304. Westphalia Ham à l'Essence—(With Essence.) Take a small Westphalia ham, and trim it well. Be particular in sawing off the knuckle, in order not to break the bone into splinters. Keep it one day in water, to take out the brine, and boil it in plain water for four hours. When done, drain it, take off the rind, and give it a nice round form. Then put it in the oven for a few minutes to dry the fat, which otherwise could not be glazed properly. When quite dried, glaze it of a fine colour, and serve under it an essence.-(See Sauces.)

305. To Make Ham superior to Westphalia.

As soon as the pig is cold enough to be cut up, take the two hams, and cut out the round bone, so as to have the ham not too thick: rub them well with common salt, and leave them in a large pan for three days; when the salt has drawn out all the blood, throw the brine away, and proceed as follows: for two hams of about eighteen pounds each, take one pound of moist sugar, one pound of common salt, and two ounces of saltpetre, mix them together, and rub the hams well with it, then put them into a vessel large enough to contain them in the liquor, always keeping the salt over them; after they have been in this state three days, throw over them a bottle of good vinegar. One month is requisite to cure them; during which period they must be often turned in the brine; when you take them out, drain them well, powder them with some coarse flour, and hang them in a dry place. The same brine will serve again, except that you must not put so much salt on the next hams that you pickle. If the hams are smaller, put only three-quarters of a pound of salt, but the salt will not do any harm if you do not let them remain too long in the brine; if you can get them smoked, they are then not so subject to be infected by vermin; no insect whatever can bear the bitterness of the soot; the smoke of wood is preferable to the smoke of coal. Be particular that the hams are hung as far as possible from the fire, otherwise the fat will melt, and they will become dry and hard

306. Ham with Madeira.

Take in preference a Westmoreland ham, which prepare in the same manner as directed above: but it need not be left so long in water, as it is not so briny as the Westphalia hams are. Blanch it in water only during two hours. Then drain it, and put it into a braizing-pan, trimmed with thin slices of veal at the bottom, seasoned with carrots, onions, parsley, bay-leaves, spices, &c. Pour over these two glasses of rich consommé (stockbroth, No. 2), and a bottle of Madeira, let it boil for about a couple of hours. When done, pour some of the liquor, after having skimmed off the fat, to reduce to an Espagnole (Spanish sauce, No. 17), which is the proper

sauce.

N. B.-When the ham has boiled for two hours in the water, you must trim it instantly, before you put it with the wine, that you may send it up the moment you take it out of the braize. Reduce the liquor to make the glaze for it.

307. Ham with Windsor Beans.

Boil the ham as in No. 304, glaze it in the same manner, and serve under it Windsor beans, dressed as follows:

Take some very small Windsor beans, boil them in water with a little salt; when boiled enough, take a little velouté (No. 21), into which throw a half quarter of a pound of fresh butter, a little chopped parsley and winter savory, toss the beans in that sauce after having drained them, and dish the ham over the beans.

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CHAP. VIII.

VENISON.

308. The Haunch of Venison*.

It was customary in France to cut off a small rosette from the leg, to lard and then pickle it. In England it is customary to put it on the spit, then to make some paste with flour and water only, and case the venison with it, securing it with a few sheets of paper. It cannot be done thoroughly in less than four hours. It is usually served up with red currant jelly made hot with a little port wine. The women cooks, in England, put flour over the roast just before they remove it from the spit: a custom which is utterly absurd. I approve of the practice of flouring roasted meat, if it be done early enough to imbibe the gravy, and get nicely browned, when it becomes very tasty. In the other case, the froth of the flour and butter adhere to the palate, and have an abominable taste.

309. The Neck of Venison

Is also to be roasted; but as it is not nearly so thick as the haunch, the paste may be less thick, if you take care to stop the spit in the under side of the neck.

310. Saddle of Fawn, or Chevreuil.

The same as No. 230. When larded, put it into a very large vessel with salt, pepper, and onions cut into slices, parsley, vinegar, spices, &c. Leave it to pickle for two or three days, taking great care to turn it frequently on every side. Then roast it, and serve with a poivrade, or brown sharp sauce (No. 27), under it. Mind that the fillets and both legs must be larded.

*The great point in roasting venison is to keep the fat as much as possible from melting; the paste put over it prevents the heat of the fire from wasting it.

CHAP. IX.

FOWLS.

Observation.-In buying the fowls choose always whitelegged ones; their flesh is finer, and the skin more tender; they also look better at table. The manner of fattening fowls is, to separate them from the other chickens; mix together some oatmeal, milk, boiled potatoes and bread, if you have any left from the table; add to the whole of it a little dripping; mind not to give them too much at a time, and not more than twice a day; and above all, keep them very clean. When they are sufficiently fattened, kill them, or they will fall ill and die. When you find any of your poultry sick, chop a few leeks with their food, which will cure them; but when they become very fat, if you do not kill them, they will inevitably rot and die away.

311. Fowl au Consommé (Fowl boiled in Broth), generally termed, Au Gros Sel—(With Coarse Salt.)

Take a fine fat fowl, the flesh and skin of which are perfectly white; empty the fowl without making too great an aperture, singe it gently, and scald the legs, which are to be turned inside the body; then lay on it a pretty thick layer of fat bacon; fasten it tight, and let it be boiled in broth, which must boil before you put it in, otherwise the fowl would lose its white colour. If the fowl is of a larger size, it will require an hour and a quarter before it is done enough: if it is of a common size, one hour will do. Next drain it in a dish, wipe off all the fat, and send it up with a little of the liquor in which it was boiled, and which has been reduced in the process from one quart to half a pint at least, with the

addition of a little salt in the liquor, and put salt on the breast of the fowl.

312. Fowl, au Gros Sel-(Fowl with Coarse Salt.)

The same as above, with this difference only, that you lay both over and under the fowl some crystallized salt, which has not been pounded.

313. Fowl à la Vileroi.

Take a fine fowl, which may be known by a skin of bluish hue marbled with grey: it is to be emptied and singed in the same manner as directed No. 311. Let it be trussed, the legs turned down outwards: introduce inside of the body a small quantity of butter kneaded with salt and lemon-juice. The fowl is to be put into an oval stewpan, with a layer of fat bacon: next pour some poëlé over it.-(See below.) As those articles which are poëlés* require to preserve their whiteness, they are not to be kept on the fire so long as others. It requires only three-quarters of an hour for a fowl to be done in this style. A capon would require full an hour. To be served with sauce à la financière (financier's sauce, No. 75).

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Observation. As the poëlé has no translation, it retains its name; it is indispensable in fine cookery, and is made as follows:

Poëlé.

Take one pound of beef-suet, one pound of very fresh butter, and one pound of very fat bacon; cut the suet and the bacon into very large dice, put them into a stewpan with two pounds of veal cut in the same manner, fried till the veal becomes very white, and then moisten with about three pints of clear boiling water, a handful of salt, one bay-leaf, a few sprigs of thyme, one onion stuck with three cloves, and a great bundle of pars

Poëlés is almost the same operation as braizing; the only difference is, that what is poëlé must be underdone, and a braize must be done through.