From the 1905 book, New England Cookbook distributed “Compliments of Metropolitan Coal Company,” Boston.

EDITORS NOTE: Many currently popular recipes were chosen out of 72 given to illustrate a smooth transition in our cooking style. As you read, remember that you were cooking on/in coal stoves.

I.—BEEF.

HOW TO ROAST, BROIL, AND BOIL BEEF. NINETEEN RECIPES FOR COOKING BEEF.

RECIPES.

Roast Beef—The best roasting-pieces are the middle ribs and the sirloin. The ends of the ribs should be removed from the flank, and the latter folded under the beef and securely fastened with skewers. Rub a little salt into the fat part; place the meat in the dripping-pan with a pint of stock or water; baste freely, and dredge with flour half an hour before taking the joint from the oven.

Should the oven be very hot, place a buttered paper over the meat to prevent it scorching while yet raw. When the paper is used it will need very little basting. Or, turn the rib side up toward the fire for the first twenty minutes.

The time it will take in cooking depends upon the thickness of the joint and the length of time the animal, has been killed. Skim the fat from the gravy and add a tablespoonful of prepared brown flour to the remainder.

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Roast Beef with Yorkshire Pudding.—Take a large rib roast; rub salt and pepper over it, and dredge with flour. Place on a rack in a dripping-pan, with very little water, until it is heated thoroughly; baste frequently. When nicely browned on the upper side, turn and baste.

About three-quarters of an hour before it is done, take out the meat, pour off most of the dripping, put the batter for the pudding in the bottom of the pan, allowing the drippings from the beef to drop into it.

When the pudding is done, return the meat and finish roasting. Add some hot water to the dripping and thicken with flour for the gravy.

For the batter of this pudding, take half a cup of butter, three cups of flour, three eggs, one cup of milk, and two teaspoonfuls of baking powder.

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Deviled Beef.—Take slices of cold roast beef, lay them on hot coals, and broil; season with pepper and salt, and serve while hot, with a small lump of butter on each piece.

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Boiled Tongue.—Soak the tongue over night, then boil four or five hours. Peel off the outer skin and return it to the water in which it was boiled to cool. This will render it juicy and tender.

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Baked Heart—Wash carefully and stuff nicely; roast or bake and serve with gravy, which should be thickened with some of the stuffing. It is very nice hashed, with a little port wine added.

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Broiled Beefsteak.—Have the choice steaks cut three-quarters of an inch thick; grease the gridiron and have it well heated.

Put the steak over a hot, clear fire. When the steak is colored, turn it over, which must be done without sticking a fork into it and thus letting out the juice. It should be quite rare or pink in the centre, but not raw.

When cooked sufficiently, lay on a hot platter and season with pepper and salt; spread over the top some small bits of butter, and serve immediately.

Salt extracts the juices of meats in cooking. Steaks ought not to be salted until they have been broiled.

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Stuffed Beefsteak—Take a rump steak about an inch thick. Make a stuffing of bread and herbs, and spread it over the steak. Roll it up, and with a needle and coarse thread sew it together. Lay it in an iron pot on one or two wooden skewers, and put in water just sufficient to cover it.

Let it stew slowly for two hours—longer if the beef is tough; serve it in a dish with the gravy turned over it. To be carved crosswise, in slices, through beef and stuffing.

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Beefsteak Pudding.—Prepare a good suet crust, and line a cake tin with it; put in layers of steak, with onions, tomatoes and mushrooms chopped, a seasoning of pepper, salt, and cayenne, and half a teacupful of water before closing it Bake from an. hour and a half to two hours, and serve hot.

II.—VEAL.

CHOOSING VEAL, FOR ROASTING, FOR STEWING; THE HEAD, FEET, KIDNEYS, SWEET-BREADS, ETC.; GENERAL USEFULNESS. TWENTY-ONE RECIPES FOR COOKING VEAL.

VEAL should be fat, finely grained, white, firm, and not overgrown. When large, it is apt to be coarse and tough and if too young, it lacks flavor and is less wholesome.

It is more difficult to keep than any meat except pork, and should never be allowed to acquire the slightest taint before it is dressed.

The fillet, the loin, the shoulder, and the best end of the neck, are the parts preferred for roasting; the breast and knuckle are more usually stewed or boiled.

The head and feet of the calf are valuable articles of food, both for the nutriment which the gelatinous parts of them afford, and for the greater variety of modes in which they may be dressed.

The kidneys, with the rich fat that surrounds them, and the sweet-breads especially, are well-known delicacies; the Liver and the heart also are very good eating; and no meat is so generally useful for rich soups arid gravies as veal.

The best veal is from calves not less than four, or more than six weeks old. If younger it is not wholesome. If older its character begins to change materially from the calf’s use of grasses and other food.

RECIPES.

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Pot-roasted Fillet.—Remove the bone and fill the cavity with a force-meat made of bread-crumbs, a very little salt, pork chopped fine, sage, pepper, salt, and ground cloves.

Lay in the pot a layer of slices of salt pork; put in the fillet, fastened with skewers, cover with additional pork, pour over it a pint of good stock, cover down close, and let it cook slowly two or three hours; then take off the cover and let it brown. Serve hot.

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Veal Pie.—Line a pudding-dish with good pie crust; into this put a layer of veal cut into small slices from the neck, or other less valuable part; make a second layer of hardboiled eggs sliced thin; butter and pepper this layer.

Add a layer of sliced ham, or salt pork, squeezing a few drops of lemon juice on the ham. Add more veal, as before, with eggs, ham, etc., till the dish is nearly full.

Pour over a cupful of stock and cover with a stout crust. Bake in a moderate oven for two hours.

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Veal with Oysters.—Cut the veal in small, thin slices, place it in layers in a jar with salt, pepper, and oysters. Pour in the liquor of the oysters, set the jar in a kettle of boiling water, and let it stew till the meat becomes very tender.

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Cutlets in Cracker.—Pound the cutlet and season, cut the edges into good shape; take one egg, beat it a little, roll the cutlet in it, then cover thoroughly with rolled crackers.

Have a lump of butter and lard mixed hot in your skillet, put in the meat and cook slowly. When nicely browned stir in one spoonful of flour for the gravy; add half a pint of sweet milk, and let it come to a boil. Salt and pepper.

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Pressed Veal—Put four pounds of veal in a pot; cover with water; stew slowly until the meat drops from the bone, then take out and chop fine.

Let the liquor boil down until there is a cupful; put in a small cupful of butter, a tablespoonful of pepper, a little allspice, and a beaten egg; stir this through the meat.

Slice a hard-boiled egg; lay in mold, and press in the meat.

When put upon the table garnish with celery tops or parsley.

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Calf’s Liver or Heart.—Cut the liver in slices, plunge into boiling water for an instant, wipe dry, season with pepper and salt, dredge with flour, and fry brown in lard. Have it perfectly done. Serve in gravy, made with either milk or water.

Calf’s heart dressed in this way is also very palatable.

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Broiled Sweet-breads.—Parboil and blanch the sweet breads by putting them first into hot water and keeping it at a hard boil for five minutes, then plunging it into ice-cold water somewhat salted.

Allow them to lie in this ten minutes, wipe them very dry, and with a sharp knife split in half, lengthwise.

Broil over a clear, hot fire, turning whenever they begin to drip.

Have ready upon a deep plate melted butter, well salted and peppered, mixed with catsup or Challenge sauce.

When the sweet-breads are done to a fine brown lay them in this preparation, turning them over several times; cover and set them in a warm oven.

Serve on fried bread or toast in a chafing-dish, a piece of sweetbread on each. Pour on the hot butter and send to table.

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Broiled Kidneys.—Skin the kidneys carefully, but do not slice or split them. Lay for ten minutes in warm (not hot) melted butter, rolling them over and over, that every part may be well basted.

Broil on a gridiron over a clear fire, turning them every minute. Unless very large, they should be done in about twelve minutes.

Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and lay on a hot dish, with butter upon each.

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Calf’s Tongue.—Of all the tongue preparations, calf’s tongue is regarded as best. To pickle them, use for each a quarter pound of salt, one ounce of saltpetre, and a quarter pound of sugar.

Rub the tongues daily with this, allowing them to lie in pickle for two weeks, after which they will be ready for smoking or boiling.

If used without smoking, they require no soaking, but should simmer several hours till perfectly done, when the skin will peel off readily. If soaking is needed, lay them first in cold water and then in tepid water for two hours each; then boil till done.

III.—MUTTON AND LAMB.

CHOOSING MUTTON AND LAMB, FOR ROASTING, FOR BOILING CUTLETS, SUITABLE VEGETABLES, ETC. THIRTEEN RECIPES FOR MUTTON AND LAMB.

THE best mutton is small-boned, plump, finely grained, and short legged; the lean of a dark, rather than of a bright hue, and the fat white and clear; when this is yellow, the meat is rank, and of bad quality. The leg and the loin are the desirable joints; and the preference would probably be given to the latter, but for the superabundance of its fat, which renders it a somewhat wasteful part.

The parts for roasting are the shoulder, saddle, or chine, the loin, and haunch. The leg is best boiled, unless the mutton is young and very tender.

The neck is sometimes roasted, but it is more generally boiled; the scrag, or that part of it which joins the head, is seldom used for any other purpose than making broth, and should be taken off before the joint is dressed.

Cutlets from the thick end of the loin are commonly preferred, but they are frequently taken from the best end of the neck and from the middle of the leg.

Lamb should be eaten very fresh. In the fore-quarter, the vein in the neck should be blue, otherwise it is stale. In the hind-quarter the fat of the kidney will have a slight odor if not quite fresh. Lamb soon loses its firmness if stale.

New potatoes, asparagus, green peas, and spinach, are the vegetables to be eaten with roast lamb.

RECIPES.

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Boiled Leg of Mutton.—Cut off the shank-bone, trim the knuckle, and wash the mutton; put it into a pot with salt, and cover with boiling water. Allow it to boil a few minutes; skim the surface clean, draw your pot to the side of the fire, and simmer until done. Time, from two to two hours and a half.

Do not try the leg with a fork to determine whether it is done. You lose the juices of the meat by so doing. Serve with caper sauce, or drawn butter, well seasoned.

The liquor from this boiling may be converted into soup with the addition of a ham-bone and a few vegetables boiled together.

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Broiled Mutton Chops.—-Trim off a portion of the fat, or the whole of it, unless it be liked.

Heat the gridiron, rub it with a bit of the mutton suet, broil over a brisk fire, and turn often until they are done, which, for the generality of eaters, will be in about eight minutes, if the chops are not more than half an inch thick, which they should not be.

Add salt and pepper with melted butter, and serve on a hot plate.

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Irish Stew.—Blanch three pounds of mutton chops by dipping them first in boiling water, for two or three minutes, and then into ice-cold water. Place them on the bottom of a clean stewpan, barely covering them with cold water.

Bring them slowly to a boil; add one teaspoonful of salt; skim clean; add a little parsley, mace, and a few peppercorns.

Simmer twenty minutes; add a dozen small onions whole, and two tablespoonfuls of flour mixed well with cold water.

Let it simmer for an hour; add a dozen potatoes pared and cut to about the size of the onions.

Boil till these are done; then dish, placing the chops around the edge of the plate, and pouring the onions and potatoes into the centre.

Strain the gravy, add three tablespoonfuls of chopped parsley, and pour over the stew.

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Boiled Leg of Lamb,—Choose a ewe leg, as there is more fat on it; saw off the knuckle, trim off the flap, and the thick skin on the back of it.

Soak in warm water for three hours, then boil gently (time according to size).

Serve with oyster sauce. (See Sauces.)

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Saddle of Lamb.—This is a dainty joint for a small party. Sprinkle a little salt over it, and set it in the dripping-pan, with a few small pieces of butter on the meat.

Baste it occasionally with tried-out lamb-fat; dredge a little flour over it a few minutes before taking from the oven.

Serve with currant jelly and a few choice early vegetables. Mint-sauce may be served with the joint, but in a very mild form. (See Sauces.)

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Breaded Lamb Chops.—Grate plenty of stale bread, season with salt and pepper, have ready some well-beaten egg.

Have a spider with hot lard ready, take the chops one by one, dip into the egg, then into the bread-crumbs; repeat it, as this will be found an improvement.

Lay the chops separately into the boiling lard, fry brown, and then turn.

To be eaten with currant jelly.

IV.—PORK.

PORK REQUIRES CAREFUL CHOOSING; NEEDS THOROUGH COOKING. NINETEEN RECIPES FOR COOKING PORK.

PORK, more than any other meat, requires to be chosen with the greatest care. The pig, from its gluttonous habits, is particularly liable to disease, and if killed and eaten when in an unhealthy condition, those who partake of it will probably pay dearly for their indulgence. Dairy-fed pork is the best.

If this meat be not thoroughly well-done, it is disgusting to the sight and poisonous to the stomach. “In the gravy of pork, if there is the least tint of redness,” says an eminent medical authority, “it is enough to appall the sharpest appetite. Other meats under-done may be unpleasant, but pork is absolutely uneatable.”

RECIPES.

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Roast Pig.—A fat pig about three weeks old is best for a roast. Wash it thoroughly inside and out; chop the liver fine with bread-crumbs, onions, parsley, pepper, salt, and potatoes boiled and mashed; make it into a paste with butter and egg.

Put this stuffing into the pig and sew it up.

Put in a baking-pan with a little water and roast over a bright fire, basting well with butter; rub frequently also with a piece of lard tied in a clean rag.

When thoroughly done, lay the pig, back up, in a dish, and put a red apple or pickled-mango in its mouth.

Make a dressing with some of the stuffing, with a glass of wine and some of the dripping. Serve with the roast pig, and also in a gravy-boat.

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Leg of Pork Roasted.—Parboil a leg of pork, take off the skin, and then roast.

Baste with butter, and make a savory powder of finely minced or dried or powdered sage, ground black pepper, salt, and some bread-crumbs rubbed together through a colander; add to this a little very finely minced onion.

Sprinkle the meat with this when it is almost done; put a half pint of gravy into the dish.

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Baked Pork Tenderloins.—Split the tenderloin lengthwise nearly through; stuff with a filling of bread-crumbs, pep per, salt, and sweet marjoram.

Tie a string around it, to keep the filling in, and bake in a hot oven for half an hour, basting well as the cooking proceeds.

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Boiled Ham.—The soaking which must be given to a ham before it is boiled depends both on the manner in which it has been cured and on its age. If highly salted, hard, and old, a day and night, or even longer, may be requisite to open the pores sufficiently and to extract a portion of the salt. The water must be several times changed during the steeping.

After the ham has been scraped or brushed as clean as possible, pare away lightly any part which may be blackened or rusty.

Lay it into a suitable kettle and cover it plentifully with cold water; bring it very slowly to boil, and clear off the scum, which will be thrown up in great abundance.

So soon as the water has been cleared from this, draw the pot to the edge of the stove, that the ham may be simmered slowly but steadily, until it is tender. On no account allow it to boil fast. When it can be probed very easily with a sharp skewer, lift it out, strip off the skin, and return the ham to the water to cool.

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Ham and Eggs.—Cut the ham in very thin slices, and fry long enough to cook the fat, but not long enough to crisp the lean. A very little boiling water may be put into the frying-pan to secure the ham moist and tender.

Remove the ham when it is done, break eggs gently into the pan, without breaking the yolks, and fry till done, about three minutes. The eggs will not require to be turned.

Cut off the uneaven edges, place the eggs around the ham, and pour in the gravy.

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Ham or Tongue Toast.—Toast a thick slice of bread and butter it on both sides.

Take a small quantity of remains of ham or tongue, grate it, and put it in a stewpan with two hard-boiled eggs chopped fine, and mixed with a little butter, salt, and cayenne.

Heat it quite hot, then spread thickly upon the buttered toast. Serve while hot.

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Bacon Broiled or Fried.—Cut evenly into thin slices, or rashers;
- pare from them all rind and rust;
- curl them round;
- fasten them with small, slight skewers,
- then gently fry, broil, or toast them.

Draw out the skewers before they are sent to table. A few minutes will dress them either way.

They may be cooked without being curled.

The slow cooking is necessary that the meat may be well done without being dried or hardened.

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Fried Sausage.—Sausages should be used while quite fresh. Melt a piece of butter or dripping in a clean frying-pan; when just melted, put in the sausages, shake the pan for a minute, and keep turning them; do not break or prick them.

Fry them over a very slow fire till they are nicely browned; when done, lay them on a hair-sieve before the fire to drain the fat from them.

The secret of cooking sausages well is to let them heat very gradually. If so done the skins will not burst if they are fresh. The common practice of pricking them lets the gravy out, which is undesirable.

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Scrappel—Boil a hog’s head one day, and let it stand five or six hours, or all night. Slip out the bones and chop fine.

Return the meat to the liquor; skim when cold; warm and season freely with pepper, salt, sage, and sweet herbs.

Add two cupfuls of buckwheat-meal and one cupful of corn-meal. Put into molds, and when cold, cut into slices and fry for breakfast.

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Souse.—Pigs’ feet and ears may be soused by cleaning thoroughly, soaking in salt and water several days, and then boiling till the bones can be picked out with ease and the skin peeled off.

Cover the meat and gelatinous substance with boiling vinegar, highly spiced with peppercorns and mace.

This may be eaten cold or the meat may be fried after dipping in egg and cracker.

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Pig’s head may be prepared the same way, the meat being chopped fine and mixed with pounded crackers. Mix with herbs, spices, salt, and pepper to taste, and a small quantity of vinegar.

Press into a mold, or a jar, and cut in slices. To be eaten cold.