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…
I’ve read through dozens of old cookbooks from the 1800s and snails have only been mentioned in one of them. They have never been popular in the United States; and especially not during this time period. The information below is from: The Hand-Book of Practical Cookery For Ladies and Professional Cooks by Pierre Blot , New York, 1884 ================================================= SNAILS: A good many are now imported from Europe. CLEAN AND PREPARE SNAILS Throw them in boiling water, in which you have put some…
Many recipes from old cookbooks called for mushroom ketchup – especially meat recipes. I had never heard of mushroom ketchup before and haven’t found it in any health food or specialty food stores. I did discover that the Geo Watkins Company makes Mushroom Ketchup and you can order it online. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS TO MAKE MUSHROOM KETCHUP Look out for mushrooms from the beginning of September. Choose full-grown mushroom-flaps and take care they are perfectly fresh-gathered when the weather…
Vinegar was an important household item in the 1800s, especially for preserving food. Many people made their own vinegar; often a year’s supply. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS TO BUY VINEGAR Much of the vinegar that is offered for sale is excessively and disagreeably sharp; overpowering the taste of every thing with which it is combined. This vinegar is deleterious in its effects and should never be used; it is made entirely of drugs. Oysters and pickled vegetables have been…
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…
There are basically two types of walnuts in the U.S. – English walnuts and black walnuts. Black walnuts grew wild in the southeast and midwest sections of the country and still do. Cracked black walnuts are expensive to buy because they are so labor-intensive to crack. They have a totally different taste from English walnuts, and are used mostly for candy and ice cream. Read more about black walnuts here. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS CRACKING WALNUTS It is more…
“A GOOD COOK NEVER WASTES” “It is her pride to make the most of everything in the shape of food entrusted to her care, and her pleasure to serve it in the most appetizing form. In no other way can she prove her excellence, for poor cooks are always wasteful and extravagant. The day has passed for regarding cooking as a menial and vulgar labor; and those who give some thought to their daily food usually gain in vigor and…
“A goose must never be eaten the same day it is killed. If the weather is cold, it should be kept a week before using. A goose, from its profusion of feathers, looks like a large bird when walking about, but when plucked and prepared for the spit, it will be found very deceptive. It is much more hollow than a turkey and except for the breast, there is but little eating on it. In large families, it is usual…