TO BROIL A CHICKEN OR FOWL

Either of these, when merely split and broiled, is very dry and unsavoury eating; but will be greatly improved if first boiled gently from five to ten minutes and left to become cold, then divided, dipped into egg and well seasoned bread-crumbs, plentifully sprinkled with clarified butter, dipped again into the crumbs, and broiled over a clear and gentle fire from half to three quarters of an hour. It should be served very hot, with mushroom-sauce or with a little good plain gravy, which may be thickened and flavoured with a teaspoonful of mushroom-powder mixed with half as much flour and a little butter; or with some _Espagnole_. It should be opened at the back, and evenly divided quite through; the legs should be trussed like those of a boiled fowl; the breast-bone, or hat of the back may be removed at pleasure, and both sides of the bird should be made as flat as they can be that the fire may penetrate every part equally: the inside should be first laid towards it. The neck, feet and gizzard may be boiled down with a small quantity of onion and carrot, previously browned in a morsel of butter to make the gravy; and the liver, after having been simmered with them for five or six minutes, may be used to thicken it after it is strained. A teaspoonful of lemon-juice, some cayenne, and minced parsley should be added to it, and a little arrow-root, or flour and butter.

1/2 to 3/4 hour.

FRICASSEED FOWLS OR CHICKENS. (ENTRÉE.)

To make a fricassee of good appearance without great expense, prepare, with exceeding nicety, a couple of plump chickens, strip off the skin, and carve them very neatly. Reserve the wings, breasts, merrythoughts, and thighs; and stew down the inferior joints with a couple of blades of mace, a small bunch of savoury herbs, a few white peppercorns, a pint and a half of water, and a small half-teaspoonful of salt. When something more than a third part reduced, strain the gravy, let it cool, and skim off every particle of fat. Arrange the joints which are to be fricasseed in one layer if it can be done conveniently, and pour to them as much of the gravy as will nearly cover them; add the very thin rind of half a fine fresh lemon, and simmer the fowls gently from half to three quarters of an hour; throw in sufficient salt, pounded mace, and cayenne, to give the sauce a good flavour, thicken it with a large teaspoonful of arrow-root, and stir to it the third of a pint of rich boiling cream; then lift the stewpan from the fire, and shake it briskly round while the beaten yolks of three fresh eggs, mixed with a spoonful or two of cream, are added; continue to shake the pan gently above the fire till the sauce is just set, but it must not be allowed to boil, or it will curdle in an instant.

1/2 to 3/4 hour.

ENGLISH CHICKEN CUTLETS. (ENTRÉE).

Skin and cut into joints one or two young chickens, and remove the bones with care from the breasts, merrythoughts, and thighs, which are to be separated from the legs. Mix well together a teaspoonful of salt, nearly a fourth as much of mace, a little grated nutmeg, and some cayenne; flatten and form into good shape, the boned joints of chicken, and the flesh of the wings; rub a little of the seasoning over them in every part, dip them into beaten egg, and then into very fine bread-crumbs, and fry them gently in fresh butter until they are of a delicate brown. Some of the bones and trimmings may be boiled down in half a pint of water, with a roll of lemon-peel, a little salt, and eight or ten white peppercorns, to make the gravy which, after being strained and cleared from fat, may be poured hot to some thickening made in the pan with a slice of fresh butter and a dessertspoonful of flour: a teaspoonful of mushroom-powder would improve it greatly, and a small quantity of lemon-juice should be added before it is poured out, with salt and cayenne if required. Pile the cutlets high in the centre of the dish, and serve the sauce under them, or in a tureen.

CUTLETS OF FOWLS, PARTRIDGES, OR PIGEONS. (ENTRÉE.)

(_French Receipt._)

Take closely off the flesh of the breast and wing together, on either side of the bone, and when the _large fillets_, as they are called, are thus raised from three birds, which will give but six cutlets, take the strips of flesh that lie under the wings, and that of the merrythoughts, and flatten two or three of these together, that there may be nine cutlets at least, of equal size. When all are ready, fry to a pale brown as many diamond-shaped sippets of bread as there are fillets of fowl, and let them be quite as large; place these before the fire to dry, and wipe out the pan. Dip the cutlets into some yolks of eggs, mixed with a little clarified butter, and strew them in every part with the finest bread-crumbs, moderately seasoned with salt, cayenne, and pounded mace. Dissolve as much good butter as will be required to dress them, and fry them in it of a light amber-colour: arrange them upon the sippets of bread, pile them high in the dish, and pour a rich brown gravy or _Espagnole_ round, but not _over_ them.

FRIED CHICKEN À LA MALABAR. (ENTRÉE.)

This is an Indian dish. Cut up the chicken, wipe it dry, and rub it well with currie-powder mixed with a little salt; fry it in a bit of butter, taking care that it is of a nice light brown. In the mean time cut two or three onions into thin slices, draw them out into rings, and cut the rings into little bits about half an inch long; fry them for a long time gently in a little clarified butter, until they have gradually dried up and are of a delicate yellow-brown. Be careful that they are not burnt, as the burnt taste of a single bit would spoil the flavour of the whole. When they are as dry as chips, without the least grease or moisture upon them, mix a little salt with them, strew them over the fried chicken, and serve up with lemon on a plate.

We have extracted this receipt from a clever little work called the “Hand-Book of Cookery.”

HASHED FOWL. (ENTRÉE.)

After having taken off in joints, as much of a cold fowl or _fowls_ as will suffice for a dish, bruise the bodies with a paste roller, pour to them a pint of water, and boil them for an hour and a half to two hours, with the addition of a little pepper and salt only, or with a small quantity of onion, carrot, and savoury herbs. Strain, and skim the fat from the gravy, put it into a clean saucepan, and, should it require thickening, stir to it, when it boils, half a teaspoonful of flour smoothly mixed with a small bit of butter; add a little mushroom catsup, or other store-sauce, with a slight seasoning of mace or nutmeg. Lay in the fowl, and keep it near the fire until it is heated quite through, and is at the point of boiling: serve it with fried sippets round the dish. For a hash of higher relish, add to the bones when they are first stewed down a large onion minced and browned in butter, and before the fowl is dished, add some cayenne and the juice of half a lemon.

FRENCH AND OTHER RECEIPTS FOR MINCED FOWL. (ENTRÉE.)

Raise from the bones all the more delicate parts of the flesh of either cold roast, or of cold boiled fowls, clear it from the skin, and keep it covered from the air until it is wanted for use. Boil the bones well bruised, and the skin, with three quarters of a pint of water until reduced quite half; then strain the gravy and let it cool; next, having first skimmed off the fat, put it into a clean saucepan, with a quarter of a pint of cream, an ounce and a half of butter well mixed with a dessertspoonful of flour, and a little pounded mace, and grated lemon-rind; keep these stirred until they boil, then put in the fowl, finely minced, with three or four hard-boiled eggs chopped small, and sufficient salt, and white pepper or cayenne, to season it properly. Shake the mince over the fire until it is just ready to boil, stir to it quickly a squeeze of lemon-juice, dish it with pale sippets of fried bread, and serve it immediately. When cream cannot easily be obtained, use milk, with a double quantity of butter and flour. To make an English mince, omit the hard eggs, heat the fowl in the preceding sauce or in a common _béchamel_, or white sauce, dish it with small delicately poached eggs (those of the guinea-fowl or bantam for example), laid over it in a circle and send it quickly to table. Another excellent variety of the dish is also made by covering the fowl thickly with very fine bread-crumbs, moistening them with clarified butter, and giving them colour with a salamander, or in a quick oven.[90]

Footnote 90:

For minced fowl and oysters, follow the receipt for veal, page 231.