Chapter I: Ancient and Mediæval Cookery Compared

WITH THE COOKERY OF THE LAST HALF CENTURY.

Garum--Pilau seasoned with garum, 2. The Feast of Trimalchio
in Petronius, 2. Macrobius’s description of a supper given by
Lentulus, 2. Hedge hogs, raw oysters, and asparagus, and purple
shell-fish, 2. Panes picences, 2. Greeks and Romans children
in preparation of viands, 3. Carème’s opinion, 3. Cookery a
practical art, 3. Characteristics of ancient and modern cookery,
4. The Monks, 4. Spanish cookery book of Ruberto de Nola, 4. Leo
X., Raphael, Guido, Baccio, Bandinelli, and John of Bologna,
5. Italian wars under Charles VIII. and Louis XII., 5. Cookery
under Henry III. became Italian, 6. Cookery under Henry IV., 6.
The cabaret, 7. Maître queux cuisiniers porte-chapes, 7. First
regular cookery book in France printed in 1692, 7. The “Dons
de Comus,” 9. Preface written by Father Brumoy, 9. Brumoy’s
comparison between ancient and modern cookery, 10. Idea of a
perfect cook, 10. “Lettre d’un Pâtissier Anglais,” 11. Mrs.
Rundell, 12. “La Science du Maître d’Hôtel Cuisinier,” 12.
Carème, 13. Molière, 13. St. Evremond, 14. Lavardin, 15. The
Regent Orleans, 15. The Duchess of Berri, 15. Filets de volaille
à la Bellevue, 16. Poulets à la Villeroy, 16. Chartreuse à
la Mauconseil, 16. Vol au vent à la Nesle, 16. Poularde à
la Montmorency, 16. Louis XV., 17. Marquis de Béchamel, 18.
Marshals Richelieu and Duras, Duke of La Vallière, the Marquis
de Brancas, and Count de Tessé, 18. Consumption of pheasants in
the kitchens of the Prince de Condé, 18. Louis XVI., 19. His
enormous appetite, 19. Effects of Revolution on cookery, 19.
Cardinal Caraffa, 20. Montaigne, 20. Restaurants, 21. Suppers
of Madame du Deffand, 22. Dinners of D’Holbach, 22. Pic-nics of
Crawford of Auchinames, 22. The epicure Barras, 23. Danton’s love
of morels, 23. Barras’ love of button mushrooms, 23. Napoleon’s
dinners, 23. M. de Bausset, M. de Cussy, Cambacères, Talleyrand,
25. The “Almanach des Gourmands,” 26. Purge your cooks, 28. Frog
dressing at Riom, 28. Veal of Pontoise, 29. Gastaldy and the
salmon, 29. Flesh killed by electricity, 30. Asses’ flesh, 30.
White grease of the fig-pecker, 31. Beauvilliers, 31. Brillat
Savarin, 31. Consumption of turkeys, 32. The Archbishop of
Bordeaux and truffled turkeys, 33. The “Cuisinière Bourgeoise,”
33. Fauche Borel, 33. “Cuisinier Royal,” 33. Shakespeare, Age
of Elizabeth, 34. Age of Anne, Wycherly, Vanbrugh, Congreve,
Pope, 34. Foote’s farce, 35. Bills of fare in Pope’s day, 36. The
“Queen’s Closet Opened,” 36. The “Treasure of Hidden Secrets,”
37. The “Gentleman’s Companion;” Dr. Hill, “Mrs. Glasse,” 37. The
“Connoisseur,” 39. White’s, Pontacs’, Dolly’s and Horsman’s, 39.
The “Art of Cookery,” by a lady, 39. The “Epicure’s Almanack,”
40. The “Cook and Confectioner’s Dictionary,” 40. Mrs. Dalgairns,
40. Scott’s “Dictionary of Cookery,” Kitchener’s “Cook’s Oracle,”
41. The “Housekeeper’s Oracle,” 41. Ude, 42. Walker’s “Original,”
42. “Domestic Cookery,” by a lady, 45. Carème, 47. Turtle soup,
48. Cookery of England and France, 50.

CHAPTER II.--ON MODERN COOKERY AND COOKERY BOOKS.

The object of sensible people should be to adopt all that is good
in the cookery of France, 61. French potages and purées, 61. The
gigot à l’ail aux haricots, 62. The filet de bœuf, 62. Vatel, La
Chapelle, Grimod de la Reynière, Beauvilliers, Ude, Laguipierre,
Carème, and Plumeret, 65.

CHAPTER III.--ON DINNERS AND DINNER-GIVING.

Jules Janin, 66. Dr. Johnson, 66. Sydney Smith, 67. Apicius, 67.
Nonnius, 67. Lémery, 68. Dr. Lister, 68. Dr. Kitchener, 68. Drs.
Pereira and Lankester, 68. London dinners, 69. The finer cuisine
bourgeoise of Paris, 69. The majority of Frenchmen thrifty, 70.
Bankers’ and financiers’ dinners, 70. French punctuality, 72. The
London season, 73. Difference between grand dinners in England
and France, 74. Pretentious and costly rivalry in dinners, 76.
Hints to dinner-givers, 78. Number of a company, 79. Expensive
cookery, 81. The pot-au-feu, 82. Carème’s consommés, 82.
French sauces, 82. Soles à la Normande, 82. Omelette aux fines
herbes, 82. Choice of company, 84. Italian cookery, ices, and
confectionery, 85. Spanish and German cookery, 85. Dutch cookery,
88. Dutch eel soup, 88. Flushing soup, 88. Russian cookery, 89.
Turkish and Indian cookery, 89.

CHAPTER IV.--ON LAYING OUT A TABLE.

Dinners à la Russe, 91. Two and three courses, 94, 95. The dessert,
97. Memorandum as to dinners, 97.

CHAPTER V.--HOW TO CHOOSE FISH, FLESH, FOWL, AND GAME.

Salmon in and out of season, 98. How to choose various fish, 98–109.
How to choose venison, 109. Mutton, 111. Lamb, veal, and
pork, 112, 113. Bacon and hams, 114, 115. Poultry, game, eggs,
cheese, and butter, 115–122.

CHAPTER VI.--ON SOUPS AND BROTHS.

Grand bouillon, 124. Rules for making nourishing broth, 125.
How to make a stock-pot, 126. Celery to flavour soup, 129. Broth,
130. The great English soups and broths, 131. Carème and turtle
soup, 133. Stocks for white soup, 133. French soups, 134. Purée
à la Reine, des carottes au riz, de lapins, à la Chantilly, &c., 134.
Soup for winter and spring months, 135.

CHAPTER VII.--HOW TO CLEAN AND BOIL FISH.

To clean cod-fish, 137. Pilchards, mackerel, and plaice, 138. Red
mullets, skate, and ling, 139. On boiling fish, 143, 144.

CHAPTER VIII.--ON FISH.

Fish naturally most voracious, 145. As a diet wholesome and
palatable, 146. Fish rarely served as an entrée in England,
146. Various ways of serving turbot in France, 146–7. Turbot of
Mediterranean, 148. Sturgeon, 148. Caviare, 149. French modes of
dressing sturgeon, 149. Modes of dressing sturgeon in England,
149. Sturgeon à la Napoleon, according to Carème, 150. American
sturgeon soup, 150. Salmon, 151. French mode of dressing salmon,
151. Nonnius on salmon, 152. Cod-fish, 152. Galen on haddock,
152. Nonnius and Pliny on haddock, 152. The sole, 153. French
modes of dressing, 153. Red mullet, 154. Red mullet en caisse,
and à la Cardinale, 154. John Dory and lamprey, 154. Quin, the
actor, 154. Receipts for dressing lamprey, 155. The Reformation
and fish diet, 155. Carème on lenten diet and Murat’s kitchen,
155. Fish dinners in Paris, 157. Dinner at the Rocher de Cancale,
1828, 157. Wine at 14 frs. and 25 frs. the bottle, 158–9.

CHAPTER IX.--THE ROAST.

Definition of roast, 160. Rôtisseries, 161. Rôtisseurs, 161. The
traiteur, 161. The cuisinier traiteur, 161. The maître cuisiniers,
162. The art of roasting, 162. The best joint for roasting, 163. Doing
to a turn, 164. Good roasters rarer than good cooks, 164. Great and
little roast, 164. English, roasting, 165. Our game finer than the
French, 165. Swift’s lines on mutton, 166. Rules for roasting pork,
lamb, veal, and poultry, 167. Table of time for roasting, 169.

CHAPTER X.--BOILING.

Rule as to boiling, 170. Advantage of slow boiling, 172. Time required
to boil poultry, 173. Frying, 173.

CHAPTER XI.--POULTRY.

Definition of poultry, 174. Requisites in a poultry yard, 174. Best
modes of feeding and cramming poultry, 175. Wholesomeness of poultry,
175. Lémery on fowls and capons, 176–7. How the fine flavour
is given to the poularde du Mans, 178. The barn-door fowl described by
Berchoux, 179. Roast and boiled fowl and turkey, 180. Ways of
serving fowls and turkeys in France, 180. Entrées of fowl in France,
180–1. Schools of cookery, 181. Christmas consumption of turkeys
in England and France, 181. Truffles with turkey, 181. Chaptal
on fowls, 182. Pros and cons for a dinde aux truffes, 182. Were
turkeys known to the ancients? 183. Madame de Sévigné on capons,
183. The crammer of fowls an officer of the royal household, 184.
Blackbirds and thrushes, 184.

CHAPTER XII.--GAME AND PASTRY.

Definition of game, 186. Keeper and taker of pheasants, 186.
Swanherd, 186. 17 Hen. VIII., falconry, 187. Cookery Book of
Taillevant, cook to Charles VII.; receipts for dressing herons,
187. Vultures, eagles, and falcons, eaten three centuries ago,
188. Game in Spain, partridges à la Medina Cœli, 189. Sautés,
filets, and recondite modes of dressing game in France, 190.
Filets and cutlets of hare and rabbit, 191. Pastry and cold
entrées, 191. Carème on pastry, 192. Suggestions as to patties
and pastry, 193. Pâtisserie, 194. Larks of Pithiviers, 194.
Partridges of Perigueux, 194. Poulardes of Angers, 194. Foies
gras of Versailles, 194. Foies d’oies of Strasbourg and Toulouse,
194. The Chancellor de l’Hôpital on petits pâtés, 194.

CHAPTER XIII.--CHEESE AND SALADS.

Soft and rich cheeses the best, 196. Stilton and Gruyère, 196. Best
English cheeses, 196. Best cheeses in France, 198. Roquefort, 198.
Gruyère, 198. Italian cheeses introduced into France in the reign of
Charles VIII., 199.

CHAPTER XIV.--ON SALAD.

John Evelyn “On Salets,” 202. Fournitures of salads, 202. Chicorée,
203. Winter salads, 203. Roman or Coss lettuce, 204. Hotchpotch
salads, 204. Salade à l’italienne, 204. Carème’s salade de poulets
à la Reine, 204. Wine vinegar to be used for salads, 206. Chaptal’s
receipt for dressing salad, 206. Sydney Smith’s ditto, 206–7. Spanish
proverb as to salad, 207. D’Albignac a famous salad-dresser, 208.
Eleven salads of the time of Champier, 210–11. Dr. Roques’ salad of
asparagus, 211. Quickness with which asparagus may be cooked, 211.
Napoleon’s salad of haricots de soissons, 212.