 1 gill Water *

* Pepper and Salt--2d.

* Total Cost--81/2 d.

* Time--One Hour and a Half *

Mix a teaspoonful of flour in a plate with some pepper and salt, slice up the meat into pieces about three inches long by two broad, dip each piece lightly in the flour; skin and slice up the kidneys, and cut the fat into small pieces. Roll a piece of kidney and a piece of fat alternatively in the slices of meat, pile high in a dish, and pour in a gill of water or stock. Make a short crust by directions given for short pastry, wet the edge of the dish and line it with a strip of the paste, wet this strip again with water and cover the dish with paste; trim off the edge, cut a small piece out of the centre of the pie, and ornament it with a few leaves cut out of the paste tr.i.m.m.i.n.gs. Brush over with water and bake in a moderate oven for one hour and a half. As soon as the crust has acquired some colour, cover with a piece of paper well rubbed with dripping.

STEAK AND KIDNEY PUDDING

* 2 lbs. Steak--5d.

* 2 Kidneys--1 1/2d.

* 1 lb. Flour--2d.

* 1/2 lb. Suet *

* 1/2 pint Water *

* Pepper and Salt--1 1/2d.

* Total Cost--10d.

* Time--Three Hours *

Make a dry crust, by directions given elsewhere, of the flour, suet, and b.u.t.ter. Rub the pudding basin well with dripping, roll out the crust, take two-thirds and line the basin, well pressing the crust in.

Slice up the meat and kidney, season with pepper and salt, pile lightly in the basin, pour in half a gill of water, wet the edge of the crust.

Roll out the piece left, and cover the pudding securely. Dip a cloth in boiling water, put it over the top, tie it round with string, and pin or tie the ends of the cloth over the top. Plunge into plenty of boiling water, and boil for three hours. Take it up, take off the cloth, turn it out of the basin on to a hot dish, and serve hot.

STEWED KIDNEYS AND MACARONI