442 lewis' AMERICAN SPORTSMAN. 



COOKING GAME. 



The more plainly and simply Game Birds of all kinds are 

 cooked the better, save those of a sedgy or fishy nature. For 

 these latter we shall give especial directions for disguising their 

 disagreeable flavor. 



No great art of culinary chemistry, in our humble opinion, 

 can improve a plain roasted Partridge, Woodcock, or Grouse. 

 Nevertheless, to please the fancy or tickle the gustatory nerves 

 of some of our dainty guests, it may be necessary to resort to 

 some other more recherche method of serving them up. 



To enumerate all the various modes of presenting game on 

 the table, as practised by those versed in cooking, either for 

 the ambitious purpose of exhibiting their skill in this branch, 

 or of whetting the appetite of some sickly Epicure ever in 

 search of novelty, would be at variance with the design of this 

 chapter. We wish rather to confine ourselves alone to those 

 simpler methods within the scope of every "family cook," 

 discarding all useless and complicated dishes — such, in fact, 

 as are within the comprehension alone of a Maitre de Cuisine^ 

 and which, by the by, need be served up but once in a life- 

 time. 



TO ROAST GAME. 



To roast a Partridge, Grouse, or any other Bird of the galli- 

 naceous order, is as simple a process of cookery as can be 

 attempted. The great error, however, that Cooks most fre- 

 quently commit in the operation is that they place the Birds too 

 near the fire when first put down, and consequently cook them 

 too fast, as well as too much in some respects. The surface 

 becomes scorched and burnt before the flesh of the Bird is 

 actually warmed through; the juices are dissipated, the flavor 

 lost, and the natural tenderness of the meat entirely destroyed. 

 To remedy this evil, it will be necessary to caution the Cook to 

 place the spit at first at some considerable distance from the 

 fire, so that the body of the Bird will become thoroughly 

 heated before the browning of the surface takes place ; then to 



