CHAMBERS'S INFORMATION FOR THE PEOPLE. 



sugar, boil for seven minutes, take off the scum, 

 and when cool, bottle for use. 



Raspberry, Gooseberry, and other Jams. Pick 

 and clean the fruit well, and put on with an equal 

 weight of good soft sugar and a very little water. 

 Boil for twenty minutes, and pot when cool. 



Pickles. 



Red Cabbage. Take off the outer leaves, and 

 cut the cabbage into narrow straws. Sprinkle salt 

 over them, and let them lie with a weight on them 

 for two days. Wring the water out of them with 

 a towel ; put then in a jar as much boiling vinegar, 

 seasoned with black and Jamaica pepper, ginger, 

 and a few cloves, as will cover them. Let them 

 stand for twelve hours covered up in a cool oven. 

 Onions. Skin as many small onions as are wanted, 

 throw them into salt and water as they are skinned, 

 and scald them in this. Let them stand in the 

 brine all night. Next day, drain, and pour on 

 them boiling vinegar, which has been seasoned 

 with ginger, white pepper, and mace. Beet-root 

 must be boiled till soft taking care not to 

 break or cut off the fibres, as by doing so the 

 colour would be spoiled cut in slices, and the 

 boiling vinegar with the spices poured over it . 



DRESSING VEGETABLES. 



Potatoes. Although nothing in the art of cookery 

 appears more simple than the boiling of a potato, 

 it is seldom that it is well done. In a dish of j 

 potatoes, select them as nearly as possible of one j 

 size, so that they may boil equally ; if some are 

 large, cut them in two. Wash the roots well, but 

 do not break the skin in any way ; fill the goblet 

 half full with the potatoes, and cover them with 

 cold water till it is an inch above them. Do not 

 spare the salt Do not boil too hurriedly, but rather 

 let them simmer gently till soft, which can be 

 determined by stabbing them with a fork. The 

 moment they are ready, pour off the water, and 

 set the pan by the side of the fire, with the lid off. 

 The more quickly they are peeled and served, the 

 better they are. 



Fried Potatoes. The French are adepts in fry- 

 ing potatoes : this is one of their ways of doing 

 it Clean and pare off the skin, then cut the 

 potatoes into very thin slices, or shave them round 

 and round as you would peel an apple. Dry the 

 chips in a cloth, and fry in lard or oil. See 

 that the grease boils; stir the potatoes till they 

 are done to a light golden colour, then throw them 

 on a sieve to drip, having sprinkled a little salt 

 over them. Left potatoes may be sliced and 

 treated in the same way but they do not take so 

 much time. 



Cabbage. Young cabbages are delicious boiled 

 in water with a little salt Wash them well before 

 placing them in the pot, and if they are very large, 

 cut them into halves or quarters. See that the 

 water in the saucepan be boiling, and carefully 

 remove any scum that may rise to the top. A 

 tender young cabbage will be well enough boiled 

 in about five-and-twenty minutes; an old cabbage 

 will take double that time. All vegetables ex- 

 cepting peas should be boiled in a large quantity 

 of water, to carry off any rankness of flavour. 



Spinage should be carefully dealt with ; it ought 

 to be picked leaf by leaf, and must be frequently 

 washed. It will take ten minutes to boil, and 



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should be cooked in a large pan, where there is 

 room for the leaves to float ; plenty of salt should 

 be put in the water, which must be boiling before 

 the vegetables are placed in it. Drain the leaves 

 on a sieve, and then squeeze the water out of it, 

 chop it fine, and serve with a bit of butter. 



Cauliflower. This vegetable will take almost 

 fifteen or twenty minutes to cook ; the stocl 

 should be placed for an hour in salt and wa 

 before being boiled. Boiling water with a gc 

 handful of salt in it must be used, and all the ot 

 side leaves must be stripped off. Broccoli 

 dressed in the same way as cauliflower. 



Asparagus may be treated much in the same 

 way as the preceding ; the stalks will be ready in 

 about twenty minutes or half an hour ; and the 

 moment they become tender, they should be lifted 

 from the water, and served on buttered toast 



MISCELLANEOUS COOKERY. 

 LUNCHEON AND SUPPER DISHES. 



To boil Tripe. When tripe is purchased from 

 the butcher in a raw state, it requires to be boiled 

 a very long time, to be thoroughly soft and tender. 

 The length of time will depend on the age of the 

 animal from which it has been taken. Sometimes, 

 for young tripe, six or seven hours will be sufficient, 

 while old tripe will perhaps take ten or twelve. 

 In all cases, boil, or rather simmer it very slowly, 

 for quick boiling hardens it. It should be cut 

 into moderately sized pieces for helping at table. 

 When to be served plain, carry to table in a hash- 

 dish, in some of the water with which it has been 

 boiled, with boiled onions in it. A tasteful way of 

 serving is to take it from its liquor after boiling, 

 and stew it for about ten minutes in a saucepan 

 with milk, which thicken with a little arrowroot, 

 or flour and butter, and season with pepper and 

 salt, immediately before dishing, as otherwise the 

 salt is apt to curdle the milk. This makes a deli- 

 cious and cheap dish. 



To stew a Piece of Beef, or make Beef Bouilli. 

 Take a piece of beef the brisket or rump, or any 

 other piece that will become tender. Put a little 

 butter in the bottom of the stewpan, and then 

 putting in the meat, partially fry or brown it all 

 over. Then take it out, and lay two or three 

 skewers in the bottom of the pan ; after which 

 replace the meat, which will be prevented from 

 sticking to the pan by means of the skewers. 

 Next, put in as much water as will half cover the 

 meat. Stew it slowly, with the pan closely covered, 

 till done, with a few onions if required. Two hours 

 are considered enough for a piece of six or eight 

 pounds. When ready, take out the meat, and 

 thicken the gravy with a little butter and flour. 

 Cut down into handsome shapes a boiled carrot 

 and turnip, and add them to the liquor ; season 

 with pepper, salt, and ketchup. Boil all together 

 for a few minutes, and serve in a hash-dish. 



To dress Cold Boiled Beef, or make Bubble and 

 Squeak. Cut the beef in slices of about the third 

 of an inch in thickness. Fry till lightly browned 

 and heated through. Then take them from the 

 pan, and place them on a warm plate before the 

 fire, to keep hot. Fry some cabbage which has 

 been previously boiled and chopped ; stir this 

 about a short time in the pan, and season 



