The cook's oracle : containing receipts for plain cookery, on the most economical plan for private families the result of actual experiments instituted

Contents

Editor’s Preface ....

Pafre

Preface to the Third Edition

Chapter 1. Boiling COOKERY

Baking

Fish Sauces .

•

9. Made Dishes r*

no

Receipts . . ,

• •

•

•

ni

Receipts

EDITOR’S PREFACE.

The rapid and steady sale which has invariably attended each following Edition of the “ Cook’s Oracle,” is the most gratifying proof of its excellence. The unrivalled station which it so soon attained after its first appearance, and which has not in any wav been diminished by succeeding volumes on the same subject, affords a reasonable presumption that it has no superior. Tbi Editor may say, with no little pride, that the greater number of cookery books which have appeared of late, are indeed but very faint copies of the great original; that no “ puff extraordinary" has been deemed necessary by the publishers of the present work to stimulate the failing spirit of their purchasers ; nor have they been compelled, like some of their contemporaries, to shew forth “ signals of distress," by the daily insertion of preposterous advertisements in the pages of every newspaper.

Numerous receipts for pastry, preserves, &c. &c. have been added to the present edition, — many errors, hitherto overlooked, have been carefully corrected, — the receipts which formerly, from being placed so promiscuously in the Appendix, may have been difficult to find, are now removed to more appropriate situations ; and the wvtole volume having, with the most diligent study and attention, been entirely re-arranged, it is now hoped by the Editor, that what he has performed patiently, the public will receive with pleasure.

THE EDITOR.

Preface

TO

THE THIRD EDITION.

among the multitudes of causes which concur to impair Health and produce Disease, the most general is the improper quality ot our Food ; this, most frequently, arises from the injudicious manner in which it is prepared : — yet, strange, “ passing strange,” this is the only one for which a remedy has not been sought ; — fewpersons bestow half so much attention on the preservation of their own Health, as they daily devote to that of their Dogs and Horses.

The observations of the Guardians of Health respecting Regimen, &c. have formed no more than a Catalogue of those articles of Food, which they have considered most proper for particular Constitutions.

Some Medical writers have “ in good set terms” warned us against the pernicious effects of improper Diet ; but — not one has been so kind as to take the trouble to direct us how to prepare Food properly — excepting only the contributions of Count Rumford, who says, in pages 16 and 70 of his tenth Essay, “however low and vulgar this subject has hitherto generally been thought to be — in what Art or Science could improvements he made that would more powerfully contribute to increase the comforts and enjoyments of mankind'! Would to God ! that I could fix the public attention to this subject /”

The Author has endeavoured to write the following Receipts so plainly, that they may be as easily understood in the Kitchen as he trusts they will be relished in the Dining Room — and has been more ambitious to present to the Public a Work which will contribute to the daily Comfort of All, than to seem elaborately Scientific.

The practical part of the philosophy of the Kitchen is certainly not the most agreeable ; — Gastrology has to contend with its full share of those great impediments to all great improvements in scientific pursuits, — the prejudices of the Ignorant, and the misrepresentations of the Envious.

The Sagacity to comprehend and estimate the importance ol

PREFACE TO nny uncontemplated improvement — is confined to the very few on whom Nature has bestowed a sufficient degree of perfection of the Sense which is to measure it ; — the candour to make a fair report of it is still more uncommon, — and the kindness to encourage it cannot often be expected from those wnose most vital interest it is to prevent the development of that by which their own importance — perhaps their only means of Existence, may be for ever eclipsed — so, as Pope says, how many are

“ Condemn* d in Business or in Arts to drudge,

Without a rival or without a Judge :

All fear, — None aid you, — and Few understand.”

Improvements in Agriculture and the Breed of Cattle have heen encouraged by Premiums — (see Note under 21, and under 59). Those who have obtained them, have been hailed as Benefactors to Society ! — but the Art of making use of these means of ameliorating Life , and supporting a healthful Existence — Cookery — has been neglected ! !

While the cultivators of the Raw Materials are distinguished and rewarded, the attempt to improve the processes, without which neither Vegetable or Animal substances are fit for the food of Man (astonishing to say), has been ridiculed, as unworthy the attention of a rational Being ! !

The most useful * Art, — which the Author has chosen to endeavour to illustrate, because nobody else has — and because he knew not how he could employ some leisure hours more beneficially for Mankind, than to teach them to combine the K utile ” with the “ dulce," and to increase their Pleasures, without impairing their Health, or impoverishing their Fortune, — has been for many years his favourite employment ; and “ The Art of Invigorating and Prolonging Like by Food,-)- & c. &c.” and this Work, have insensibly become repositories for whatever Observations he has made which he thought would make us— Live happy, and Live long ! 1 !”

The Editor has considered the Art of Cookery, not merely as a mechanical operation, fit only for working Cooks, but as the Analeptic part of the Art of Physic.

“ How best the fickle fabric to support Of mortal man,— In healthful body how,

A healthful mind the longest to maintain.”

(Armstrong.)

• “ The only test of the utility of Knowledge, is its promoting the Happiness of mankind "—Dr. Stark on fiiet.v- MO. . _ . „

- Published by Whittaker, Treacher, and Co. Ave Maria Lane ; and Caucll and C'u., Edinburgh.

THE THIRD EDITION.

is an Occupation neither unbecoming nor unworthy Philosophers of the highest class — such only can comprehend its importance ; which amounts to no less than, not only the enjoyment of the present moment, but the more precious advantage of improving and preserving Health, and prolonging Life, which depend on duly replenishing the daily waste of the human frame with materials pregnant with Nutriment and easy of Digestion.

If Medicine be ranked among those Arts which dignify their Professors, Cookery may lay claim to an equal, if not a superior distinction ; — to prevent Diseases is surely a more advantageous Art to Mankind than to cure them. “ Physicians should be good Cooks, at least in theory.” — Dr. Mandeville on Hypochondriasis , p. 316.

The learned Dr. Arbuthnot observes, in page 3 of the preface to his Essay on Aliment , that “ the choice and measure of the materials of which our Body is composed — what we take daily by Pounds — is at least of as much importance as what we take seldom, and only by Grains and spoonsful.”

Those in whom the Organ of Taste is obtuse, — or who have been brought up in the happy habit of being content with humble fare, — whose Health is so firm, that it needs no artificial adjustment,— who, with the appetite of a Cormorant, have the digestion of an Ostrich, and eagerly devour whatever is set before them, without asking any questions about what it is, or how it has been prepared, — may perhaps imagine that the Editor has sometimes been rather overmuch refining the business of the Kitchen.

“ Where Ignorance is bliss — ’tis Folly to be wise.”

But as few are so fortunate as to be trained up to understand how well it is worth their while to cultivate such habits of Spartan forbearance, — we cannot perform our duty in registering wholesome precepts, in a higher degree than by disarming Luxury of its sting, and making the refinements of Modern Cookery minister not merely to sensual gratification, but at the same time support the substantial excitment of “ mens sana in corpore sano.”

Delicate and Nervous Invalids, who have unfortunately a sensitive palate, and have been accustomed to a luxurious variety of savoury Sauces and highly seasoned viands •, — those who, from the infirmity of Age are become incapable of correcting habits created by absurd indulgence in Youth, are entitled to some consideration, — and, for their sake the Elements of Obsoloyy are explained in the most intelligent manner ; and I have assisted the Memory of young Cooks, by annexing to each Dish the various Sauces which usually accompany it, referring to their Numbers in the Work

Preface To

Some Idle Idiots have remarked to the Author, that “ there are really so many References from one Receipt to another, that it is exceedingly troublesome indeed ; they are directed sometimes to turn to half a dozen Numbers this is quite true. If the Author had not adopted this plan of Reference , his Book, to be equally explicit, must have been ten times as big — his object has been to give as much information as possible in as few pages, and for as few pence as possible.

By reduoing Culinary operations to something like a Certainty, Invalids will no longer be entirely indebted to Chance, whether they shall recover and Live long, and comfortably — or speedily die of Starvation in the midst of Plenty.

These rules and orders for the Regulation of the business of the Kitchen have been extremely beneficial to the Editor's own Health and comfort. He hopes they will be equally so to others : they ■will help those who enjoy health to preserve it ; teach those who have delicate and irritable Stomachs how to keep them in good temper •, and, with a little discretion, enable them to indulge occasionally, not only with impunity, but with advantage, in all those alimentary pleasures which a rational Epicure* can desire.

There is no Question more frequently asked — or which a Medical man finds more difficulty in answering, to the satisfaction of himself and his patient, than — What do you wish me to eat 1

The most judicious choice of Aliment will avail nothing, unless the Culinary preparation of it be equally judicious — How often is the skill of a pains-taking Physician counteracted by want of corresponding attention to the preparation of Food ; and the poor Patient, instead of deriving Nourishment, is distressed by Indigestion !

Parmentier, in his Code Pliarmaceuiique, has given a chapter on the preparation of Food — some of the following Receipts are offered us an humble attempt to form a sort of Appendix to the Pharmacopeia, and, like pharmaceutic prescriptions, they are precisely adjusted by Weight and Measure. The Author of a Cookery Book, first published in 1824, has claimed this act of Industry of mine ns his own original invention — the only notice I shall take of his pretensions, is to say, that the First Edition of “ The Cook's Oracle" appeared in 1817.

By ordering such receipts of the Cook’s Oracle as nppear adapted to the case, the recovery of the patient and the credit oi the Physician, as for as relates to the administration of Aliment,—

•For the Editor's definition of this term, see the note in page 4 of the Intr* duction.

THE THIRD EDITION.

need no longer depend on the discretion of the Cook. — For instance*. Mutton Broth, (408), or (667); Toast and Water . (671); Water Gruel, (668); Beef Tea, (666); and Portable Sour, (227). This wncentrated Essence of Meat will he found a great acquisition to the comfort of the Army, the Navy, the Traveller, and the Invalid ;

by dissolving half an ounce of it in half a pint of hot water, you

have in a few minutes half a Pint of good Broth for three halfpence. The utility of such accurate and precise directions for preparing Food is to Travellers incalculable, for, by translating the receipt, any person may prepare what is desired, as perfectly as a good English Cook.

He has also circumstantially detailed the easiest, least expensive, and most salubrious methods of preparing those highly finished

Soups Sauces — Ragouts — and piquante relishes, which the most

ingenious “ Officers of the Mouth” have invented for the amusement of thorough bred “ Grands Gourmands."

It has been his Aim to render Food acceptable to the Palate, without being expensive to the Purse, or offensive to the Stomach nourishing without being inflammatory, and savoury without being surfeiting, constantly endeavouring to hold the balance even, between the agreeable and the wholesome, the Epicure and the Economist.

He has not presumed to recommend one Receipt that has not been previously and repeatedly proved in His ozvn Kitchen, which has not been approved by the most accomplished Cooks ; and has, moreover, been eaten with unanimous applause by a Committee op Taste, composed of some of the most illustrious Gastrophilists of this luxurious Metropolis.

The Author has been materially assisted by Mr. Henry Osborne, the excellent Cook to the late Sir Joseph Banks : — that worthy President of the Royal Society w*as so sensible of the importance of the subject the Editor was investigating, that he sent his Cook to assist him in so arduous a task ; and many of the Receipts in this Edition are much improved by his suggestions and corrections.* This is the only English Cookery Book which has been written from the real experiments of a Housekeeper for the benefit of IIousbkeepers, which the reader will soon perceive by the minute attention that has been employed to elucidate and improve the Art oh Plain Cookery, — detailing many particulars and precautions which may at first appear frivolous — but which experience will prove to

• The receipt* here alluded to are now placed in different parts of the worlc, and were in number about a dozen. — Ed. W. B. K.

12 PREFACE TO THIRD EDITION.

be essential — to teach a common Cook how to provide, and to prepare common food — so frugally, and so perfectly, that the plain every-day Family Fare of the most Economical Housekeeper may,

with scarcely additional expense, or any additional trouble be a

satisfactory Entertainment for an Epicure, or an Invalid.

By an attentive consideration of “ the Rudiments op Cookery,'1 and the respective Receipts, the most ignorant Novice in the business of the Kitchen, may work with the utmost facility and certainty of success, and soon become a Good Cook.

Will all the other Books of Cookery that ever were printed do this ? — To give his readers an idea of the immense labour attendant upon this Work, it may be only necessary for the author to state, that he has patiently pioneered through more than Tw- Hundred Cookery Books before he set about recording these results of his own Experiments ! ! !

Store Sauces, and many articles of Domestic Comfort, wriich are extravagantly expensive to purchase, and can very seldom be procured genuine, he has given plain directions how to prepare st Home — of infinitely finer flavour, and considerably cheaper than they can be obtained ready made : for example,

Mushroom Catchup, (37-5'.

Essence op Celery, (353).

Sweet Herbs, (363).

Savoury Spice, (365, 384, 387, and S6a./

Cayenne Pepper, (345)

Curry Powder, (383).

Eschalot Wine, (343).

Portable Soup, (227).

Thus, the table of the most Economical Family may, by the help of this Book, be entertained with as much elegance as that of a Sovereign Prince.

PREFACE

TO

THE SEVENTH EDITION.

The whole of this Work has, a Seventh time, been carefully revised but this last time I have found little to add, and little to alter.

I have bestowed as much attention on each of the 500 Receipts as if the whole merit of the Book was to be estimated entirely by the accuracy of my detail of one particular process.

The increasing demand for “ The Cook’s Oracle,” amounting in 1822 to the extraordinary number of upwards of 15,000, had been stimulus enough to excite any man to submit to the most unremitting study ; and the Editor has felt it as an imperative duty to exert himself to the utmost to render “ The Cook’s Oracle ” a faithful narrative of all that is known of the various subjects it professes to treat.

jfo the Fourth Edition were added One Hundred and thirty New Receipts, which will greatly improve the Comfort and Economy of all, especially of Catholic Families ; — being the best methods of making

Maigre Gravy Soups, (209).

Ditto Pease, (202).

Ditto Green Pease, (201).

Various Fish Soups, (210).

All Fried Fish in Claripied Butter, (231).

Fresh Salmon Broiled, (161).

Ditto Pickled, (159).

Carp to Stew, (155).

Potted Lobster or Crab, (177).

Lobster Patties, (493).

Stewed Oysters, (180).

Scolloped Oysters, (179).

To Stew Fish Maigre, (156).

Preface To Seventh Edition

Forcemeat for Fish, (326).

Stewed Eels, (162).

Macaroni, (554), &c.

Stewed Onions, (136).

Omelettes, (543, &c.)

Various Ways of Dressing Eggs, (548, &u.)

Potato Pie, (111).

Cheese and Toast, (557).

Toasted, (558).

Buttered, (559).

Pounded or Potted, (560).

Poached Eggs, (548 to 553).

Puddings, (511).

Maigre and Savoury Pasties, (475).

Maigre and Savoury Patties, (492).

Preserves, (617).

Bread and Cakes, (57 9, &c.)

Also, an easy and economical Process for preparing by which they will be ready in a fortnight, and remain good for years.

I hope that in these New Receipts the quantities of the various articles, and the processes for compounding them, are described so accurately and so plainly, that the most inexperienced person may work from them : — but do not vouch for all these new Receipts, — as some of them have not yet been proved in my own Kitchen.

WM. KITCHJNER.