The Book of Household Management - Mrs. Isabella Beeton
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TO BOIL PICKLED PORK.
834. INGREDIENTS.--Pork; water.
_Mode_.--Should the pork be very salt, let it remain in water about 2
hours before it is dressed; put it into a saucepan with sufficient cold
water to cover it, let it gradually come to a boil, then gently simmer
until quite tender. Allow ample time for it to cook, as nothing is more
disagreeable than underdone pork, and when boiled fast, the meat becomes
hard. This is sometimes served with boiled poultry and roast veal,
instead of bacon: when tender, and not over salt, it will be found
equally good.
_Time_.--A piece of pickled pork weighing 2 lbs., 1-1/4 hour; 4 lbs.,
rather more than 2 hours.
_Average cost_, 10d. per lb. for the primest parts.
_Seasonable_ at any time.
THE ANTIQUITY OF THE HOG.--By what nation and in what period the
hog was reclaimed, is involved in the deepest obscurity. So far
back as we have any records of history, we find notices of this
animal, and of its flesh being used as the food of man. By some
nations, however, its flesh was denounced as unclean, and
therefore prohibited to be used, whilst by others it was
esteemed as a great delicacy. By the Mosaic law it was forbidden
to be eaten by the Jews, and the Mahometans hold it in utter
abhorrence. Dr. Kitto, however, says that there does not appear
to be any reason in the law of Moses why the hog should be held
in such peculiar abomination. There seems nothing to have
prevented the Jews, if they had been so inclined, to rear pigs
for sale, or for the use of the land. In the Talmud there are
some indications that this was actually done; and it was,
probably, for such purposes that the herds of swine mentioned in
the New Testament were kept, although it is usual to consider
that they were kept by the foreign settlers in the land. Indeed,
the story which accounts for the peculiar aversion of the
Hebrews to the hog, assumes that it did not originate until
about 130 years before Christ, and that, previously, some Jews
were in the habit of rearing hogs for the purposes indicated.
PORK PIES (Warwickshire Recipe).
835. INGREDIENTS.--For the crust, 5 lbs. of lard to 14 lbs. of flour,
milk, and water. For filling the pies, to every 3 lbs. of meat allow 1
oz. of salt, 2-1/4 oz. of pepper, a small quantity of cayenne, 1 pint of
water.
_Mode_.--Rub into the flour a portion of the lard; the remainder put
with sufficient milk and water to mix the crust, and boil this gently
for 1/4 hour. Pour it boiling on the flour, and knead and beat it till
perfectly smooth. Now raise the crust in either a round or oval form,
cut up the pork into pieces the size of a nut, season it in the above
proportion, and press it compactly into the pie, in alternate layers of
fat and lean, and pour in a small quantity of water; lay on the lid, cut
the edges smoothly round, and pinch them together. Bake in a brick oven,
which should be slow, as the meat is very solid. Very frequently, the
inexperienced cook finds much difficulty in raising the crust. She
should bear in mind that it must not be allowed to get cold, or it will
fall immediately: to prevent this, the operation should be performed as
near the fire as possible. As considerable dexterity and expertness are
necessary to raise the crust with the hand only, a glass bottle or small
jar may be placed in the middle of the paste, and the crust moulded on
this; but be particular that it is kept warm the whole time.
_Sufficient_.--The proportions for 1 pie are 1 lb. of flour and 3 lbs.
of meat.
_Seasonable_ from September to March.
THE FLESH OF SWINE IN HOT CLIMATES.--It is observed by M.
Sonini, that the flesh of swine, in hot climates, is considered
unwholesome, and therefore may account for its proscription by
the legislators and priests of the East. In Egypt, Syria, and
even the southern parts of Greece, although both white and
delicate, it is so flabby and surcharged with fat, that it
disagrees with the strongest stomachs. Abstinence from it in
general was, therefore, indispensable to health under the
burning suns of Egypt and Arabia. The Egyptians were permitted
to eat it only once a year,--on the feast of the moon; and then
they sacrificed a number of these animals to that planet. At
other seasons, should any one even touch a hog, he was obliged
immediately to plunge into the river Nile, as he stood, with his
clothes on, in order to purify himself from the supposed
contamination he had contracted by the touch.
LITTLE RAISED PORK PIES.
836. INGREDIENTS.--2 lbs. of flour, 1/2 lb. of butter, 1/2 lb. of mutton
suet, salt and white pepper to taste, 4 lbs. of the neck of pork, 1
dessertspoonful of powdered sage.
_Mode_.--Well dry the flour, mince the suet, and put these with the
butter into a saucepan, to be made hot, and add a little salt. When
melted, mix it up into a stiff paste, and put it before the fire with a
cloth over it until ready to make up; chop the pork into small pieces,
season it with white pepper, salt, and powdered sage; divide the paste
into rather small pieces, raise it in a round or oval form, fill with
the meat, and bake in a brick oven. These pies will require a fiercer
oven than those in the preceding recipe, as they are made so much
smaller, and consequently do not require so soaking a heat.
_Time_.--If made small, about 1-1/2 hour.
_Seasonable_ from September to March.
SWINEHERDS OF ANTIQUITY.--From the prejudice against the hog
among the ancients, those who tended them formed an isolated
class, and were esteemed as the outcasts of society. However
much the flesh of the animal was esteemed by the Greeks and
Romans, yet the swineherd is not mentioned by either the classic
writers or the poets who, in ancient Greece and Rome, painted
rural life. We have no descriptions of gods or heroes descending
to the occupation of keeping swine. The swineherd is never
introduced into the idyls of Theocritus, nor has Virgil admitted
him into his eclogues. The Eumaeus of Homer is the only
exception that we have of a swineherd meeting with favour in the
eyes of a poet of antiquity. This may be accounted for, on the
supposition that the prejudices of the Egyptians relative to
this class of men, extended to both Greece and Italy, and
imparted a bias to popular opinion.
TO MAKE SAUSAGES.
(_Author's Oxford Recipe_.)
837. INGREDIENTS.--1 lb. of pork, fat and lean, without skin or gristle;
1 lb. of lean veal, 1 lb. of beef suet, 1/2 lb. of bread crumbs, the
rind of 1/2 lemon, 1 small nutmeg, 6 sage-leaves, 1 teaspoonful of
pepper, 2 teaspoonfuls of salt, 1/2 teaspoonful of savory, 1/2
teaspoonful of marjoram.
_Mode_.--Chop the pork, veal, and suet finely together, add the bread
crumbs, lemon-peel (which should be well minced), and a small nutmeg
grated. Wash and chop the sage-leaves very finely; add these with the
remaining ingredients to the sausage-meat, and when thoroughly mixed,
either put the meat into skins, or, when wanted for table, form it into
little cakes, which should be floured and fried.
_Average cost_, for this quantity, 2s. 6d.
_Sufficient_ for about 30 moderate-sized sausages.
_Seasonable_ from October to March.
THE HOG IN ENGLAND.--From time immemorial, in England, this
animal has been esteemed as of the highest importance. In the
Anglo-Saxon period, vast herds of swine were tended by men, who
watched over their safety, and who collected them under shelter
at night. At that time, the flesh of the animal was the staple
article of consumption in every family, and a large portion of
the wealth of the rich freemen of the country consisted of these
animals. Hence it was common to make bequests of swine, with
lands for their support; and to these were attached rights and
privileges in connection with their feeding, and the extent of
woodland to be occupied by a given number was granted in
accordance with established rules. This is proved by an ancient
Saxon grant, quoted by Sharon Turner, in his "History of the
Anglo-Saxons," where the right of pasturage is conveyed in a
deed by the following words:--"I give food for seventy swine in
that woody allotment which the countrymen call Wolferdinlegh."
FRIED SAUSAGES.
[Illustration: FRIED SAUSAGES.]
838. INGREDIENTS.--Sausages; a small piece of butter.
_Mode_.--Prick the sausages with a fork (this prevents them from
bursting), and put them into a frying-pan with a small piece of butter.
Keep moving the pan about, and turn the sausages 3 or 4 times. In from
10 to 12 minutes they will be sufficiently cooked, unless they are _very
large_, when a little more time should be allowed for them. Dish them
with or without a piece of toast under them, and serve very hot. In some
counties, sausages are boiled and served on toast. They should be
plunged into boiling water, and simmered for about 10 or 12 minutes.
_Time_.--10 to 12 minutes.
_Average cost_, 10d. per lb.
_Seasonable_.--Good from September to March.
_Note_.--Sometimes, in close warm weather, sausages very soon turn sour;
to prevent this, put them in the oven for a few minutes with a small
piece of butter to keep them moist. When wanted for table, they will not
require so long frying as uncooked sausages.
THE SAXON SWINEHERD.--The men employed in herding swine during
the Anglo-Saxon period of our history were, in general, thralls
or born slaves of the soil, who were assisted by powerful dogs,
capable even of singly contending with the wolf until his master
came with his spear to the rescue. In the "Ivanhoe" of Sir
Walter Scott, we have an admirable picture, in the character of
Gurth, an Anglo-Saxon swineherd, as we also have of his master,
a large landed proprietor, a great portion of whose wealth
consisted of swine, and whose rude but plentiful board was
liberally supplied with the flesh.
SAUSAGE-MEAT CAKES.
839. INGREDIENTS.--To every lb. of lean pork, add 3/4 lb. of fat bacon,
1/4 oz. of salt, 1 saltspoonful of pepper, 1/4 teaspoonful of grated
nutmeg, 1 teaspoonful of minced parsley.
_Mode_.--Remove from the pork all skin, gristle, and bone, and chop it
finely with the bacon; add the remaining ingredients, and carefully mix
altogether. Pound it well in a mortar, make it into convenient-sized
cakes, flour these, and fry them a nice brown for about 10 minutes. This
is a very simple method of making sausage-meat, and on trial will prove
very good, its great recommendation being, that it is so easily made.
_Time_.--10 minutes.
_Seasonable_ from September to March.
TO SCALD A SUCKING-PIG.
840. Put the pig into cold water directly it is killed; let it remain
for a few minutes, then immerse it in a large pan of boiling water for 2
minutes. Take it out, lay it on a table, and pull off the hair as
quickly as possible. When the skin looks clean, make a slit down the
belly, take out the entrails, well clean the nostrils and ears, wash the
pig in cold water, and wipe it thoroughly dry. Take off the feet at the
first joint, and loosen and leave sufficient skin to turn neatly over.
If not to be dressed immediately, fold it in a wet cloth to keep it from
the air.
THE LEARNED PIG.--That the pig is capable of education, is a
fact long known to the world; and though, like the ass,
naturally stubborn and obstinate, that he is equally amenable
with other animals to caresses and kindness, has been shown from
very remote time; the best modern evidence of his docility,
however, is the instance of the learned pig, first exhibited
about a century since, but which has been continued down to our
own time by repeated instances of an animal who will put
together all the letters or figures that compose the day, month,
hour, and date of the exhibition, besides many other
unquestioned evidences of memory. The instance already given of
breaking a sow into a pointer, till she became more stanch even
than the dog itself, though surprising, is far less wonderful
than that evidence of education where so generally obtuse an
animal may be taught not only to spell, but couple figures and
give dates correctly.
ROAST SUCKING-PIG.
841. INGREDIENTS.--Pig, 6 oz. of bread crumbs, 16 sage-leaves, pepper
and salt to taste, a piece of butter the size of an egg, salad oil or
butter to baste with, about 1/2 pint of gravy, 1 tablespoonful of
lemon-juice.
[Illustration: ROAST SUCKING-PIG.]
_Mode_.--A sucking-pig, to be eaten in perfection, should not be more
than three weeks old, and should be dressed the same day that it is
killed. After preparing the pig for cooking, as in the preceding recipe,
stuff it with finely-grated bread crumbs, minced sage, pepper, salt, and
a piece of butter the size of an egg, all of which should be well mixed
together, and put into the body of the pig. Sew up the slit neatly, and
truss the legs back, to allow the inside to be roasted, and the under
part to be crisp. Put the pig down to a bright clear fire, not too near,
and let it lay till thoroughly dry; then have ready some butter tied up
in a piece of thin cloth, and rub the pig with this in every part. Keep
it well rubbed with the butter the whole of the time it is roasting, and
do not allow the crackling to become blistered or burnt. When half-done,
hang a pig-iron before the middle part (if this is not obtainable, use a
flat iron), to prevent its being scorched and dried up before the ends
are done. Before it is taken from the fire, cut off the head, and part
that and the body down the middle. Chop the brains and mix them with the
stuffing; add 1/2 pint of good gravy, a tablespoonful of lemon-juice,
and the gravy that flowed from the pig; put a little of this on the dish
with the pig, and the remainder send to table in a tureen. Place the pig
back to back in the dish, with one half of the head on each side, and
one of the ears at each end, and send it to table as hot as possible.
Instead of butter, many cooks take salad oil for basting, which makes
the crackling crisp; and as this is one of the principal things to be
considered, perhaps it is desirable to use it; but be particular that it
is very pure, or it will impart an unpleasant flavour to the meat. The
brains and stuffing may be stirred into a tureen of melted butter
instead of gravy, when the latter is not liked. Apple sauce and the
old-fashioned currant sauce are not yet quite obsolete as an
accompaniment to roast pig.
_Time_.--1-1/2 to 2 hours for a small pig.
_Average cost_, 5s. to 6s.
_Sufficient_ for 9 or 10 persons.
_Seasonable_ from September to February.
HOW ROAST PIG WAS DISCOVERED.--Charles Lamb, who, in the early
part of this century, delighted the reading public by his quaint
prose sketches, written under the title of "Essays of Elia,"
has, in his own quiet humorous way, devoted one paper to the
subject of _Roast Pig_, and more especially to that luxurious
and toothsome dainty known as "CRACKLING;" and shows, in a
manner peculiarly his own, _how crackling first came into the
world._
According to this erudite authority, man in the golden age, or
at all events the primitive age, eat his pork and bacon raw, as,
indeed, he did his beef and mutton; unless, as Hudibras tells
us, he was an epicure, when he used to make a saddle of his
saddle of mutton, and after spreading it on his horse's back,
and riding on it for a few hours till thoroughly warmed, he sat
down to the luxury of a dish cooked to a turn. At the epoch of
the story, however, a citizen of some Scythian community had the
misfortune to have his hut, or that portion of it containing his
live stock of pigs, burnt down. In going over the _debris_ on
the following day, and picking out all the available salvage,
the proprietor touched something unusually or unexpectedly hot,
which caused him to shake his hand with great energy, and clap
the tips of his suffering fingers to his mouth. The act was
simple and natural, but the result was wonderful. He rolled his
eyes in ecstatic pleasure, his frame distended, and, conscious
of a celestial odour, his nostrils widened, and, while drawing
in deep inspirations of the ravishing perfume, he sucked his
fingers with a gusto he had never, in his most hungry moments,
conceived. Clearing away the rubbish from beneath him, he at
last brought to view the carcase of one of his pigs, _roasted to
death_. Stooping down to examine this curious object, and
touching its body, a fragment of the burnt skin was detached,
which, with a sort of superstitious dread, he at length, and in
a spirit of philosophical inquiry, put into his mouth. Ye gods!
the felicity he then enjoyed, no pen can chronicle! Then it was
that he--the world--first tasted _crackling_. Like a miser with
his gold, the Scythian hid his treasure from the prying eyes of
the world, and feasted, in secret, more sumptuously than the
gods. When he had eaten up all his pig, the poor man fell into a
melancholy; he refused the most tempting steak, though cooked on
the horse's back, and turned every half-hour after his own
favourite recipe; he fell, in fact, from his appetite, and was
reduced to a shadow, till, unable longer to endure the torments
of memory he hourly suffered, he rose one night and secretly set
fire to his hut, and once more was restored to flesh and
manhood. Finding it impossible to live in future without
roast-pig, he set fire to his house every time his larder became
empty; till at last his neighbours, scandalized by the frequency
of these incendiary acts, brought his conduct before the supreme
council of the nation. To avert the penalty that awaited him, he
brought his judges to the smouldering ruins, and discovering the
secret, invited them to eat; which having done, with tears of
gratitude, the august synod embraced him, and, with an
overflowing feeling of ecstasy, dedicated a statue to the memory
of the man who first _instituted roast pork_.
PORK CARVING.
SUCKING-PIG.
[Illustration: SUCKING-PIG.]
842. A sucking-pig seems, at first sight, rather an elaborate dish, or
rather animal, to carve; but by carefully mastering the details of the
business, every difficulty will vanish; and if a partial failure be at
first made, yet all embarrassment will quickly disappear on a second
trial. A sucking-pig is usually sent to table in the manner shown in the
engraving (and also in coloured plate S), and the first point to be
attended to is to separate the shoulder from the carcase, by carrying
the knife quickly and neatly round the circular line, as shown by the
figures 1, 2, 3;--the shoulder will then easily come away. The next step
is to take off the leg; and this is done in the same way, by cutting
round this joint in the direction shown by the figures 1, 2, 3, in the
same way as the shoulder. The ribs then stand fairly open to the knife,
which should be carried down in the direction of the line 4 to 5; and
two or three helpings will dispose of these. The other half of the pig
is served, of course, in the same manner. Different parts of the pig are
variously esteemed; some preferring the flesh of the neck; others, the
ribs; and others, again, the shoulders. The truth is, the whole of a
sucking-pig is delicious, delicate eating; but, in carving it, the host
should consult the various tastes and fancies of his guests, keeping the
larger joints, generally, for the gentlemen of the party.
HAM.
[Illustration: HAM.]
843. In cutting a ham, the carver must be guided according as he desires
to practise economy, or have, at once, fine slices out of the prime
part. Under the first supposition, he will commence at the knuckle end,
and cut off thin slices towards the thick part of the ham. To reach the
choicer portion, the knife, which must be very sharp and thin, should be
carried quite down to the bone, in the direction of the line 1 to 2. The
slices should be thin and even, and always cut down to the bone. There
are some who like to carve a ham by cutting a hole at the top, and then
slicing pieces off inside the hole, gradually enlarging the circle; but
we think this a plan not to be recommended. A ham, when hot, is usually
sent to table with a paper ruffle round the knuckle; when cold, it is
served in the manner shown by coloured plate P.
LEG OF PORK.
[Illustration: LEG OF PORK.]
844. This joint, which is such a favourite one with many people, is easy
to carve. The knife should be carried sharply down to the bone, clean
through the crackling, in the direction of the line 1 to 2. Sago and
onion and apple sauce are usually sent to table with this
dish,--sometimes the leg of pork is stuffed,--and the guests should be
asked if they will have either or both. A frequent plan, and we think a
good one, is now pursued, of sending sage and onion to table separately
from the joint, as it is not everybody to whom the flavour of this
stuffing is agreeable.
_Note_.--The other dishes of pork do not call for any special remarks as
to their carving or helping.
CHAPTER XVIII.
GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ON THE CALF.
845. ANY REMARKS MADE ON THE CALF OR THE LAMB must naturally be in a
measure supplementary to the more copious observations made on the
parent stock of either. As the calf, at least as far as it is identified
with veal, is destined to die young,--to be, indeed, cut off in its
comparative infancy,--it may, at first sight, appear of little or no
consequence to inquire to what particular variety, or breed of the
general stock, his sire or dam may belong. The great art, however, in
the modern science of husbandry has been to obtain an animal that shall
not only have the utmost beauty of form of which the species is capable,
but, at the same time, a constitution free from all taint, a frame that
shall rapidly attain bulk and stature, and a disposition so kindly that
every _quantum_ of food it takes shall, without drawback or
procrastination, be eliminated into fat and muscle. The breed, then, is
of very considerable consequence in determining, not only the quality of
the meat to the consumer, but its commercial value to the breeder and
butcher.
846. UNDER THE ARTIFICIAL SYSTEM adopted in the rearing of domestic
cattle, and stock in general, to gratify the arbitrary mandates of
luxury and fashion, we can have veal, like lamb, at all seasons in the
market, though the usual time in the metropolis for veal to make its
appearance is about the beginning of February.
847. THE COW GOES WITH YOUNG FOR NINE MONTHS, and the affection and
solicitude she evinces for her offspring is more human in its tenderness
mid intensity than is displayed by any other animal; and her distress
when she hears its bleating, and is not allowed to reach it with her
distended udders, is often painful to witness, and when the calf has
died, or been accidentally killed, her grief frequently makes her refuse
to give down her milk. At such times, the breeder has adopted the
expedient of flaying the dead carcase, and, distending the skin with
hay, lays the effigy before her, and then taking advantage of her
solicitude, milks her while she is caressing the skin with her tongue.
848. IN A STATE OF NATURE, the cow, like the deer, hides her young in
the tall ferns and brakes, and the most secret places; and only at
stated times, twice or thrice a day, quits the herd, and, hastening to
the secret cover, gives suck to her calf, and with the same,
circumspection returns to the community.
849. IN SOME COUNTRIES, to please the epicurean taste of vitiated
appetites, it is the custom to kill the calf for food almost immediately
after birth, and any accident that forestalls that event, is considered
to enhance its value. We are happy to say, however, that in this
country, as far as England and Scotland are concerned, the taste for
very young veal has entirely gone out, and "Staggering Bob," as the poor
little animal was called in the language of the shambles, is no longer
to be met with in such a place.
850. THE WEANING OF CALVES is a process that requires a great amount of
care and judgment; for though they are in reality not weaned till
between the eighth and the twelfth week, the process of rearing them by
hand commences in fact from the birth, the calf never being allowed to
suck its dam. As the rearing of calves for the market is a very
important and lucrative business, the breeder generally arranges his
stock so that ten or a dozen of his cows shall calve about the same
time; and then, by setting aside one or two, to find food for the entire
family, gets the remaining eight or ten with their full fountains of
milk, to carry on the operations of his dairy. Some people have an idea
that skimmed milk, if given in sufficient quantity, is good enough for
the weaning period of calf-feeding; but this is a very serious mistake,
for the cream, of which it has been deprived, contained nearly all the
oleaginous principles, and the azote or nitrogen, on which the vivifying
properties of that fluid depends. Indeed, so remarkably correct has this
fact proved to be, that a calf reared on one part of new milk mixed with
five of water, will thrive and look well; while another, treated with
unlimited skimmed milk, will be poor, thin, and miserable.
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