Chapter XXI: CHICKEN CUTLETS (an Entree) (1)

926. INGREDIENTS.--2 chickens; seasoning to taste of salt, white pepper, and cayenne; 2 blades of pounded mace, egg and bread crumbs, clarified butter, 1 strip of lemon-rind, 2 carrots, 1 onion, 2 tablespoonfuls of mushroom ketchup, thickening of butter and flour, 1 egg.

_Mode_.--Remove the breast and leg bones of the chickens; cut the meat into neat pieces after having skinned it, and season the cutlets with pepper, salt, pounded mace, and cayenne. Put the bones, trimmings, &c., into a stewpan with 1 pint of water, adding carrots, onions, and lemon-peel in the above proportion; stew gently for 1-1/2 hour, and strain the gravy. Thicken it with butter and flour, add the ketchup and 1 egg well beaten; stir it over the fire, and bring it to the simmering-point, but do not allow it to boil. In the mean time, egg and bread-crumb the cutlets, and give them a few drops of clarified butter; fry them a delicate brown, occasionally turning them; arrange them pyramidically on the dish, and pour over them the sauce.

_Time_.--10 minutes to fry the cutlets. _Average cost_, 2s. each.

_Sufficient_ for an entrée.

_Seasonable_ from April to July.

FOWLS AS FOOD.--Brillat Savarin, pre-eminent in gastronomic
taste, says that he believes the whole gallinaceous family was
made to enrich our larders and furnish our tables; for, from the
quail to the turkey, he avers their flesh is a light aliment,
full of flavour, and fitted equally well for the invalid as for
the man of robust health. The fine flavour, however, which
Nature has given to all birds coming under the definition of
poultry, man has not been satisfied with, and has used many
means--such as keeping them in solitude and darkness, and
forcing them to eat--to give them an unnatural state of fatness
or fat. This fat, thus artificially produced, is doubtless
delicious, and the taste and succulence of the boiled and
roasted bird draw forth the praise of the guests around the
table. Well-fattened and tender, a fowl is to the cook what the
canvas is to the painter; for do we not see it served boiled,
roasted, fried, fricasseed, hashed, hot, cold, whole,
dismembered, boned, broiled, stuffed, on dishes, and in
pies,--always handy and ever acceptable?

THE COMMON OR DOMESTIC FOWL.--From time immemorial, the common
or domestic fowl has been domesticated in England, and is
supposed to be originally the offspring of some wild species
which abound in the forests of India. It is divided into a
variety of breeds, but the most esteemed are, the Poland or
Black, the Dorking, the Bantam, the Game Fowl, and the Malay or
Chittagong. The common, or barn-door fowl, is one of the most
delicate of the varieties; and at Dorking, in Surrey, the breed
is brought to great perfection. Till they are four months old,
the term chicken is applied to the young female; after that age
they are called pullets, till they begin to lay, when they are
called hens. The English counties most productive in poultry are
Surrey, Sussex, Norfolk, Herts, Devon, and Somerset.

FRENCH CHICKEN CUTLETS (Cold Meat Cookery).

927. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of cold roast or boiled fowl, fried bread, clarified butter, the yolk of 1 egg, bread crumbs, 1/2 teaspoonful of finely-minced lemon-peel; salt, cayenne, and mace to taste. For sauce,--1 oz. of butter, 2 minced shalots, a few slices of carrot, a small bunch of savoury herbs, including parsley, 1 blade of pounded mace, 6 peppercorns, 1/4 pint of gravy.

_Mode_.--Cut the fowls into as many nice cutlets as possible; take a corresponding number of sippets about the same size, all cut one shape; fry them a pale brown, put them before the fire, then dip the cutlets into clarified butter mixed with the yolk of an egg, cover with bread crumbs seasoned in the above proportion, with lemon-peel, mace, salt, and cayenne; fry them for about 5 minutes, put each piece on one of the sippets, pile them high in the dish, and serve with the following sauce, which should be made ready for the cutlets. Put the butter into a stewpan, add the shalots, carrot, herbs, mace, and peppercorns; fry for 10 minutes or rather longer; pour in 1/2 pint of good gravy, made of the chicken bones, stew gently for 20 minutes, strain it, and serve.

_Time_.--5 minutes to fry the cutlets; 35 minutes to make the gravy.

_Average cost_, exclusive of the chicken, 9d.

_Seasonable_ from April to July.

EGGS FOR HATCHING.--Eggs intended for hatching should be removed
as soon as laid, and placed in bran in a dry, cool place. Choose
those that are near of a size; and, as a rule, avoid those that
are equally thick at both ends,--such, probably, contain a
double yolk, and will come to no good. Eggs intended for
hatching should never be stored longer than a month, as much
less the better. Nine eggs may be placed under a Bantam hen, and
as many as fifteen under a Dorking. The odd number is considered
preferable, as more easily packed. It will be as well to mark
the eggs you give the hen to sit on, so that you may know if she
lays any more: if she does, you must remove them; for, if
hatched at all, they would be too late for the brood. If during
incubation an egg should be broken, remove it, and take out the
remainder, and cleanse them in luke-warm water, or it is
probable the sticky nature of the contents of the broken egg
will make the others cling to the hen's feathers; and they, too,
may be fractured.

HENS SITTING.--Some hens are very capricious as regards sitting;
they will make a great fuss, and keep pining for the nest, and,
when they are permitted to take to it, they will sit just long
enough to addle the eggs, and then they're off again. The safest
way to guard against such annoyance, is to supply the hen with
some hard-boiled eggs; if she sits on them a reasonable time,
and seems steadily inclined, like a good matron, you may then
give her proper eggs, and let her set about the business in
earnest.

CHICKEN OR FOWL PATTIES.

928. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of cold roast chicken or fowl; to every 1/4 lb. of meat allow 2 oz. of ham, 3 tablespoonfuls of cream, 2 tablespoonfuls of veal gravy, 1/2 teaspoonful of minced lemon-peel; cayenne, salt, and pepper to taste; 1 tablespoonful of lemon-juice, 1 oz. of butter rolled in flour; puff paste.

_Mode_.--Mince very small the white meat from a cold roast fowl, after removing all the skin; weigh it, and to every 1/4 lb. of meat allow the above proportion of minced ham. Put these into a stewpan with the remaining ingredients, stir over the fire for 10 minutes or 1/4 hour, taking care that the mixture does not burn. Roll out some puff paste about 1/4 inch in thickness; line the patty-pans with this, put upon each a small piece of bread, and cover with another layer of paste; brush over with the yolk of an egg, and bake in a brisk oven for about 1/4 hour. When done, cut a round piece out of the top, and, with a small spoon, take out the bread (be particular in not breaking the outside border of the crust), and fill the patties with the mixture.

_Time_.--1/4 hour to prepare the meat; not quite 1/4 hour to bake the crust.

_Seasonable_ at any time.

HATCHING.--Sometimes the chick within the shell is unable to
break away from its prison; for the white of the egg will
occasionally harden in the air to the consistence of joiners'
clue, when the poor chick is in a terrible fix. An able writer
says, "Assistance in hatching must not be rendered prematurely,
and thence unnecessarily, but only in the case of the chick
being plainly unable to release itself; then, indeed, an
addition may probably be made to the brood, as great numbers are
always lost in this way. The chick makes a circular fracture at
the big end of the egg, and a section of about one-third of the
length of the shell being separated, delivers the prisoner,
provided there is no obstruction from adhesion of the body to
the membrane which lines the shell. Between the body of the
chick and the membrane of the shell there exists a viscous
fluid, the white of the egg thickened with the intense heat of
incubation, until it becomes a positive glue. When this happens,
the feathers stick fast to the shell, and the chicks remain
confined, and must perish, if not released."

The method of assistance to be rendered to chicks which have a
difficulty in releasing themselves from the shell, is to take
the egg in the hand, and dipping the finger or a piece of linen
rag in warm water, to apply it to the fastened parts until they
are loosened by the gluey substance becoming dissolved and
separated from the feathers. The chick, then, being returned to
the nest, will extricate itself,--a mode generally to be
observed, since, if violence were used, it would prove fatal.
Nevertheless, breaking the shell may sometimes be necessary; and
separating with the fingers, as gently as may be, the membrane
from the feathers, which are still to be moistened as mentioned
above, to facilitate the operation. The points of small scissors
may be useful, and when there is much resistance, as also
apparent pain to the bird, the process must be conducted in the
gentlest manner, and the shell separated into a number of small
pieces. The signs of a need of assistance are the egg being
partly pecked and chipped, and the cluck discontinuing its
efforts for five of six hours. Weakness from cold may disable
the chicken from commencing the operation of pecking the shell,
which must then be artificially performed with a circular
fracture, such as is made by the bird itself.

CHICKEN OR FOWL PIE.

929. INGREDIENTS.--2 small fowls or 1 large one, white pepper and salt to taste, 1/2 teaspoonful of grated nutmeg, 1/2 teaspoonful of pounded mace, forcemeat No. 417, a few slices of ham, 3 hard-boiled eggs, 1/2 pint of water, puff crust.

_Mode_.--Skin and cut up the fowls into joints, and put the neck, leg, and backbones in a stewpan, with a little water, an onion, a bunch of savoury herbs, and a blade of mace; let these stew for about an hour, and, when done, strain off the liquor: this is for gravy. Put a layer of fowl at the bottom of a pie-dish, then a layer of ham, then one of forcemeat and hard-boiled eggs cut in rings; between the layers put a seasoning of pounded mace, nutmeg, pepper, and salt. Proceed in this manner until the dish is full, and pour in about 1/2 pint of water; border the edge of the dish with puff crust, put on the cover, ornament the top, and glaze it by brushing over it the yolk of an egg. Bake from 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 hour, should the pie be very large, and, when done, pour in, at the top, the gravy made from the bones. If to be eaten cold, and wished particularly nice, the joints of the fowls should be boned, and placed in the dish with alternate layers of forcemeat; sausage-meat may also be substituted for the forcemeat, and is now very much used. When the chickens are boned, and mixed with sausage-meat, the pie will take about 2 hours to bake. It should be covered with a piece of paper when about half-done, to prevent the paste from being dried up or scorched.

_Time_.--For a pie with unboned meat, 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 hour; with boned meat and sausage or forcemeat, 1-1/2 to 2 hours.

_Average cost_, with 2 fowls, 6s. 6d.

_Sufficient_ for 6 or 7 persons.

_Seasonable_ at any time.

THE YOUNG CHICKS.--The chicks that are hatched first should be
taken from underneath the hen, lest she might think her task at
an end, and leave the remaining eggs to spoil. As soon as the
young birds are taken from the mother, they must be placed in a
basket lined with soft wool, flannel, or hay, and stood in the
sunlight if it be summer time, or by the fire if the weather be
cold. It is a common practice to cram young chicks with food as
soon as they are born. This is quite unnecessary. They will, so
long as they are kept warm, come to no harm if they take no food
for twenty-four hours following their birth. Should the whole of
the brood not be hatched by that time, those that are born may
be fed with bread soaked in milk, and the yolk of a hard-boiled
egg.

POTTED CHICKEN OR FOWL (a Luncheon or Breakfast Dish).

930. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of cold roast chicken; to every lb. of meat allow 1/4 lb. of fresh butter, salt and cayenne to taste, 1 teaspoonful of pounded mace, 1/4 small nutmeg.

_Mode_.--Strip the meat from the bones of cold roast fowl; when it is freed from gristle and skin, weigh it, and, to every lb. of meat, allow the above proportion of butter, seasoning, and spices. Cut the meat into small pieces, pound it well with the fresh butter, sprinkle in the spices gradually, and keep pounding until reduced to a perfectly smooth paste. Put it into potting-pots for use, and cover it with clarified butter, about 1/4 inch in thickness, and, if to be kept for some time, tie over a bladder: 2 or 3 slices of ham, minced and pounded with the above ingredients, will be found an improvement. It should be kept in a dry place.

_Seasonable_ at any time.

FEEDING AND COOPING THE CHICKS.--When all the chicks are
hatched, they should be placed along with the mother under a
coop in a warm dry spot. If two hens happen to have their broods
at the same time, their respective chicks should be carefully
kept separate; as, if they get mixed, and so go under the wrong
coop, the hens will probably maim and destroy those who have
mistaken their dwelling. After being kept snug beneath the coop
for a week (the coop should be placed under cover at nightfall),
the chicks may be turned loose for an hour or so in the warmest
part of the day. They should be gradually weaned from the soaked
bread and chopped egg, instead of which grits or boiled barley
should be given; in 8 or 10 days their stomachs will be strong
enough to receive bruised barley, and at the end of 3 weeks, if
your chicks be healthy, they will be able to take care of
themselves. It will be well, however, to keep your eye on them a
week or so longer, as the elder chickens may drive them from
their food. Great care should be taken that the very young
chicks do not run about the wet ground or on damp grass, as this
is the most prominent and fatal cause of disease. While under
the coop with their mother, a shallow pan or plate of water
should be supplied to the chicks, as in a deeper vessel they are
liable to drench themselves and take cold, or possibly to get
drowned.

CHICKEN OR FOWL SALAD.

931. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of cold roast or boiled chicken, 2 lettuces, a little endive, 1 cucumber, a few slices of boiled beetroot, salad-dressing No. 506.

_Mode_.--Trim neatly the remains of the chicken; wash, dry, and slice the lettuces, and place in the middle of a dish; put the pieces of fowl on the top, and pour the salad-dressing over them. Garnish the edge of the salad with hard-boiled eggs cut in rings, sliced cucumber, and boiled beetroot cut in slices. Instead of cutting the eggs in rings, the yolks may be rubbed through a hair sieve, and the whites chopped very finely, and arranged on the salad in small bunches, yellow and white alternately. This should not be made long before it is wanted for table.

_Average cost_, exclusive of the cold chicken, 8d.

_Sufficient_ for 4 or 5 persons.

_Seasonable_ at any time.

AGE AND FLAVOUR OF CHICKENS.--It has been the opinion of the
medical faculty of all ages and all countries, that the flesh of
the young chicken is the must delicate and easy to digest of all
animal food. It is less alkalescent than the flesh of any other
animal, and its entire freedom from any irritating quality
renders it a fit dish for the ailing, or those whose stomachs
are naturally weak. In no animal, however, does age work such a
change, in regard to the quality of its flesh, as it does in
domestic fowls. In their infancy, cocks and hens are equally
tender and toothsome; but as time overtakes them it is the cock
whose flesh toughens first. A year-old cock, indeed, is fit for
little else than to be converted into soup, while a hen at the
same age, although sufficiently substantial, is not callous to
the insinuations of a carving-knife. As regards capons, however,
the rule respecting age does not hold good. There is scarcely to
be found a more delicious animal than a well-fed, well-dressed
capon. Age does not dry up his juices; indeed, like wine, he
seems but to mellow. At three years old, even, he is as tender
as a chick, with the additional advantage of his proper chicken
flavour being fully developed. The above remarks, however,
concerning the capon, only apply to such as are _naturally_ fed,
and not crammed. The latter process may produce a
handsome-looking bird, and it may weigh enough to satisfy the
whim or avarice of its stuffer; but, when before the fire, it
will reveal the cruel treatment to which it has been subjected,
and will weep a drippingpan-ful of fat tears. You will never
find heart enough to place such a grief-worn guest at the head
of your table. It should be borne in mind as a rule, that
small-boned and short-legged poultry are likely to excel the
contrary sort in delicacy of colour, flavour, and fineness of
flesh.

HASHED DUCK (Cold Meat Cookery).

932. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of cold roast duck, rather more than 1 pint of weak stock or water, 1 onion, 1 oz. of butter, thickening of butter and flour, salt and cayenne to taste, 1/2 teaspoonful of minced lemon-peel, 1 dessertspoonful of lemon-juice, 1/2 glass of port wine.

_Mode_.--Cut the duck into nice joints, and put the trimmings into a stewpan; slice and fry the onion in a little butter; add these to the trimmings, pour in the above proportion of weak stock or water, and stew gently for 1 hour. Strain the liquor, thicken it with butter and flour, season with salt and cayenne, and add the remaining ingredients; boil it up and skim well; lay in the pieces of duck, and let them get thoroughly hot through by the side of the fire, but do not allow them to boil: they should soak in the gravy for about 1/2 hour. Garnish with sippets of toasted bread. The hash may be made richer by using a stronger and more highly-flavoured gravy; a little spice or pounded mace may also be added, when their flavour is liked.

_Time_.--1-1/2 hour. _Average cost_, exclusive of the cold duck, 4d.

_Seasonable_ from November to February; ducklings from May to August.

THE DUCK.--This bird belongs to the order of _Natatores_, or
Swimmers; the most familiar tribes of which are ducks, swans,
geese, auks, penguins, petrels, pelicans, guillemots, gulls, and
terns. They mostly live in the water, feeding on fish, worms,
and aquatic plants. They are generally polygamous, and make
their nests among reeds, or in moist places. The flesh of many
of the species is eatable, but that of some is extremely rank
and oily. The duck is a native of Britain, but is found on the
margins of most of the European lakes. It is excessively greedy,
and by no means a nice feeder. It requires a mixture of
vegetable and animal food; but aquatic insects, corn, and
vegetables, are its proper food. Its flesh, however, is savoury,
being not so gross as that of the goose, and of easier
digestion. In the green-pea season it is usually found on an
English table; but, according to Ude, "November is its proper
season, when it is plump and fat."

TO RAGOUT A DUCK WHOLE.

933. INGREDIENTS.--1 large duck, pepper and salt to taste, good beef gravy, 2 onions sliced, 4 sage-leaves, a few leaves of lemon thyme, thickening of butter and flour.

_Mode_.--After having emptied and singed the duck, season it inside with pepper and salt, and truss it. Roast it before a clear fire for about 20 minutes, and let it acquire a nice brown colour. Put it into a stewpan with sufficient well-seasoned beef gravy to cover it; slice and fry the onions, and add these, with the sage-leaves and lemon thyme, both of which should be finely minced, to the stock. Simmer gently until the duck is tender; strain, skim, and thicken the gravy with a little butter and flour; boil it up, pour over the duck, and serve. When in season, about, 1-1/2 pint of young green peas, boiled separately, and put in the ragoût, very much improve this dish.

_Time_.--20 minutes to roast the duck; 20 minutes to stew it.

_Average cost_, from 2s. 3d. to 2s. 6d. each.

_Sufficient_ for 4 or 5 persons.

_Seasonable_ from November to February; ducklings from April to August.

THE BUENOS AYRES DUCK.--The Buenos Ayres duck is of East-Indian
birth, and is chiefly valuable as an ornament; for we suppose
one would as soon think of picking a Chinese teal for luncheon,
or a gold fish for breakfast, as to consign the handsome Buenos
Ayres to the spit. The prevailing colour of this bird is black,
with a metallic lustre, and a gleaming of blue steel about its
breast and wings.

VARIETIES OF DUCKS.--Naturalists count nearly a hundred
different species of ducks; and there is no doubt that the
intending keeper of these harmless and profitable birds may
easily take his choice from amongst twenty different sorts.
There is, however, so little difference in the various members
of the family, either as regards hardiness, laying, or hatching,
that the most incompetent fancier or breeder may indulge his
taste without danger of making a bad bargain. In connection with
their value for table, light-coloured ducks are always of milder
flavour than those that are dark-coloured, the white Aylesbury's
being general favourites. Ducks reared exclusively on vegetable
diet will have a whiter and more delicate flesh than those
allowed to feed on animal offal; while the flesh of birds
fattened on the latter food, will be firmer than that of those
which have only partaken of food of a vegetable nature.

ROAST DUCKS.

934. INGREDIENTS.--A couple of ducks; sage-and-onion stuffing No. 504; a little flour.

_Choosing and Trussing_.--Choose ducks with plump bellies, and with thick and yellowish feet. They should be trussed with the feet on, which should be scalded, and the skin peeled off, and then turned up close to the legs. Run a skewer through the middle of each leg, after having drawn them as close as possible to the body, to plump up the breast, passing the same quite through the body. Cut off the heads and necks, and the pinions at the first joint; bring these close to the sides, twist the feet round, and truss them at the back of the bird. After the duck is stuffed, both ends should be secured with string, so as to keep in the seasoning.

_Mode_.--To insure ducks being tender, never dress them the same day they are killed; and if the weather permits, they should hang a day or two. Make a stuffing of sage and onion sufficient for one duck, and leave the other unseasoned, as the flavour is not liked by everybody. Put them down to a brisk clear fire, and keep them well basted the whole of the time they are cooking. A few minutes before serving, dredge them lightly with flour, to make them froth and look plump; and when the steam draws towards the fire, send them to table hot and quickly, with a good brown gravy poured _round_, but not _over_ the ducks, and a little of the same in a tureen. When in season, green peas should invariably accompany this dish.

_Time_.--Full-grown ducks from 3/4 to 1 hour; ducklings from 25 to 35 minutes.

_Average cost_, from 2s. 3d. to 2s. 6d. each.

_Sufficient_.--A. couple of ducks for 6 or 7 persons.

_Seasonable_.--Ducklings from April to August; ducks from November to February.

_Note_.--Ducklings are trussed and roasted in the same manner, and served with the same sauces and accompaniments. When in season, serve apple sauce.

THE ROUEN DUCK.--The Rouen, or Rhone duck, is a large and
handsome variety, of French extraction. The plumage of the Rouen
duck is somewhat sombre; its flesh is also much darker, and,
though of higher flavour, not near so delicate as that of our
own Aylesbury. It is with this latter breed that the Rouen duck
is generally mated; and the result is said to be increase of
size and strength. In Normandy and Brittany these ducks, as well
as other sorts, greatly abound; and the "duck-liver _pâtés_" are
there almost as popular as the _pâté de foie gras_ of Strasburg.
In order to bring the livers of the wretched duck to the
fashionable and unnatural size, the same diabolical cruelty is
resorted to as in the case of the Strasburg goose. The poor
birds are _nailed_ by the feet to a board placed close to a
fire, and, in that position, plentifully supplied with food and
water. In a few days, the carcase is reduced to a mere shadow,
while the liver has grown monstrously. We would rather abstain
from the acquaintance of a man who ate _pâté de foie gras_,
knowing its component parts.

DUCK'S EGGS.--The ancient notion that ducks whose beaks have a
tendency to curve upwards, are better layers than those whose
beaks do not thus point, is, we need hardly say, simply absurd:
all ducks are good layers, if they are carefully fed and tended.
Ducks generally lay at night, or early in the morning. While
they are in perfect health, they will do this; and one of the
surest signs of indisposition, among birds of this class, is
irregularity in laying. The eggs laid will approach nearly the
colour of the layer,--light-coloured ducks laying white eggs,
and brown ducks greenish-blue eggs; dark-coloured birds laying
the largest eggs. One time of day the notion was prevalent that
a duck would hatch no other eggs than her own; and although this
is not true, it will be, nevertheless, as well to match the
duck's own eggs as closely as possible; for we have known
instances wherein the duck has turned out of the nest and
destroyed eggs differing from her own in size and colour.

DUCKS.--The Mallard, or Wild Duck, from which is derived the
domestic species, is prevalent throughout Europe, Asia, and
America. The mallard's most remarkable characteristic is one
which sets at defiance the speculations of the most profound
ornithologist. The female bird is extremely plain, but the
male's plumage is a splendour of greens and browns, and browns
and blues. In the spring, however, the plumage of the male
begins to fade, and in two months, every vestige of his finery
has departed, and he is not to be distinguished from his
soberly-garbed wife. Then the greens, and the blues, and the
browns begin to bud out again, and by October he is once more a
gorgeous drake. It is to be regretted that domestication has
seriously deteriorated the moral character of the duck. In a
wild state, he is a faithful husband, desiring but one wife, and
devoting himself to her; but no sooner is he domesticated than
he becomes polygamous, and makes nothing of owning ten or a
dozen wives at a time. As regards the females, they are much
more solicitous for the welfare of their progeny in a wild state
than a tame. Should a tame duck's duckling get into mortal
trouble, its mother will just signify her sorrow by an extra
"quack," or so, and a flapping of her wings; but touch a wild
duck's little one if you dare! she will buffet you with her
broad wings, and dash boldly at your face with her stout beak.
If you search for her nest amongst the long grass, she will try
no end of manoeuvres to lure you from it, her favourite _ruse_
being to pretend lameness, to delude you into the notion that
you have only to pursue _her_ vigorously, and her capture is
certain; so you persevere for half a mile or so, and then she is
up and away, leaving you to find your way back to the nest if
you can. Among the ancients, opinion was at variance respecting
the wholesomeness and digestibility of goose flesh, but
concerning the excellence of the duck all parties were agreed;
indeed, they not only assigned to duck-meat the palm for
exquisite flavour and delicacy, they even attributed to it
medicinal powers of the highest order. Not only the Roman
medical writers of the time make mention of it, but likewise the
philosophers of the period. Plutarch assures us that Cato
preserved his whole household in health, in a season when plague
and disease were rife, through dieting them on roast duck.

STEWED DUCK AND PEAS (Cold Meat Cookery).

935. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of cold roast duck, 2 oz. of butter, 3 or 4 slices of lean ham or bacon, 1 tablespoonful of flour, 2 pints of thin gravy, 1, or a small bunch of green onions, 3 sprigs of parsley, 3 cloves, 1 pint of young green peas, cayenne and salt to taste, 1 teaspoonful of pounded sugar.

_Mode_.--Put the butter into a stewpan; cut up the duck into joints, lay them in with the slices of lean ham or bacon; make it brown, then dredge in a tablespoonful of flour, and stir this well in before adding the gravy. Put in the onion, parsley, cloves, and gravy, and when it has simmered for 1/4 hour, add a pint of young green peas, and stew gently for about 1/2 hour. Season with cayenne, salt, and sugar; take out the duck, place it round the dish, and the peas in the middle.

_Time_.--3/4 hour.

_Average cost_, exclusive of the cold duck, 1s.

_Seasonable_ from June to August.

DUCKS HATCHING.--Concerning incubation by ducks, a practised
writer says, "The duck requires a secret and safe place, rather
than any attendance, and will, at nature's call, cover her eggs
and seek her food. On hatching, there is not often a necessity
for taking away any of the brood; and, having hatched, let the
mother retain her young ones upon the nest her own time. On her
moving with her brood, let a coop be prepared upon the short
grass, if the weather be fine, and under shelter, if otherwise."

COOPING AND FEEDING DUCKLINGS.--Brood ducks should be cooped at
some distance from any other. A wide and flat dish of water, to
be often renewed, should stand just outside the coop, and
barley, or any other meal, be the first food of the ducklings.
It will be needful, if it be wet weather, to clip their tails,
lest these draggle, and so weaken the bird. The period of the
duck's confinement to the coop will depend on the weather, and
on the strength of the ducklings. A fortnight is usually the
extent of time necessary, and they may even be sometimes
permitted to enjoy the luxury of a swim at the end of a week.
They should not, however, be allowed to stay too long in the
water at first; for they will then become ill, their feathers
get rough, and looseness of the bowels ensue. In the latter
case, let them be closely cooped for a few days, and bean-meal
or oatmeal be mixed with their ordinary food.

THE AYLESBURY DUCK.--The white Aylesbury duck is, and
deservedly, a universal favourite. Its snowy plumage and
comfortable comportment make it a credit to the poultry-yard,
while its broad and deep breast, and its ample back, convey the
assurance that your satisfaction will not cease at its death. In
parts of Buckinghamshire, this member of the duck family is bred
on an extensive scale; not on plains and commons, however, as
might be naturally imagined, but in the abodes of the cottagers.
Round the walls of the living-rooms, and of the bedroom even,
are fixed rows of wooden boxes, lined with hay; and it is the
business of the wife and children to nurse and comfort the
feathered lodgers, to feed the little ducklings, and to take the
old ones out for an airing. Sometimes the "stock" ducks are the
cottager's own property, but it more frequently happens that
they are intrusted to his care by a wholesale breeder, who pays
him so much _per_ score for all ducklings properly raised. To be
perfect, the Aylesbury duck should be plump, pure white, with
yellow feet, and a flesh-coloured beak.

STEWED DUCK AND PEAS (Cold Meat Cookery).

936. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of cold roast duck, 1/2 pint of good gravy, cayenne and salt to taste, 1/2 teaspoonful of minced lemon-peel, 1 teaspoonful of pounded sugar, 2 oz, of butter rolled in flour, 1-1/2 pint of green peas.

_Mode_.--Cut up the duck into joints, lay it in the gravy, and add a seasoning of cayenne, salt, and minced lemon-peel; let tins gradually warm through, but not boil. Throw the peas into boiling water slightly salted, and boil them rapidly until tender. Drain them, stir in the pounded sugar, and the butter rolled in flour; shake them over the fire for two or three minutes, and serve in the centre of the dish, with the duck laid round.

_Time_.--15 minutes to boil the peas, when they are full grown.

_Average cost_, exclusive of the cold duck, 10d.

_Seasonable_ from June to August.

FATTENING DUCKS.--Many duck-keepers give their birds nothing in
the shape of food, letting them wander about and pick up a
living for themselves; and they will seem to get fat even upon
this precarious feeding. Unless, however, ducks are supplied
with, besides chance food, a liberal feed of solid corn, or
grain, morning and evening, their flesh will become flabby and
insipid. The simple way to fatten ducks is to let them have as
much, substantial food as they will eat, bruised oats and
pea-meal being the standard fattening food for them. No cramming
is required, as with the turkey and some other poultry: they
will cram themselves to the very verge of suffocation. At the
same time, plenty of exercise and clean water should be at their
service.

AMERICAN MODE OF CAPTURING DUCKS.--On the American rivers, the
modes of capture are various. Sometimes half a dozen artificial
birds are fastened to a little raft, and which is so weighted
that the sham birds squat naturally on the water. This is quite
sufficient to attract the notice of a passing flock, who descend
to cultivate the acquaintance of the isolated few when the
concealed hunter, with his fowling-piece, scatters a deadly
leaden shower amongst them. In the winter, when the water is
covered with rubble ice, the fowler of the Delaware paints his
canoe entirely white, lies flat in the bottom of it, and floats
with the broken ice; from which the aquatic inhabitants fail to
distinguish it. So floats the canoe till he within it
understands, by the quacking, and fluttering, and whirring of
wings, that he is in the midst of a flock, when he is up in a
moment with the murderous piece, and dying quacks and
lamentations rend the still air.

Bow-BILL DUCKS, &c.--Every one knows how awkward are the
_Anatidae_, waddling along on their unelastic webbed toes, and
their short legs, which, being placed considerably backward,
make the fore part of the body preponderate. Some, however, are
formed more adapted to terrestrial habits than others, and
notably amongst these may be named _Dendronessa sponsa_, the
summer duck of America. This beautiful bird rears her young in
the holes of trees, generally overhanging the water. When strong
enough, the young scramble to the mouth of the hole, launch into
the air with their little wings and feet spread out, and drop
into their favourite element. Whenever their birthplace is at
some distance from the water, the mother carries them to it, one
by one, in her bill, holding them so as not to injure their yet
tender frame. On several occasions, however, when the hole was
30, 40, or more yards from a piece of water, Audubon observed
that the mother suffered the young to fall on the grass and
dried leaves beneath the tree, and afterwards led them directly
to the nearest edge of the next pool or creek. There are some
curious varieties of the domestic duck, which only appear
interesting from their singularity, for there does not seem to
be anything of use or value in the unusual characteristics which
distinguish them; thus, the bow-bill duck, as shown in the
engraving, called by some writers the hook-bill, is remarkable
for the peculiarly strange distortion of its beak, and the tuft
on the top of its head. The penguin duck, again, waddles in an
upright position, like the penguin, on account of the unnatural
situation of its legs. These odd peculiarities add nothing of
value to the various breeds, and may be set down as only the
result of accidental malformation, transmitted from generation
to generation.

STEWED DUCK AND TURNIPS (Cold Meat Cookery).

937. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of cold roast duck, 1/2 pint of good gravy, 4 shalots, a few slices of carrot, a small bunch of savoury herbs, 1 blade of pounded mace, 1 lb. of turnips, weighed after being peeled, 2 oz. of butter, pepper and salt to taste.

_Mode_.--Cut up the duck into joints, fry the shalots, carrots, and herbs, and put them, with the duck, into the gravy; add the pounded mace, and stew gently for 20 minutes or 1/2 hour. Cut about 1 lb. of turnips, weighed after being peeled, into 1/2-inch squares, put the butter into a stewpan, and stew them till quite tender, which will be in about 1/2 hour, or rather more; season with pepper and salt, and serve in the centre of the dish, with the duck, &c. laid round.

_Time_.--Rather more than 1/2 hour to stew the turnips.

_Average cost_, exclusive of the cold duck, 1s.

_Seasonable_ from November to February.

THE WILD DUCK.--In many parts of England the wild duck is to be
found, especially in those desolate fenny parts where water
abounds. In Lincolnshire they are plentiful, and are annually
taken in the decoys, which consist of ponds situate in the
marshes, and surrounded with wood or reeds to prevent the birds
which frequent them from, being disturbed. In these the birds
sleep during the day; and as soon as evening sets in, the _decoy
rises_, and the wild fowl feed during the night. Now is the time
for the decoy ducks to entrap the others. From the ponds
diverge, in different directions, certain canals, at the end of
which funnel nets are placed; along these the _decoy ducks_,
trained for the purpose, lead the others in search of food.
After they have got a certain length, a decoy-man appears, and
drives them further on, until they are finally taken in the
nets. It is from these decoys, in Lincolnshire, that the London
market is mostly supplied. The Chinese have a singular mode of
catching these ducks. A person wades in the water up to the
chin, and, having his head covered with an empty calabash,
approaches the place where the ducks are. As the birds have no
suspicion of the nature of the object which is concealed under
the calabash, they suffer its approach, and allow it to move at
will among their flock. The man, accordingly, walks about in the
midst of his game, and, whenever he pleases, pulls them by the
legs under the water, and fixes them to his belt, until he has
secured as many as he requires, and then moves off as he went
amongst them, without exciting the slightest suspicion of the
trick he has been playing them. This singular mode of
duck-hunting is also practised on the Ganges, the earthen
vessels of the Hindoos being used instead of calabashes. These
vessels, being those in which the inhabitants boil their rice,
are considered, after once being used, as defiled, and are
accordingly thrown into the river. The duck-takers, finding them
suitable for their purpose, put them on their heads; and as the
ducks, from seeing them constantly floating down the stream, are
familiar with their appearance, they regard them as objects from
which no danger is to be expected.

DUCK-SNARES IN THE LINCOLNSHIRE FENS.--The following interesting
account of how duck-snaring used to be managed in the
Lincolnshire fens, was published some years ago, in a work
entitled the "Feathered Tribes."--"In the lakes to which they
resorted, their favourite haunts were observed, and in the most
sequestered part of a haunt, a pipe or ditch was cut across the
entrance, decreasing gradually in width from the entrance to the
further end, which was not more than two feet wide. The ditch
was of a circular form, but did not bend much for the first ten
yards. The banks of the lake on each side of the ditch were kept
clear of weeds and close herbage, in order that the ducks might
get on them to sit and dress themselves. Along the ditch, poles
were driven into the ground close to the edge on each side, and
the tops were bent over across the ditch and tied together. The
poles then bent forward at the entrance to the ditch, and formed
an arch, the top of which was tea feet distant from the surface
of the water; the arch was made to decrease in height as the
ditch decreased in width, so that the remote end was not more
than eighteen inches in height. The poles were placed about six
feet from each other, and connected by poles laid lengthwise
across the arch, and tied together. Over the whole was thrown a
net, which was made fast to a reed fence at the entrance and
nine or ten yards up the ditch, and afterwards strongly pegged
to the ground. At the end of the ditch furthest from the
entrance, was fixed what was called a tunnel-net, of about four
yards in length, of a round form, and kept open by a number of
hoops about eighteen inches in diameter, placed at a small
distance from each other to keep it distended. Supposing the
circular bend of the ditch to be to the right, when one stands
with his back to the lake, then on the left-hand side, a number
of reed fences were constructed, called shootings, for the
purpose of screening the decoy-man from observation, and, in
such a manner, that the fowl in the decoy would not be alarmed
while he was driving those that were in the pipe. These
shootings, which were ten in number, were about four yards in
length and about six feet high. From the end of the last
shooting a person could not see the lake, owing to the bend of
the ditch; and there was then no further occasion for shelter.
Were it not for these shootings, the fowl that remained about
the mouth of the ditch would have been alarmed, if the person
driving the fowl already under the net should have been exposed,
and would have become so shy as entirely to forsake the place."

THE DECOY MAN, DOG, AND DUCKS.--"The first thing the decoy-man
did, on approaching the ditch, was to take a piece of lighted
peat or turf, and to hold it near his mouth, to prevent the
birds from smelling him. He was attended by a dog trained to
render him assistance. He walked very silently about halfway up
the shootings, where a small piece of wood was thrust through
the reed fence, which made an aperture just large enough to
enable him to see if there were any fowl within; if not, he
walked to see if any were about the entrance to the ditch. If
there were, he stopped, made a motion to his dog, and gave him a
piece of cheese to eat, when the dog went directly to a hole
through the reed fence, and the birds immediately flew off the
back into the water. The dog returned along the bank between the
reed fences, and came out to his master at another hole. The man
then gave the dog something more to encourage him, and the dog
repeated his rounds, till the birds were attracted by his
motions, and followed him into the mouth of the ditch--an
operation which was called 'working them.' The man now retreated
further back, working the dog at different holes, until the
ducks were sufficiently under the net. He then commanded his dog
to lie down under the fence, and going himself forward to the
end of the ditch next the lake, he took off his hat, and gave it
a wave between the shootings. All the birds that were under the
net could then see him, but none that were in the lake could.
The former flew forward, and the man then ran to the next
shooting, and waved his hat, and so on, driving them along until
they came into the tunnel-net, into which they crept. When they
were all in, the man gave the net a twist, so as to prevent them
getting back. He then took the net off from the end of the
ditch, and taking out, one by one, the ducks that were in it,
dislocated their necks."

BOILED FOWLS OR CHICKENS.

938. INGREDIENTS.--A pair of fowls; water.

_Choosing and Trussing_.--In choosing fowls for boiling, it should be borne in mind that those that are not black-legged are generally much whiter when dressed. Pick, draw, singe, wash, and truss them in the following manner, without the livers in the wings; and, in drawing, be careful not to break the gall-bladder:--Cut off the neck, leaving sufficient skin to skewer back. Cut the feet off to the first joint, tuck the stumps into a slit made on each side of the belly, twist the wings over the back of the fowl, and secure the top of the leg and the bottom of the wing together by running a skewer through them and the body. The other side must be done in the same manner. Should the fowl be very large and old, draw the sinews of the legs before tucking them in. Make a slit in the apron of the fowl, large enough to admit the parson's nose, and tie a string on the tops of the legs to keep them in their proper place.

_Mode_.--When, they are firmly trussed, put them into a stewpan with plenty of hot water; bring it to boil, and carefully remove all the scum as it rises. _Simmer very gently_ until the fowl is tender, and bear in mind that the slower it boils, the plumper and whiter will the fowl be. Many cooks wrap them in a floured cloth to preserve the colour, and to prevent the scum from clinging to them; in this case, a few slices of lemon should be placed on the breasts; over these a sheet of buttered paper, and then the cloth; cooking them in this manner renders the flesh very white. Boiled ham, bacon, boiled tongue, or pickled pork, are the usual accompaniments to boiled fowls, and they may be served with Béchamel, white sauce, parsley and butter, oyster, lemon, liver, celery, or mushroom sauce. A little should be poured over the fowls, after the skewers are removed, and the remainder sent in a tureen to table.

_Time_.--Large fowl, 1 hour; moderate-sized one, 3/4 hour; chicken, from 20 minutes to 1/2 hour.

_Average cost_, in full season, 5s. the pair.

_Sufficient_ for 7 or 8 persons.

_Seasonable_ all the year, but scarce in early spring.

THE GAME FOWL.--Respecting the period at which this well-known
member of the _Gallus_ family became domesticated, history is
silent. There is little doubt, however, that, like the dog, it
has been attached to mankind ever since mankind were attached to
civilization. Although the social position of this bird is, at
the present time, highly respectable, it is nothing to what it
was when Rome was mistress of the world. Writing at that period,
Pliny says, respecting the domestic cock, "The gait of the cock
is proud and commanding; he walks with head erect and elevated
crest; alone, of all birds, he habitually looks up to the sky,
raising, at the same time, his curved and scythe-formed tail,
and inspiring terror in the lion himself, that most intrepid of
animals.----They regulate the conduct of our magistrates, and
open or close to them their own houses. They prescribe rest or
movement to the Roman fasces: they command or prohibit battles.
In a word, they lord it over the masters of the world." As well
among the ancient Greeks as the Romans, was the cock regarded
with respect, and even awe. The former people practised
divinations by means of this bird. Supposing there to be a doubt
in the camp as to the fittest day to fight a battle, the letter
of every day in the week would be placed face downwards, and a
grain of corn placed on each; then the sacred cock would be let
loose, and, according to the letters he pecked his corn from, so
would the battle-time be regulated. On one momentous occasion,
however, a person inimical to priestly interest officiously
examined the grain, and found that those lying on the letters
not wanted were made of wax, and the birds, preferring the true
grain, left these untouched. It is needless to add that, after
this, divination through the medium of cocks and grain fell out
of fashion. Whether or no the learned fowl above alluded to were
of the "game" breed, is unknown; but that the birds were bred
for the inhuman sport of fighting many hundred years before the
Christian era, there can be no doubt. Themistocles, the Athenian
king, who flourished more than two thousand years ago, took
advantage of the sight of a pitched battle between two cocks to
harangue his soldiers on courage. "Observe," said he, "with what
intrepid valour they fight, inspired by no other motive than
lore of victory; whereas you have to contend for your religion
and your liberty, for your wives and children, and for the tombs
of your ancestors." And to this day his courage has not
degenerated. He still preserves his bold and elegant gait, his
sparkling eye, while his wedge-shaped beak and cruel spurs are
ever ready to support his defiant crow. It is no wonder that the
breed is not plentiful--first, on account of the few eggs laid
by the hen; and, secondly, from the incurable pugnacity of the
chicks. Half fledged broods may be found blind as bats from
fighting, and only waiting for the least glimmer of sight to be
at it again. Without doubt, the flesh of game fowls is every way
superior to that of every chicken of the family.

BROILED FOWL AND MUSHROOM SAUCE.

939. INGREDIENTS.--A large fowl, seasoning, to taste, of pepper and salt, 2 handfuls of button mushrooms, 1 slice of lean ham, 3/4 pint of thickened gravy, 1 teaspoonful of lemon-juice, 1/2 teaspoonful of pounded sugar.

_Mode_.--Cut the fowl into quarters, roast it until three-parts done, and keep it well basted whilst at the fire. Take the fowl up, broil it for a few minutes over a clear fire, and season it with pepper and salt. Have ready some mushroom sauce made in the following manner. Put the mushrooms into a stewpan with a small piece of butter, the ham, a seasoning of pepper and salt, and the gravy; simmer these gently for 1/2 hour, add the lemon-juice and sugar, dish the fowl, and pour the sauce round them.

_Time_.--To roast the fowl, 35 minutes; to broil it, 10 to 15 minutes.

_Average cost_, in full season, 2s. 6d.

_Sufficient_ for 4 or 5 persons.

_Seasonable_.--In full season from May to January.