TO COOK A SNIPE, WOODCOCK, PLOVER, ETC. 445 



they be served up with Celery-sauce, made without the admix- 

 ture, however, of anj' kind of spice. 



Birds should be boiled in a covered pot lined with china or 

 tin, with just sufficient water to cover them nicely ; they should 

 be removed from the hot fire as soon as they begin to boil 

 briskly, and allowed to simmer at the side till nearly done, and 

 then permitted to boil up briskly again for a few moments be- 

 fore removing entirely. The lid should be raised ever and 

 anon, and the scum, as it comes to the surface, skimmed off; this 

 precaution is very necessary, as it adds much to the whiteness 

 and consequent beauty of the Birds when served up. A few 

 grains of rice thrown into the pot will also assist in preserving 

 the flesh white. The more slowly Birds are boiled, the better ; 

 in fact, the whole process should be confined within a simmer; 

 the more gradual the simmer, the more tender will be the flesh. 

 It requires a longer time to cook game in this way than to roast 

 or broil it. 



OTHER WAYS OF COOKING GROUSE OR PHEASANTS. 



Some persons have a fancy for cooking Grouse, or rather 

 basting them, with a rich gravy made of butter, spice, and 

 port- wine. We have eaten them stewed in this kind of dress- 

 ing as well as stuffed with a variety of herbs or forced-meat 

 balls. 



These made dishes are all very nice in themselves, and cal- 

 culated to please the fancy of many ; but a Pheasant stewed in 

 port-wine and spices is no longer a Pheasant, and therefore does 

 not suit our palate ; for, when w^e eat game, we like both to 

 know it and taste it. 



Pheasants are very passable when split in the back and 

 broiled, as recommended for Partridges. There are other 

 modes yet for cooking Grouse, which, however, are not worth 

 referring to. 



o 



TO COOK A SNIPE, WOODCOCK, PLOVER, &c. 



As before said, the more plainly Game Birds are coohed, the 

 better. This observation applies more particularly to the two 



