The flavour of vegetables is best preserved if they are put on to cook in boiling water. For cooking in a fireless cooker the water must be salted when the vegetables are started. The expression “salted water,” as used in this book, means water to each quart of which one teaspoonful of salt has been added. Such vegetables as asparagus, peas, lima beans, etc., which have a delicate flavour, must be cooked with very little water; usually in a smaller pail or pan set into a larger cooker-pail of water. All vegetables should be washed before cooking, and such as potatoes, beets, turnips, etc., should be scrubbed with a small scrubbing-brush, kept for that purpose. Few vegetables are injured by overcooking in a fireless cooker.

Asparagus

Wash, and if desired, break into two-inch pieces, as much of the asparagus as will snap easily. That which will not snap, if fresh, will be too tough to eat. Cook it in enough salted water to barely cover the asparagus, setting the pan in a large cooker-pail of boiling water. It may be tender in one hour.

Cabbage

Cut a head of cabbage into two pieces; soak it in a large bowl of salted water for one-half hour or more. Cut it in quarters or smaller pieces, discarding the tough central stalk and any leaves which may not be perfect. Put it into four quarts of salted water to which one-fourth of a teaspoonful of baking soda has been added. Bring it to a boil and put it into a hay-box for from one and one-half to twelve hours. Winter cabbage will require three or four hours of cooking at the least. Drain it into a colander and serve it with White Sauce or with butter, pepper, and salt to taste. If cooked many hours, reheat it before serving.

Cauliflower

Soak the whole head in a large bowl of salted water for one-half hour or more. If insects are in it this will cause them to crawl out. Bring it to a boil in four quarts of boiling salted water and cook it in a hay-box from one and one-quarter to four hours. If much overcooked it will be difficult to remove the head whole. Take it out with a skimmer and serve it on a platter, pouring over it one cupful of White Sauce. A large head will require more sauce.

Cauliflower À la Hollandaise is prepared in the same way, substituting Hollandaise Sauce for White Sauce.

Cauliflower au Gratin is prepared by removing the cooked head to a baking dish, covering it with buttered crumbs and baking it until the crumbs are brown, or by covering it with grated cheese before the crumbs are added.

Carrots

Scrub and scrape carrots. (Very young carrots need not be scraped.) Cover them with boiling salted water, bring them to a boil and put them into a cooker for from one to three hours, according to the age and condition of the carrots. They will not be injured by cooking twelve hours. If old and wilted they should be soaked several hours in cold water before being prepared for cooking. When done, cut young carrots in rounds or strips, or serve them whole. Old carrots may be cut into slices before cooking. Drain away most of the water and make Sauce for Vegetables, using the remainder of the water. Or all the water may be drained off and the carrots served with butter, salt, and pepper to taste.

Corn

Husk fresh green corn, using a clean whisk-broom to remove the silk that clings to the ear. Put it into a cooker-pail, cover it with salted water, bring it to a boil and put it into the cooker for from fifty minutes to two hours. Drain it and serve it on a hot platter, covering it with a napkin.

Beets

Scrub new beets, that is, those freshly pulled. Cut off the stalks three inches from the beets, put them into four quarts or more of boiling, salted water, boil five minutes, and put them into a cooker for five hours or more. Old beets, if wilted, should be soaked till firm, and cooked as new beets. They will require six or more hours according to their age and condition. When sufficiently cooked the skin of beets will easily slip off. Remove them from the water one by one, peel and slice them. Serve them with butter, pepper, and salt. If they cool while slicing them, reheat them before serving.

Fresh Shelled Beans

Wash from one pint to one quart of fresh shelled beans, put them into three quarts of boiling salted water, to which one-fourth teaspoonful of soda has been added, boil, and put them into a hay-box for two and one-half hours. They are not injured by several hours’ cooking. Drain them and add salt, pepper, and butter to taste. The exact quantity of water in which the beans are cooked is not material. They will bear a large amount, as their flavour is strong.

String Beans

• 2 qts. string beans
• 3 qts. water
• 3 teaspoons salt
• ¹/₂ teaspoon baking soda

Wash the beans, cut them into small pieces, and put them on to boil with the water, salt, and soda. Put them into a cooker for six hours. They will not be injured by cooking for ten or twelve hours. If fewer beans are to be cooked, the water must not be decreased, unless the pail of beans is full or set into a larger pail of boiling water.

Serves six or eight persons.

Lima Beans

Wash the beans and put them on to cook in boiling salted water, to each quart of which one-eighth of a teaspoonful of soda has been added. If the quantity is small, put them into a small pail set into a larger pail of water. If the whole will fill a two-quart cooker-pail it will cook without the larger pail. Put them into a cooker for one and one-half hours or more.

Dried Lima Beans

Soak the beans over night, put them to boil in at least twice their bulk of salted water. Add one-fourth teaspoonful of soda to each quart of water. Boil, and put them into a cooker for three or four hours or more. Drain, add butter, pepper, and salt, and reheat them before serving, if necessary.

Dried Navy Beans

Soak one cupful of beans over night. In the morning drain off the water, add three quarts of boiling salted water and one teaspoonful of soda. Boil, and put them into the cooker for eight hours or more. When soft, drain them and add butter, pepper, and salt to taste. Or make pork and beans of them.

Serves five or six persons.

Chard

Put a pint of water and a teaspoonful of salt into a cooker-pail. When boiling add, little by little, the well-washed chard. If, after boiling two or three minutes, there is not enough water to cover the chard, add more boiling water. If a small amount of chard is cooked the pail or pan must be set into a cooker-pail of boiling water. Put it into a cooker for three hours or more. Drain in a colander and add salt, pepper, and butter to taste. Serve with slices of hard-cooked eggs as a garnish.

One dozen stalks and leaves serve four or five persons. Many persons cook the stalks separately and serve them with a white sauce, using only the leaves for greens.

Spinach

Cook in the same manner as chard, allowing two hours or more in the cooker.

One peck serves six or eight persons.

Beet Greens

Cook in the same manner as chard, allowing two and one-half hours or more in the cooker. Do not remove the little beets. When cooked, cut through the greens frequently with a knife, to make them less awkward for serving.

Stewed Celery

• 3 cups prepared celery
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 qt. water

Scrub the celery with a small brush, remove the strings, cut it in one-half-inch pieces and drop it into the boiling salted water. When it is boiling, set the pail or pan into a cooker-pail of boiling water and put it into the cooker for from two to four hours or longer, depending upon the toughness of the stalks. It will not be injured by long cooking. When tender, drain it, saving one-half cupful of the water to use in making the sauce. Serve with one cupful of Sauce for Vegetables.

Serves six or eight persons.

Macaroni

• ¹/₃ lb. macaroni (1 cup broken in pieces)
• 1 qt. water
• 1 teaspoon salt

Break the macaroni into one-inch pieces. Soak it in cold water for one hour, then drain it; or cook it without soaking. Drop it into the boiling water, let it boil, and put it into the hay-box for one and one-half hours if soaked, or two hours if not soaked. Stand the pail or pan in a cooker-pail of boiling water while in the hay-box. Macaroni will break to pieces if cooked too long. When tender, drain it in a colander and serve it plain, seasoned to taste with salt and pepper, or make it into Macaroni and Cheese or Macaroni and Ham.

Serves five or six persons.

Macaroni Italienne

• 1 cup macaroni in one-inch pieces
• 1 pt. stewed and strained tomatoes
• 1 cup stock or water
• 1 medium-sized onion
• 4 cloves
• 1 small bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• ¹/₈ teaspoon pepper
• 1 cup cheese, grated or shaved

Soak the macaroni in cold water for one hour; stick the cloves into the onion. Drain the macaroni, put it into a pan or pail, add the other ingredients, except the cheese, and, when boiling, set the pan or pail into a cooker-pail of boiling water and put it into a cooker for two hours. Remove the onion and bay leaf and add the cheese. If it cannot be served as soon as the cheese is melted, slip the pail back into the cooker.

Serves five or six persons.

Macaroni Milanaise

• 1 cup macaroni
• 1 small onion
• 2 cloves
• 1 pt. tomatoes, stewed and strained
• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon butter
• ¹/₂ cup grated cheese
• 6 sliced mushrooms
• ¹/₄ cup smoked tongue or ham, cut in strips

Break the macaroni, soak it for one hour, then drain it, and put it, with the other ingredients, except the last three, into a pan or pail. When boiling, set the pan into a cooker-pail of boiling water and put it into a cooker for two hours. Remove the onion and cloves, add the last three ingredients, and when the cheese is melted it is ready to serve. If it cannot be served at once replace it in the cooker.

Serves six or seven persons.

Spaghetti

Spaghetti may be treated in the same way as macaroni. It is a similar paste moulded into a different form. Vermicelli is also the same paste, moulded into still finer threads. It is frequently used in soups, and should be broken into short pieces and added not more than two hours before it is served, or it will become so soft as to break to pieces and lose its attractive appearance.

Noodles

Noodles are made from a richer paste than macaroni, having eggs in place of water to supply the moisture. They may be used exactly as macaroni and similar pastes. They should not be soaked before cooking.

Creamed Mushrooms

Wash the mushrooms, cut them in slices if they are large, bring them to a boil in enough salted water to nearly cover them. It should take about a pint for each quart of mushrooms. Set the pan or pail in a cooker-pail of boiling water and put it into the cooker for from two to six hours. When it is nearly time to serve them, drain the water off, reserving three-fourths of a cupful to use in making one and one-half cupfuls of Sauce for Vegetables, or White Sauce.

Fricasseed Mushrooms

Wash the mushrooms and dry them thoroughly on a towel. Let them stand on the towel some time before cooking them, so that they may drain dry. Fry them in butter till they are brown in a cooker-pail or pan, and make one and one-half cupfuls of Brown Sauce for each quart of mushrooms, using any liquor that may have come from them, and water for the liquid of the sauce. Pour this sauce over the mushrooms. If a small quantity of mushrooms is being cooked, stand the pail or pan in a large cooker-pail of boiling water. Put them into a cooker for two hours or more.

Onions

Pare onions under water, to avoid their irritating effect on the eyes. They are so strong in flavour that they will bear an excess of water in cooking. Salt the water as directed in the General Directions for Cooking Vegetables. Four quarts of water may be used for cooking one quart of onions. Bring them to a boil in a cooker-pail, and put them into a hay-box for from two hours, for very tender, fresh onions, to eight hours or more. When done, drain them dry and add butter, pepper, and salt to taste and, if desired, a little cream of milk. If the onions are very large let them boil five minutes before putting them into the hay-box.

Boiled Potatoes

Scrub potatoes well with a small scrubbing-brush. Pare them, and if they are inclined to be black when cooked, let them stand an hour or more in cold water before cooking them. Cook them in a large amount of boiling salted water in a cooker-pail. When they have boiled one minute put them into the cooker for from one and one-half to three hours, depending upon their quantity, size, and age. New potatoes will not require so long to cook as old. Large potatoes cut into pieces will cook in one hour.

Creamy Potatoes

• 1 qt. sliced potatoes
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 teaspoons salt
• ¹/₈ teaspoon pepper
• ³/₄ pt. milk

Wash and pare the potatoes and cut them into thin slices. Four medium-sized potatoes will make a quart when sliced. Put all the ingredients together in a small cooker-pail or pan, set this in a large cooker-pail of boiling water, and when it is steaming hot, put the small utensil directly over the heat until it boils. Replace it in the pail of boiling water and set it in the cooker for one hour.

Serves four or five persons.

Stewed Potatoes

• 1 qt. cold, diced potatoes
• 2 cups milk
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 teaspoons salt
• ¹/₄ teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Melt the butter in a small cooker-pail or pan, add the flour and blend the two evenly, then add the milk, one-third at a time; when it boils, put in the salt, pepper, and potatoes. Let the whole reach boiling point and set it in a large cooker-pail of boiling water, unless it fills a small pail full, in which case it can be placed directly in a cooker nest which exactly fits it, and left for one hour or more.

Serves six or eight persons.

Peas

Shell young, green peas and bring them to a boil, using about one cupful of salted water for each quart of shelled peas. Put the pail or pan inside of another cooker-pail of boiling water and set all in a cooker for from one to two hours or more. Old peas may be left all night or all day in the cooker.

Rice, No. 1

• 1 cup rice
• 3 qts. water
• 3 teaspoons salt

Look over the rice and remove any husks or undesirable substances. Wash it by allowing cold water to run through a strainer containing the rice. Sprinkle it, gradually, into the boiling salted water in a cooker-pail. When it is boiling put it into a hay-box for one hour. There is a considerable difference in rice, and the time for cooking it will vary; but one hour will usually be found sufficient. Rice is injured by overcooking. When the rice is soft, drain it in a colander and set this in the oven, with the door open, for five minutes. Serve at once. Rice, when cooked, swells to four times its original bulk.

Serves six or eight persons.

Rice, No. 2

• 1 cup rice
• 2 to 2¹/₂ cups water
• 1 teaspoon salt

Look over and wash the rice as directed in the recipe for Rice, No. 1. Bring it to a boil in the salted water, and put it into a hay-box for one hour.

Serves six or eight persons.

Savoury Rice

• 1 cup rice
• 4¹/₂ cups highly seasoned stock
• 2 tablespoons butter

Look over and wash rice as directed in the previous recipes, bring it to a boil in the stock, with the butter, and cook it in a hay-box for one hour, standing the pail or pan that contains it in a larger pail of water, unless more than one cupful of rice is being cooked and the cooker-pail would be at least two-thirds full. Serve with a border of salted peanuts. The rice should be moist but not sticky when cooked.

Serves eight or ten persons.

Turkish Pilaf

• ¹/₂ cup rice
• 2 tablespoons chopped green sweet pepper or onion
• 1 cup tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1¹/₄ cups stock or water
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 teaspoon salt

Pick over and wash the rice, as directed in the recipe for boiled rice, No. 1. Chop the onion or pepper, discarding the seeds, and, if raw tomatoes are used, remove the skins and cut the tomatoes in pieces before measuring them. Put all the ingredients together in a small cooker-pail or pan, and, when boiling, set it in a larger cooker-pail of boiling water. Put it into a cooker for one hour. When ready to serve it, stir it lightly with a fork till all the ingredients are evenly mixed. Pilaf is injured by much overcooking.

Serves five or six persons.

Samp (Coarse Hominy)

• ¹/₂ cup samp
• 1 cup cold water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups boiling water

Soak the samp in the cold water for eight hours or more. Add the salt and boiling water; boil it hard for one hour, and put it into a cooker for from six to twelve hours. It is improved by the longer cooking. The pail or pan in which it is cooked should be stood in a large cooker-pail of boiling water. A tablespoonful of butter may be added before serving if it is used as a vegetable.

Serves five or six persons.

Summer Squash

Scrub young, tender summer squashes and cook them whole, in the cooker, with enough salted boiling water to fully cover them, for from one to three hours. If they are not young enough to have a soft rind, they must be pared and the seeds removed. It will then be better to cook them as winter squash. When they are tender, drain off the water and mash the squashes in a colander. This will allow a little of the juice to drain away and leave the squashes drier. Season them highly with salt and pepper, and add two tablespoonfuls of butter to each pint of squash. If not very hot when mashed, reheat before serving.

Stewed Tomatoes

• 1 qt. tomatoes
• 2 teaspoons salt
• ¹/₄ teaspoon pepper
• 1 onion, sliced
• ¹/₄ cup buttered crumbs
• 2 teaspoons sugar

Scald and peel the tomatoes, remove the cores, and cut them into pieces before measuring them. Add the other ingredients, omitting the sugar and crumbs, if preferred; bring all to a boil, and put them into a cooker for from one to two hours or more. They will not be injured by indefinite cooking.

Serves five or six persons.

Hubbard or Winter Squash

Scrub, pare and cut the squash into pieces, removing the seeds. Put it into a strainer that will fit into the cooker-pail, placing a rack under it to raise it above the water in the pail. Fill the pail below the strainer with boiling water. Steam the squash directly over the fire for ten minutes, then put it into the cooker for from five to eight hours, depending upon the age of the squash and the amount cooked. A pail of not less than six quarts’ capacity should be used, so that there may be at least three quarts of water under the squash. When tender, mash it through the strainer, or drain it in a cheese cloth, squeezing it as dry as possible. If it is to be served as a vegetable, season it highly with salt and pepper, and add two or three tablespoonfuls of butter to each pint of squash. If it is to be made into pies, omit these ingredients.

Pumpkin

Select a pumpkin with a soft rind, if possible. Prepare and cook it in the same manner as winter squash. It may be used as a vegetable or made into pies.

Creamed Turnips

Scrub, pare, and cut turnips into half-inch dice. Cook each pint of prepared turnips with at least one quart of boiling salted water, in the cooker, for from one and one-half to three hours or more. When tender, drain them, reserving enough of the water to make one cupful of Sauce for Vegetables for each pint of turnips.

Mashed Turnip

Scrub and pare the turnips and cut them into pieces. Cook each pint of turnip with at least one quart of boiling salted water in the cooker for from one and one-half hours to three hours or more. When tender, drain and mash them in a colander and add to each pint one teaspoonful of salt, one-fourth teaspoonful of pepper, and two tablespoonfuls or more of butter. Serve very hot.

Italian Chestnuts

• 1 qt. chestnuts
• 1¹/₂ qts. water
• 2 teaspoons salt

Shell and blanch the nuts by the directions given on page 189. Bring them to a boil with salted water, put them in a cooker for from two to four hours. Press them through a potato ricer or serve them whole, adding a little butter if desired. One quart of nuts will make about one pint when shelled and blanched.

Serves four or five persons.

Brussels Sprouts

• 1 qt. sprouts
• 2 or more qts. water
• Salt
• Pepper
• Butter

Wash the sprouts, bring them to a boil in salted water; put them into the cooker for from one to two hours, drain them and add salt, pepper, and butter to taste.

Serves six or seven persons.