512 APPENDIX. 



GENERAL RULES FOR COOKING. 



SOUPS. 



Let them simmer rather than boil. Put cold water in the 

 pot, and let it heat gradually ; only uncover the pot to skim 

 the soup. A tea-spoonful of salt and a quart of water to each 

 pound of beef is a fair average. Remove every particle of 

 scum before you put in the vegetables. If soup is too thick, 

 always thin it with boiling water. Never put in green vege- 

 tables till the water boils. Hard or fast boiling makes meat 

 tough and hard. Put your herbs in when nearly done. All 

 soups require simmering from four to five hours. 



BOILING VEGETABLES. 



Cabbage should boil an hour ; beets, an hour and a half; 

 parsnips, an hour or an hour and a quarter, according to size ; 

 squashes, the larger end should boil half an hour, the neck 

 pieces fifteen or twenty minutes longer ; new potatoes, fifteen 

 or twenty minutes ; old ones, from half an hour to an hour, 

 according to size : never let them stop boiling (if you wish 

 them mealy) till they are done ; then turn off the water and 

 let them dry. 



BOILING MEATS. 



Hard or fast boiling makes all meat dry, tough, and hard. 

 Corned beef should, after being cooked, be left in the liquid 

 till it is perfectly cold, or it will be dry. Fifteen minutes to 

 each pound of ham is a fair average. Hams and meat should 

 be put in hot, but not boiling water ; cold water draws out 

 the juices. Beef tongues of a fair size require full three hours' 

 boiling. 



BOILING FISH. 



Ten minutes to every pound of fish is a fair average ; if 

 large and thick, a few minutes longer; cover close; simmer 



