Note.—The above is the usual method of roasting meat; but to have it in perfection and the juices kept in, the meat should at first be laid close to the fire, and when the outside is set and firm, drawn away to a good distance, and then left to roast very slowly. Where economy is studied, this plan would not answer, as the meat requires to be at the fire double the time of the ordinary way of cooking; consequently, double the quantity of fuel would be consumed.
BEEF, Sliced and Broiled (a pretty Dish).
[Cold Meat Cookery.] Ingredients.—A few slices of cold roast beef, 4 or 5 potatoes, a thin batter, pepper and salt to taste. Mode.—Pare the potatoes as you would peel an apple; fry the parings in a thin batter seasoned with salt and pepper, until they are of a light brown colour, and place them on a dish over some slices of beef, which should be nicely seasoned and broiled. Time.—5 minutes to broil the meat. Seasonable at any time.
BEEF, Spiced (to serve Cold).
Ingredients.—14 lbs. of the thick flank or rump of beef,½ lb. of coarse sugar, 1 oz. of saltpetre,¼ lb. of pounded allspice, 1 lb. of common salt. Mode.—Rub the sugar well into the beef, and let it lie for 12 hours; then rub the saltpetre and allspice, both of which should be pounded, over the meat, and let it remain for another 12 hours; then rub in the salt. Turn daily in the liquor for a fortnight, soak it for a few hours in water, dry with a cloth, cover with a coarse paste, put a little water at the bottom of the pan, and bake in a moderate oven for 4 hours. If it is not covered with a paste, be careful to put the beef into a deep vessel, and cover with a plate, or it will be too crisp. During the time the meat is in the oven it should be turned once or twice. Time.—4 hours. Average cost, 7d. per lb. Seasonable at any time.
BEEF, Stewed. (A Polish Dish.)
Ingredients.—A thick beef or rump-steak of about 2 lbs., an onion, some bread-crumbs, pepper and salt,¼ lb. of butter. Mode.—Mince the onion fine, mix it with the bread, pepper, and salt; make deep incisions in the beef, but do not cut it through; fill the spaces with the bread, &c. Roll up the steak and put it in a stewpan with the butter; let it stew very gently for more than two hours; serve it with its own gravy, thickened with a little flour, and flavoured, as may be required, either with tomato sauce, ketchup, or Harvey’s sauce. Time.—About 2 hours, or rather more. Average cost, 2s. 6d. Sufficient for 4 persons. Seasonable at any time.
BEEF, Stewed Rump of.
Ingredients.—½ rump of beef, sufficient stock to cover it, 4 tablespoonfuls of vinegar, 2 tablespoonfuls of ketchup, 1 bunch of savoury herbs, 2 onions, 12 cloves, pepper and salt to taste, thickening of butter and flour, 1 glass of port wine. Mode.—Cut out the bone, sprinkle the meat with a little cayenne (this must be sparingly used), and bind and tie it firmly up with tape; put it into a stewpan with sufficient stock to cover it, add vinegar, ketchup, herbs, onions, cloves, and seasonings in the above proportions, and simmer very gently for 4 or 5 hours, or until the meat is perfectly tender, which may be ascertained by piercing it with a thin skewer. When done, remove the tape, lay it into a deep dish, which keep hot; strain and skim the gravy, thicken it with butter and flour, add a glass of port wine and any flavouring to make the gravy rich and palatable; let it boil up, pour over the meat, and serve. This dish may be very much enriched by garnishing with forcemeat balls, or filling up the space whence the bone is taken with a good forcemeat; sliced carrots, turnips, and onions boiled with the meat are also a great improvement, and, where expense is not objected to, it may be glazed. This, however, is not necessary where a good gravy is poured round and over the meat. Time.—½ rump stewed gently from 4 to 5 hours. Average cost, 10d. per lb. Sufficient for 8 or 10 persons. Seasonable at any time.
Note.—A stock or gravy in which to boil the meat may be made of the bone and trimmings, by boiling them with water, and adding carrots, onions, turnips, and a bunch of sweet herbs. To make this dish richer and more savoury, half-roast the rump, and afterwards stew it in strong stock and a little Madeira. This is an expensive method, and is not, after all, much better than a plainer-dressed joint.
BEEF, Stewed Shin of.
Ingredients.—A shin of beef, 1 head of celery, 1 onion, a faggot of savoury herbs,½ teaspoonful of allspice,½ teaspoonful of whole black pepper, 4 carrots, 12 button onions, 2 turnips, thickening of butter and flour, 3 tablespoonfuls of mushroom ketchup, 2 tablespoonfuls of port wine; pepper and salt to taste. Mode.—Have the bone sawn into 4 or 5 pieces, cover with hot water, bring it to a boil, and remove any scum that may rise to the surface. Put in the celery, onion, herbs, spice, and seasoning, and simmer very gently until the meat is tender. Peel the vegetables, cut them into any shape fancy may dictate, and boil them with the onions until tender; lift out the beef, put it on a dish, which keep hot, and thicken with butter and flour as much of the liquor as will be wanted for gravy; keep stirring till it boils, then strain and skim. Put the gravy back in the stewpan, add the seasoning, port wine, and ketchup, give one boil, and pour it over the beef; garnish with the boiled carrots, turnips and onions. Time.—The meat to be stewed about 4 hours. Average cost, 5d. per lb. with bone. Sufficient for 7 or 8 persons. Seasonable at any time.
BEEF-TEA.
Ingredients.—1 lb. of lean gravy-beef, 1½ pint of water, 1 saltspoonful of salt. Mode.—Have the meat cut without fat and bone, and choose a nice fleshy piece. Cut it into small pieces about the size of dice, and put it into a clean saucepan. Add the water cold to it; put it on the fire, and bring it to the boiling-point; then skim well. Put in the salt when the water boils, and simmer the beef-tea gently from ½ to ¾ hour, removing any more scum should it appear on the surface. Strain the tea through a hair sieve, and set it by in a cool place. When wanted for use, remove every particle of fat from the top; warm up as much as may be required, adding, if necessary, a little more salt. This preparation is simple beef-tea, and is to be administered to those invalids to whom flavourings and seasonings are not allowed. When the patient