Ham was an important food as it could be cured and preserved for the winter months. It was heavily salted, so it needed to be soaked many hours before cooking to remove most of the salt taste. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS TO CURE HAMS To make good hams, the pork must be of the best quality. No animal tastes so much of its food as the pig. For one hundred pounds of fine pork, take seven pounds of coarse…
I had never heard of sweetbreads until I began reading old cookbooks. Sweetbreads are what the thymus gland or pancreas of a calf or lamb are called. Offal or organ meats are the parts of the animal that are not muscle. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS TO PREPARE SWEETBREADS The sweetbread belonging to the breast of the calf is far superior to that which is found about the throat, being larger, whiter, more tender, and more delicate. Always buy them…
A pig’s head can by baked, roasted, boiled, and stewed. It can be served whole or halved, or made into head cheese, souse, or other recipes. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS BAKED PIG’S HEAD Split the pig’s head into halves and sprinkle them with pepper and salt. Lay them with the rind part uppermost upon a bed of sliced onions in a baking dish. Next, bruise eight ounces of stale bread crumb and mix it with four ounces of chopped…
Tripe is an edible offal (entrails and internal organs). Some grazing animals like cows, buffalo and sheep have multiple stomach chambers to properly digest their food. These stomach linings are called tripe. Most tripe sold in United States grocery stores is from cows. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS TO PREPARE TRIPE Empty the contents of the stomach of a fat beef. Scrape and wash the tripe thoroughly. Put it in cold water and salt and soak for ten days. Don’t…
When I was a child, my mother made delicious fried potatoes and fried chicken in a large Cast Iron Skillet. She usually used bacon grease, but if she didn’t have enough, she used canned shortening. My mother never did use lard, but I knew people who did. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS: SCRAPS OF FAT All scraps of fat—cooked or uncooked—as well as any drippings from beef, veal, pork, and chicken, should be saved and used in cooking. A careful…
Horseradish is in the same plant family as broccoli, mustard, wasabi, and cabbage. The horseradish root has hardly any aroma when it’s pulled from the ground, but when it’s cut or grated, it produces an oil which affects the sinuses and eyes. Horseradish was brought to North America during the European colonization. George Washington mentions it in his garden accounts. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS THE HORSERADISH This has been, for many years, a favorite accompaniment of roast beef, and…
Forcemeat is made by mixing finely chopped lean meat with fat and adding other flavorings. Forcemeat can be used as a stuffing, made into balls or patties, or formed into flat square or oval pieces. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS: FORCEMEAT This article makes a considerable part of good cooking by the flavor it imparts to whatsoever dish it may be added. Exact rules for the quantity cannot easily be given, but the following observations may be useful. The selection…
So many recipes from 1800s cookbooks call for soup stock and all good cooks kept a supply on hand. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS MEANING AND USE OF STOCK Soup stock may be regarded as a liquid containing the juices and soluble parts of meat, bone, and vegetables, which have been extracted by long, slow cooking and which can be utilized in the making of soups, sauces, and gravies. Keep stock in small jars in a cool place. It makes…