  Game, comparatively, is appreciated only by a few. When the country was first settled, every one was his own provider, and of course game was not sent to a market several hundred miles from the place where it was shot or caught. But settlement and civilization have the same effect on game as they have on barbarians or savages—they drive it away. Our Northeastern cities are now supplied by the Western States with game. In winter time, game may be kept for weeks without being spoiled or losing its natural flavor and taste, when kept where it is killed; but when transported, it is very different. To transport it requires packing. As soon as packed, it naturally ferments; and even if packed when frozen, the middle of the barrel will ferment and become injured, if not entirely rendered unfit for the table. The packing of game or poultry in barrels is a bad practice. Nothing requires more ventilation than game while being transported. Many dealers have their game sent to them in wicker-baskets with plenty of straw, but the greater part is still sent in barrels; hence the musty taste when cooked. To keep game for some time when fresh, open the animal or bird under the Another way is to envelop the piece well in a towel, and bury it in charcoal dust in a cool and dry place. How to clean and prepare.—Clean and prepare the birds as directed for poultry in general. After having carefully skinned, take out the inside, and cut the legs off at the first joint of animals; wash the inside with lukewarm water, and wipe it dry with a clean towel immediately after; wipe also the outside, but do not wash it if possible; that is, if you can clean it well by wiping only. Wild ducks, geese, pigeons, and turkeys, are prepared, cooked, and served like tame ones. Bear-meat and Buffalo.—The meat of all large animals is better roasted, than dressed in any other way. Prepare, cook, and serve bear and buffalo meat like venison, beef À la mode, or stewed. Bear-meat has highly nutritive qualities, and is very warming. Buffalo-steaks are said to be better broiled on cinders without a gridiron, than on or before coals with one; that is, Indian fashion and even hunters' fashion. Indians often use wood-ashes as a substitute for salt, and never use salt with buffalo-meat; but their liking or preference comes from their habit of invariably broiling buffalo-meat on wood cinders or buffalo-chips. Bear-hams, so well appreciated everywhere, are prepared and served Blackbird, Bobolink, and Small Birds.—The cut below represents six small birds on the spit, ready for roasting. When the birds are prepared, cut off the ends of the wings and the legs above the first joint. Instead of cutting the legs above the first joint, the ends of the claws only may be cut off, according to taste. Cut thin slices of fat salt pork, of a proper size to cover the breast of the bird; place the slice on the breast of it, run a skewer through the middle of the bird, so that it will run through the two ends of the slice of salt pork also, as seen in the cut. Have a skewer, or merely a piece of wire, long enough to hold six birds; fix the skewer on the spit, and roast. When the six birds are on the skewer, fasten them with twine, to prevent them from turning round, as seen in the cut. Small birds are cleaned and prepared as directed for poultry, but they are not trussed, their legs being tied while tying the salt pork. While roasting, they are basted often with the drippings. Some water-cress and lemon-juice sprinkled upon them may be served with the birds. The twine is removed before serving, and they must be served hot; if allowed to cool at all, they lose their taste. It takes from ten to fifteen minutes to roast. Baked.—Prepare them exactly as for roasting: place the wire or skewer across a baking-pan, turn them round and baste often; serve also as The bobolink, reed-bird, and rice-bird are the same; they are called under these different names at different seasons and in different localities; it is the American ortolan, the most delicate of small birds; the robin comes next. To eat it À la Brillat-Savarin.—Take hold of the bird by the bill; open your mouth wide enough to introduce the whole bird into it easily; then shut it, at the same time biting off the bill just at its base; chew properly and swallow. While the birds are roasting or baking, place as many small slices of bread in the dripping or baking pan, and serve a bird over each slice. Cut the slices either square, round, or oval, about one-fourth of an inch in thickness, and large enough to hold the bird. Hunter-like.—Prepare small birds as described for quails, hunter-like; it makes an excellent dish. In Salmis.—Roasted or baked small birds can be prepared in salmis when cold. Many amateurs prefer small birds not drawn; that is, the crop only is taken off, but nothing of the inside is disturbed; they pretend that they have a better taste when cooked thus; of course, every one to his taste. High-holders, lapwings, meadow-larks, plovers, rails, robins, snipes, thrushes, woodcocks, woodpeckers, and yellow-birds are prepared as above. Small birds have a better flavor when cooked after being somewhat seasoned than when cooked fresh, but they must not be tainted. As long as the rump is stiff, they are good; if soft, they must be examined carefully, as they might be tainted. When young, there is no stiffness in the legs. Small birds are generally put by the half dozen on the Grouse or Heathcock.—These are good as long as the legs are flexible; if not, examine them carefully, they might be rotten inside. Lard them well, envelop each in buttered paper, and place on the spit before a good fire; baste often, remove the paper after twenty or twenty-five minutes; leave two or three minutes more, basting continually with the drippings; dish the birds; mix with the drippings a few drops of lemon-juice, and a little salt and pepper, and serve with the birds. Baked.—Lard the bird as for roasting; that is, the fleshy parts only are larded with salt pork, then truss them as directed for chicken, place them in a baking-pan, cover the bottom of the pan with cold water, put a piece of buttered paper on each bird, place in a hot oven, baste often till done. Serve with the gravy some water-cress, and lemon-juice, or vinegar. It is also prepared, cooked, and served in the different ways described for prairie-hen, either in chartreuse, salmis, salad, or any other way. Hare.—No hares have yet been found in the United States, except in California. The reported hare of the Western prairies is, as far as known, a species of rabbit. That found in the Eastern markets comes from Canada and Europe. The Canadian hare is very inferior in quality. To select.—When young it has rather soft paws, and not much opened, and also soft ears; but if old, the paws are hard and much worn, and the ears stiff and hard. If fresh, the body is stiff; it is soft, and the flesh is nearly black, if tainted. Save the blood as much as possible; it improves the sauce very much. In Civet.—When the hare is cleaned as directed for game, cut in pieces. Have in a saucepan and on a good fire two ounces of butter and one of salt pork cut in dice. Stir, and when the salt pork is fried take it off the pan, and put the pieces of hare in it; stir with a wooden spoon now and then, till of a fine golden color; then sprinkle on it a teaspoonful of flour, add ten small onions, four sprigs of parsley, two of thyme, two cloves of garlic, a bay-leaf, salt, pepper, about a pint of claret wine, same of broth, three or four mushrooms, and a little grated nutmeg; boil gently till done; dish the pieces of hare; throw away parsley, thyme, bay-leaf, and garlic; mix the blood of the hare, if any, in the sauce, boil it about ten minutes longer, turn it on the hare, and serve warm. Many epicures like a civet better when prepared one or two days in advance, and only warmed before serving. When the civet is done, and ready to serve, place the dish in a cool, dry place, and when you want to eat the civet, place the dish in a bain-marie, or in an oven, and serve when warm. The same, roasted.—Lard the hare well; place it on the spit before a good fire; baste often with the drippings, and when properly cooked serve it with the following sauce: put in a stewpan a piece of butter the size of a walnut, and set it on a good fire; when melted, put in it the hare's liver well pounded, then the blood, if any, also the drippings, salt, pepper, a tablespoonful of white wine, same of broth, and one teaspoonful of vinegar; when of a proper thickness, serve with the hare. It takes about an hour to roast it well. In a small family, the hind part is roasted, and the fore part of the hare is dressed in civet. Baked.—Lard it with salt pork and bake it, basting often: serve in the same way as a roasted one. The same, next day.—If any is left from the day before, warm it and serve, if in civet; cut in slices and serve cold, with an oil-sauce, if roasted. Leveret.—Cook and serve like a hare. A leveret may also be sautÉd like a chicken. Pheasant, to select.—When young, the claws are short and round at the end, while they are long and sharp when old. They are not fresh when the rump is of a bluish color, but some amateurs like them then; in that state, they are said to have a venison taste. Some hang the bird by the feathers of the tail and leave it so till it falls; then they prepare and eat it. It does not fall until very "high," or rather when tainted. They ought not to be cooked when very fresh, as they have not as delicate a taste then as when rather "high." Pheasants are prepared, cooked, and served like prairie-birds in every way. Crane, Ostrich, Peacock, Pelican, or other Large Birds.—These birds are seldom eaten. When old, they are tough, and of a disagreeable taste. When young, they are not so bad, and may be prepared like a turkey stuffed or stewed. Prairie-bird, Prairie-hen, and Partridge.—An old prairie-hen has a white bill and bluish legs; when young, the bill is of a rather dark-gray color, and the legs are yellowish. As long as the rump does not turn bluish, it is fresh enough. To prepare.—Clean and prepare a prairie-hen as directed for poultry in general. Baked.—Clean and prepare the bird as directed, then cut off the claws to about half their length. Truss the prairie-hen as directed for chicken, and then cover its breast with a thin slice of fat salt pork, but do not cover the back of the bird. Tie the salt pork with twine. Broiled.—Clean and prepare as directed, then split the back of the prairie-hen so as to open it; salt, pepper, and butter it by means of a brush; place it on the gridiron over a good fire; turn over three or four times; as soon as done, sprinkle on it a little allspice, dish the bird, spread a maÎtre d'hÔtel sauce on it, and serve warm. It is also served with a piquante, poivrade, or ravigote sauce. Another way.—Split the prairie-hen in two lengthwise so as to make two equal pieces. Put one ounce of butter in a stewpan and set it on a good fire; when melted, lay the two halves of the bird in; turn over and leave them till a little more than half cooked, when take them off. Envelop each piece in buttered paper, place them on the gridiron, and set it on a rather brisk fire for about fifteen minutes, turning over once only, and serve with the following sauce: Put with the butter in the pan in which was the bird, about a teaspoonful of chopped parsley, same of chopped mushrooms, salt, pepper, and a pinch of allspice; sprinkle in and stir at the same time a teaspoonful of flour; add a gill of white wine, same of broth; boil gently till of a proper thickness, and serve the bird with it, either on the same dish or separately. Serve as warm as possible. With Cabbage.—Clean and truss the prairie-chicken as directed for birds; fry it a little with butter, just enough to color it; then place Another way.—Lard two prairie-birds as directed for larding, after being cleaned and prepared as directed. Put in a stewpan half a pound of bacon cut in slices, with four onions, two carrots cut in pieces, a small dried or Bologna sausage, two sprigs of parsley, one of thyme, two cloves, a bay-leaf, a little grated nutmeg, and a cabbage cut rather fine, and which is to be previously thrown in boiling water and boiled ten minutes; then the two partridges or prairie-hens; place over the whole four ounces of bacon cut in thin slices, cover with broth, set the pan on a sharp fire, and when it has boiled about fifteen minutes, subdue the fire, or put the pan in a moderately heated oven, simmer about two hours if the partridges are old, and one hour if they are young; then take from the fire, place the partridges on a dish with the sausage cut in pieces around them, drain the cabbage and put it on another dish with the bacon, strain the sauce on both dishes, and serve. In Chartreuse.—It is made in a mould for Charlotte russe, or in one like the cut following. Clean the prairie-hen as directed for birds; The cut below represents a chartreuse made exactly like the one described above, with the exception that instead of having a row of carrots and a row of turnips, they are mixed, that is, placed alternately, the white spots representing pieces of turnips and the black spots pieces of carrots—the top being decorated according to fancy. According to the size of the mould, two, three, or more prairie-hens may be prepared at one time and in the same mould. Roasted.—Rub the stomach and legs of the birds with lemon, then envelop those parts with slices of bacon tied with twine, or fixed with small skewers; after which envelop the whole bird in buttered paper tied with twine; place them on a spit before a good fire, take the paper off after twenty or thirty minutes, according to the age of the bird; leave two or three minutes longer, baste often during the process of roasting, with the drippings; dish the birds without removing the slices of bacon; mix in the gravy the juice of half a lemon, or half an orange, a little salt and pepper, and serve it with the birds. It may also be served A roasted or baked prairie-hen is also served with the following sauces: anchovy, caper, Champagne, cranberry, and ravigote or tomato, and currant-jelly. With Mushrooms.—When roasted or baked, serve it with a garniture of mushrooms. It is also served with a garniture of cauliflowers, financiÈre, MacÉdoine, and of truffles. In FricassÉe.—Prepare, cook, and serve it like chicken in fricassÉe. In Crapaudine.—Proceed as for pigeons in crapaudine, the only difference being that it takes a little longer to cook. It is also prepared and served as a quail, hunter-like. It takes longer to cook than a quail. SautÉ.—Clean, prepare, cut, cook, dish, and serve the prairie-bird as a chicken sautÉ. Stewed.—Clean, prepare, and truss the bird as directed. Put about one ounce of butter and two ounces of fat salt pork, cut in dice, in a saucepan, and set it on a quick fire; toss gently, and when the butter is melted, put the bird in and brown it all around; then add four small onions, half a carrot in slices, salt, and pepper; stir till the onions and carrot are partly fried; then add half a pint of broth, same of white wine, a bunch of seasonings composed of four or five stalks of parsley, one of thyme, one bay-leaf, and a clove; boil gently till done; dish the bird, turn the sauce over it through a strainer, and serve warm. Thus stewed, it may be served with the following purÉes: asparagus, beans, lentils, lima beans, mushrooms, and peas. Cold.—A whole bird or part of it left from the preceding day's Boned.—A boned prairie-bird makes an excellent dish and a most nutritious and warming one. Persons having a phlegmatic constitution ought to partake of it at least twice a week during hunting-time. Always select a very fresh and fat bird to bone. Pick, bone, fill, cook, and serve it as described for boned turkey. A prairie-hen is more easily boned, when fresh, than an ordinary chicken. The addition of truffles (about half a pound for one bird) makes it still richer and warmer. In Croquettes.—Prepare, cook, and serve as chicken croquettes. Quails.—A quail, like a prairie-bird, is old when it has a white bill and bluish legs; when young, the bill is of a rather dark-gray color, and the legs are yellowish. Quails are just the contrary of pheasants; the more fresh they are when cooked, the better. To prepare.—When cleaned and prepared as directed for poultry, cut off the end of the claws, and then truss it as a chicken, sprinkle salt and pepper on the breast. Cut thin slices of fat salt pork, somewhat square, and of a proper size to cover the breast of the bird, but not the back. Tie it to the bird with two pieces of twine, then roast or bake. Another way to prepare them.—When cleaned, prepared, and trussed as above, envelop the bird with grape-vine leaves, then in thin slices of salt-pork, and roast or bake them. They may also be enveloped in buttered paper, after being prepared, instead of salt pork or grape-vine leaves, or instead of both, but only to roast them; if baked, the buttered paper is placed over the birds. Baked.—Place the birds on their backs in a baking-pan, with a piece Hunter-like (au Chasseur).—Clean and prepare as directed for birds. Set a saucepan on the fire with two ounces of butter to melt, then put in it four quails trussed as for roasting; turn them round in the pan to color every side; add then half a dozen stalks of parsley, salt, pepper, and nearly cover them with broth and white wine, half of each; boil gently till done. Dish the quails, and put them away in a warm place. Strain the sauce and put it back on the fire with a tablespoonful of meuniÈre, boil rather fast till it commences turning thick, turn over the quails and serve warm. Roasted.—When cleaned and prepared as directed, envelop the birds in grape-vine leaves and salt pork, or in buttered paper, as directed above, and place them on the spit before a moderate though good fire. Have slices of roasted bread in the dripping-pan, baste often with the drippings, and when done remove the twine, or the twine and paper, but neither the salt pork nor the grape-vine leaves, and serve warm. The Quails roasted with grape-vine leaves are considered one of the most recherchÉ dishes. When about half roasted, the liver of the birds, well pounded, is put in the dripping-pan, and the drippings are turned over the birds when dished. When pounded, the livers may be spread on the slices of bread before placing them in the dripping-pan. With Green Peas.—When the quails are roasted or baked, they may be served with green peas au jus. They may also be served on a purÉe of celery or of mushrooms. In Chartreuse.—Proceed exactly as for a chartreuse of prairie-bird. Quails may be served in every way like prairie-hens, stewed, in salad, in salmis, etc. Rabbit—to select.—A rabbit, like almost every other kind of game, has a better taste when a little seasoned, but not too much so. As long as the body is rather stiff, it is good; but when soft, and when the flesh has a black-bluish appearance, it is necessary to examine it carefully, as it might be tainted. A young rabbit has soft paws, and are not much opened; but an old one has them open, hard, and worn out. The ears of a young one are very soft, while those of an old one are stiff and comparatively rough. The blood of the rabbit is a great improvement when mixed with the sauce or gravy accompanying it when served; therefore, we emphatically and earnestly ask of hunters, when they kill rabbits, to place them in their game-bags in such a position that the place where the shots have penetrated and through which the blood is escaping, be upward, and consequently stop the spilling of it. Tame rabbits, unless they have been kept in a large place, well fed, To lard.—The fleshy parts of a rabbit are larded with salt pork in the same way as described for a fillet of beef. Baked.—To bake it, it may be larded or not, according to taste. When cleaned and prepared as directed for game, place the rabbit in a baking-pan, with a few slices of onion and carrot; salt, pepper, and butter it; cover the bottom of the pan with cold water and set it in a quick oven. After ten or fifteen minutes, turn the rabbit over, baste and cover it with a piece of buttered paper. Continue basting till done. When about half done, if the water and juice are boiling away or absorbed, add more water or broth, and when done turn the gravy over the rabbit through a strainer, and serve with water-cress and a few drops of lemon-juice or vinegar. It is also served with a cranberry, fines herbes, mushroom, piquante, ravigote, tomato, and truffle sauce. In Chartreuse.—A rabbit is prepared in chartreuse the same as a prairie-chicken; the only difference is, that it requires a larger mould; the rest of the process is the same. In Civet, or stewed.—Cut the rabbit in pieces, and fry them with a little butter till turning rather brown, when add half a pound of lean salt pork cut in dice; stir and fry two or three minutes, stir in also a tablespoonful of flour; one minute after add a half pint of broth, same of claret wine, salt, twelve small onions, and a bunch of seasonings, composed of three or four sprigs of parsley, one of thyme, a bay-leaf, a clove of garlic, one clove. Boil gently till done; throw away the bunch of seasonings, and serve warm. In case it is not handy to use claret A civet made three or four days in advance, and warmed in a bain-marie for ten minutes, once every day, is better than if eaten as soon as made. In case the sauce is becoming too thick, after warming the rabbit several times, add a little broth, and also a little butter; stir gently, and always serve as warm as possible. In Crapaudine.—When cleaned and prepared as directed, cook and serve the rabbit as described for pigeon in crapaudine, with the exception that it takes a little longer to cook. In Croquettes.—What may be left from the preceding day's dinner of a baked, roasted, or stuffed rabbit, may be prepared in croquettes, in the same way as chicken croquettes. With Currant-Jelly.—A rabbit served with currant-jelly makes a sightly dish, but it requires care and taste. Skin the rabbit carefully, leaving the ears unskinned. Cut the legs at the first joint, then dip the ears in hot (but not boiling) water, and scrape off the hair carefully. Draw it and wash the inside carefully also, putting away the liver, heart, and lungs. Chop fine one middling-sized onion, and fry it with about one ounce of butter; then add to the onion, and fry them also, the heart, liver, and lungs of the rabbit, after being chopped fine, when add a teaspoonful of chopped parsley, salt, pepper, nutmeg grated, and a piece of clove also grated. Stir for about one minute, take from the fire, mix with it two yolks of eggs and one ounce of butter. Fill the rabbit with the mixture, sew up the incision made to It is placed on the dish lying on its belly, the skewers and twine are removed, and a few sprigs of parsley are placed in its mouth. The currant-jelly may be served in a saucer and the gravy in another. In Gibelotte.—The only difference between a gibelotte and a civet is that the latter is made with claret wine and the former with Sauterne or Catawba. Other white wine may be used, but the two kinds above mentioned are the best. Marengo.—When cleaned and prepared as directed, cut the rabbit in pieces; keep the head, neck, and trimmings, to make a potage au chasseur, and cook and serve the rest as a chicken À la Marengo. In Papillotes.—The four legs and two pieces cut on both sides of the backbone may be prepared, cooked, and served as veal cutlets in papillotes. The rest is used to make a potage au chasseur. With Olives.—When baked or roasted, serve it as a duck with olives, putting three dozen olives instead of two. Roasted.—It may be roasted with only a little butter spread all over it, or enveloped in buttered paper; or larded with salt pork; or larded and enveloped in buttered paper. It must be basted often, and if enveloped with paper, the paper must be removed about fifteen minutes before taking the rabbit from the fire. Ascertain when done by means of a skewer or a small sharp-pointed knife. It takes about forty-five With Green Peas.—When baked or roasted, serve it with green peas au jus. SautÉ.—When the rabbit is cleaned and prepared as directed, proceed as for a chicken sautÉ in every particular. Sportsman-like.—Clean and prepare the rabbit, then cut off the neck, head, and the end of the legs, which you keep to make a potage au chasseur. Put the rest in a crockery vessel with the juice of a lemon, salt, and pepper. Leave thus for at least one day, turning it over two or three times. Then bake or roast it, and serve with the gravy and water-cress. Stewed.—When cleaned and prepared, cut the rabbit in pieces. Put in a saucepan three ounces of butter and set it on the fire; as soon as melted, put the pieces of rabbit in, stir now and then till they are turning rather brown, then take them from the pan but keep it on the fire. Put in it a rather small carrot and two or three onions, both sliced, a few slices of turnip, half a dozen sprigs of parsley, two of celery, one of thyme, the last three tied together with twine, and two or three cloves, also half a pint of Madeira or Sherry wine, salt, and pepper; cover the whole with broth or water; boil gently till half done, when add the rabbit, and continue boiling till the whole is done, stirring once in a while. Dish the rabbit, mash the onions, carrot, and turnip, through a colander, which you put all around the pieces of rabbit, strain the sauce over the whole, and serve warm. Cold.—What is left is warmed and served, if from a civet, giblotte, stewed, etc., and served with a vinaigrette, if from a roasted or baked piece. It may also be served with a piquante, poivrade, or ravigote sauce. Snipe—to truss.—Prepare as directed for poultry. Cut the wings off just above the second joint, as seen in the cut below. The head and legs must be cleaned very carefully. By heating the lower part of the legs and the claws, the skin can be easily removed, but this is not necessary, they may be singed and washed only. Fold the legs and run the bill of the bird through the two legs and the body. Put a slice of fat salt pork on the breast of the snipe, which you fasten there with twine, as seen in the cut below. The cut represents the bird on the spit, ready for roasting. Stewed.—Take four snipes and pound the livers, hearts, and lungs well with about the same amount of fat salt pork; then add to them about a teaspoonful of parsley chopped fine, and the yolk of an egg; divide the mixture in four parts and put each part in a bird, which you sew and truss as directed. Line the bottom of a stewpan with slices of salt pork and lay the snipe on them; set on a slow fire for ten minutes, add about half a pint of white wine, same of broth; simmer till done, dish the birds, strain the gravy on them, sprinkle a few drops of lemon-juice over the whole, and serve warm. Snipes are served in several ways, as Salmis.—A salmis is made with tame ducks and any kind of game birds. Birds may be roasted or baked to make a salmis, but most generally it is made with cold birds, that is, what is left from the previous day's dinner. It is certainly the best way to make use of cold birds. The proportions of the different seasonings are according to the proportion of meat. We give below the proportions for a whole bird; it will be easy to augment or reduce. Put two ounces of butter in a saucepan and set it on the fire; as soon as melted stir into it a tablespoonful of flour; when turning rather yellow add one pint of broth, same of claret wine, a bunch of seasonings composed of four or five sprigs of parsley, one of thyme, a bay-leaf and a clove, also salt, pepper, and a clove of garlic; boil gently about thirty-five minutes. Strain the sauce into a saucepan. Cut the bird or part of bird in pieces, the same as they are generally carved; put them in the pan with the sauce; place the saucepan in a bain-marie till the meat is warm, add some lemon-juice, and serve. While the meat is warming, cut some stale bread in croutons, fry them with a little butter. To serve.—A salmis is served in two ways: first, the croutons are placed on the dish, a piece of meat is put on each, and then the sauce is poured all over; second, dish the meat and sauce, place the croutons all around the dish, with a piece of lemon or bitter orange between each crouton. When the croutons are served under the pieces of meat, you must have as many as there are pieces; when served around the dish, have enough of them, and of slices of lemon, to surround the Another.—Carve the bird or part of it, and serve cold with the following sauce; pound the liver of the bird and put it in a saucer; add to it a little vinegar, salt, pepper, and stir and mix the whole; then add about three times as much oil as vinegar, mix again, then lemon-juice, stir, and serve. It may be made without vinegar at all, using lemon-juice instead of vinegar to mix at first. OPOSSUM, OTTER, RACCOON, SKUNK, FOX, WOODCHUCK, AND OTHER LIKE ANIMALS.We cannot say that we have had much experience in cooking the above animals, but they are all eaten by many persons, in different parts of this and other countries. We have tasted of all or them except the raccoon, and we must say that we found them palatable. It is well known that when our soldiers retook possession of Ship Island, they found plenty of raccoons on it, and ate all they could catch. One day we happened to meet a sub-officer, who was there at the time, and inquired of him about it. He said he had never eaten any raccoons before, and did not know that they were eatable; but now he could eat them as readily as rabbit, as they were quite as good. The best time to eat any of the animals enumerated above is from Christmas to the 15th of February. How to prepare them.—As soon as the animal is killed skin it, take the inside out, save the liver and heart, and wash well with lukewarm water and a little salt, inside and out; then wipe dry with a towel, put inside a few leaves of sage, bay-leaves, mint, and thyme, and sew it up. Hang it outside in a place sheltered from the sun, such as the northern side of a building; leave it thus five or six days, then take off, and cook. How to skin a Skunk.—We were hunting one day in New Jersey, northwest of Paterson, with a friend and two farmers living there, when one of them shot a skunk. We asked him how much he could get for the skin. He said it was not worth while to take it to town, but that he would eat the animal, as it was very good. We thought at first that he was joking; but putting his gun and game-bag to the ground, he looked at us earnestly, and said, "Gentlemen, you seem to doubt; I will show you how it is done." We soon saw that we had been mistaken. We made a fire, took hold of the skunk by the head with one hand, and with a stick in the other held the skunk over the fire. He burnt off nearly all the hair, taking care to avoid burning the skin, commencing at the hind legs; then with his hunting-knife he carefully cut off the bag containing the fetid matter, and skinned and cleaned it. We then examined the skunk, and although it had not been washed, we could not find any part of it with a bad smell, and if we had not seen the whole operation we certainly would not have thought that it was a skunk, the very name of which is repulsive. The following week we dined with the farmer, ate some of that identical skunk, and found it very good. How to cook the above-named Animals.—Take out the leaves of sage, etc., which you put in the animal before exposing it to the weather. Pound well the liver and heart with about the same quantity of bacon, then mix that with two or three teaspoonfuls of chopped parsley, a pinch of grated nutmeg, salt, and pepper; stuff the animal with that mixture, and also with six small onions fried in butter, and a bunch of seasoning composed of four sprigs of parsley, three of thyme, two cloves, two cloves of garlic, and two bay-leaves, and sew it up again. Butter it well all over, place it on a spit before a very quick fire; put three or four sage-leaves in the dripping-pan, and baste often with the drippings. Serve it when cooked with the gravy, throwing away the sage-leaves. It may also be served with a Mayonnaise, ravigote, or Tartar sauce. Squirrel.—A squirrel is prepared as a rabbit in every particular. VENISON.If young, the hoof is not much opened, and the fat is thick and clear; when old, the hoofs are wide open. To know if it is fresh enough, run a knife or a skewer through the leg or through the shoulder, and if it does not smell bad and stale, it is good. It is not as delicate when fresh as when it has been killed for five or six days. If fresh when you buy it, keep it from three to eight days before cooking it. To improve.—Put the piece of venison in a crockery vessel. For about six pounds put a pint of vinegar in a saucepan with two bay-leaves, two Another way.—Lard the piece of venison and put it in a crockery vessel; spread all over two or three onions and a clove or two of garlic (both sliced), half a gill of sweet-oil, same of claret wine, a pinch of allspice, four cloves, and two sprigs of thyme; baste twice a day for two or three days, and then cook. To bake.—Put the venison in a baking-pan with the seasonings in which it has improved; spread some butter on it, and bake in a rather quick oven; baste now and then, and turn over if necessary. When baked, serve with a ravigote sauce, to which you have added the gravy from the pan in which it has been baked. Serve it also with a cranberry, piquante, Robert, or Tartar sauce, or with currant-jelly. In Civet.—Shoulder, neck, and breast-pieces are cut and prepared in civet, in the same way as a civet of rabbit. It may also be kept three or four days and warmed in a bain-marie; it improves it as much as that of rabbit. With Mushrooms.—Any piece of venison, baked or roasted, may be served with a garniture of mushrooms. Cutlets, broiled.—The cutlets are much better when improved as directed. The seasonings are spread all over. They are then wrapped up in buttered paper and broiled on a quick fire. They may also be larded with salt pork, and then broiled with or without being enveloped in paper. When broiled and dished, serve them warm with a maÎtre d'hÔtel or ravigote sauce. SautÉes.—Put six cutlets in a stewpan, larded or not, with salt, Haunch, roasted.—After being improved, if liked, remove the thin skin around it and lard it with salt pork; it may be roasted without larding, but it is certainly an improvement, the meat being naturally dry. Place it on the spit before a brisk fire and near it; baste with melted butter first, and then with the drippings till done. If it is larded, it will require less butter. As soon as a kind of crust forms around the meat, remove it a little from the fire by degrees. Ascertain with a skewer or small knife when done. Venison is generally served rather underdone, when roasted or baked. To make the dish more sightly, the skin and hair of the lower part of the leg, together with the hoof, are left untouched. To prevent them from burning while it is roasting, envelop these parts with a wet towel, which you cover with several sheets of buttered or oiled paper. It may be necessary to dip the towel in water two or three times during the process of roasting. When roasted, serve with any of the following sauces: cranberry, piquante, poivrade, ravigote, Robert, or Tartar; also with currant-jelly. If served with the gravy only, add water-cress and lemon-juice or vinegar. Baked.—Prepare it as directed for roasting; then place it in a bakepan with a little cold water, just enough to cover the bottom of the Saddle.—Roast or bake the saddle, and serve it as directed for a haunch, with the same sauces, and also with water-cress and currant-jelly. Shoulder.—Cut the shoulder in fillets and lard them slightly. Put in a stewpan four ounces of butter and set it on a brisk fire; when hot, lay the fillets in, and when of a golden color add the seasonings in which you have improved the saddle, or the same ones if you have not done it; then subdue the fire, wet with a little warm broth, simmer till cooked, dish the fillets, strain the sauce on them, and serve. It may also be dressed entire, with the bones off; but it is more generally done in fillets. It is boned like a shoulder of mutton, and roasted or baked, and served like a haunch, with the same sauces and with currant-jelly or water-cress. Stewed.—Cut the meat in square pieces, about two inches in size. Have in a stewpan, and on a good fire, a piece of butter the size of a duck's egg; when melted, sprinkle in, little by little, a tablespoonful of flour, stirring the while with a wooden spoon; when getting rather thick, add two ounces of bacon cut in dice, also half a pint of claret wine, same of warm water, salt, pepper, a pinch of allspice, two shallots chopped fine, or two green onions, four or five mushrooms, two cloves of garlic, and six onions; then lay the meat on the whole, and boil gently till cooked. Dish the meat, boil the sauce till of a brownish color, skim off the fat if there is too much of it, take out the cloves of garlic, turn the sauce on the meat, and serve hot. With Truffles or Mushrooms.—Any part of venison, baked or roasted, may be served with a garniture of mushrooms, or one of truffles. Cold.—When you have some left for the next day, warm it before serving it, if from a stew; but if from a roasted haunch, cut in slices and serve cold with a vinaigrette. SNAILS.A good many are now imported from Europe. How to clean and prepare.—Throw them in boiling water, in which you have put some wood-ashes; leave them in till they have thrown their cover wide open, which will take about fifteen minutes; then take them off, pull them out of the shell by means of a fork, place them in lukewarm water, and leave two hours; next, rub them in your hands, and then soak in cold water; rub them again in your hands in cold water, two or three times, changing the water each time, so as to take away most of their sliminess. Wash the shells in lukewarm water with a scrubbing-brush, and drain them when clean. Broiled.—Knead together and make a paste of a sufficient quantity of butter, parsley chopped fine, salt, pepper, and grated nutmeg; say about two ounces of butter, a tablespoonful of parsley, a saltspoonful of salt, a pinch of pepper, and the same of nutmeg (for two dozen). Put a piece of the above paste, the size of a kidney bean, in each shell, then the snails, and at the top again the same quantity of paste; lay them one by one close together, in a crockery or cast-iron kettle, the mouth of the snails up, and not one upon another; cover the kettle well; set it on a moderate fire, or in a moderately heated oven, and leave thus till cooked, which is easily seen by the parsley beginning to turn In eating them, be careful after having taken off the snail and eaten it, to turn down the shell, for there is some juice in the bottom of it which is delicious; the best way is to drink it as if from the bottom of a glass. They can be broiled on a gridiron, but they are not as good as in a kettle; some of the juice is lost, and also the flavor. Stewed.—Put in a stewpan four ounces of butter for fifty snails, and set it on a good fire; when melted, sprinkle in it a teaspoonful of flour, stirring a while; then add a teaspoonful of parsley chopped fine, two sprigs of thyme, a bay-leaf, a pint of white wine, and then the snails, which you have previously put back into their shells; cover the whole with warm broth, boil gently till the sauce is reduced and the snails are cooked, and serve them mouth upward, and filled with the sauce. |
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