HAVING promised a friend, when first I commenced this work, that I would insert in its pages a number of receipts for the poor, I fulfil my obligation by re-publishing some receipts which I first brought out in the year of the famine, 1847; and with all the intention I had of still further simplifying them I find their improvement an impossibility. I have, however, withdrawn some receipts of dishes, which were only applicable to that period, and I have at the same time introduced a few new ones, which I feel confident will tend to the comfort of humble families.

In making the receipts Nos. 1 and 2 public, I did not suppose that they would meet with the entire approbation of the nation, particularly by those who imagine that nothing can be good except plenty of animal food is used for the subsistence of man. I shall not enter into a culinary digression to prove it, but I am so satisfied of the failure of the quantity of nourishment generally obtained by those who cannot make anything good, even with plenty, for want of having the practical judgment, that I make bold to affirm, that the little animal substance I recommend, if closely followed, will produce all the nourishment requisite when amalgamated in the way described.

As regards the peelings and ends of vegetables which I use in my receipts, it is a well-known fact, that the exterior of every vegetable, roots in particular, contains more flavour than the interior of it; which is my reason for recommending only the washing well of those vegetables before they are cut for use, thereby increasing the vegetable produce of the country, and using that which has hitherto only increased the “malaria” of our courts and alleys by its decomposition.

Having thus explained my reasons, I now give publicity to my receipts for making soups and other dishes in this form; which I trust will prove useful to the benevolent and the whole laborious and industrious population of the county, and produce economy in all charitable institutions, and comfort in every cottage.

Almost all the productions of nature can be made available, and produce wholesome and nutritious food for man. The following is a short list, taking them in rotation, according to the quantity of nutriment they contain:—Beef, mutton, venison, pork, veal, lamb, hare, rabbits, bacon, lard, dripping, butter, oil: of farinaceous substances,[38] Indian corn, wheat, rice, barley, rye, buck-wheat, oats, peas, beans, lentils: of vegetables and roots—yams, potatoes, Jerusalem artichokes, parsnips, turnips, carrots, mangel wurzel, onions, leeks, green peas, cauliflowers, celery, kelp, Irish moss, dillisk, French beans, greens, spinach, sorrel, salads of all kinds: of condiments—as salt, pepper, cayenne, curry, chilies, mustard, allspice, mace, cloves, ginger, cinnamon, &c.: of herbs—savory, parsley, mint, thyme, marjoram, basil, bay-leaf, and all sorts, both culinary and medicinal, or their essences, all of which, when properly blended with food, add to its nourishing qualities; but the grand secret is, to obtain from the above all the nutriment they possess, which is done by following my receipts, and reducing the animal and vegetable substances to a glaze, and mixing it with the farinaceous, and thereby obtaining a palatable and agreeable food, and economizing the productions of nature to an immense extent; for, by the system at present adopted, more than fifty per cent. of the animal and vegetable productions are lost, and the nutriment from the farinaceous ingredients is rendered less, in consequence of being unpalatable. In my visits to the different charitable institutions of this city, I have been surprised at the want of knowledge manifested in making of soups. In some parishes, I found 100 pounds of meat, cut into pieces of a quarter of a pound each, put into 100 gallons of water, at twelve o’clock of one day, to be boiled until twelve o’clock the next day; by such proceedings the osmazome of the meat is lost by evaporation from the boiler, and only the gelatine and fibrine is left; the former has been proved by a medical board, instituted at Paris, for the purpose of inquiring into the subject, to contain no nutriment whatever, and the latter contains about the same as a piece of dry wood. What would be said of a cook who would put a quarter of a pound of meat, or even a piece weighing thirty pounds, to roast before a large fire for twenty-four hours? What nutriment would it contain at the end of that period? My principle is easily illustrated by putting twelve onions into a gallon of water, and boiling them for as many hours; no smell arises from it; but cut the half of one, and fry it, and the perfume will be diffused over the whole house: thus I extract the aroma of every ingredient which I employ, and any one carefully following the receipts will produce a palatable and nourishing food.

The old plan of soaking farinaceous ingredients is not bad, but in many instances it cannot be practised, in which case I would recommend that peas be put into soft boiling water,[39] and that the ebullition does not cease until the peas are reduced to a pulp. Indian meal must also be put into boiling water, and be well boiled for two hours. Rice and barley may be put into cold water, and be boiled until they can be easily mashed between the fingers; the length of time depends upon their quality.—All kinds of food made of farinaceous ingredients, as Indian meal, peas, rice, &c., increase in quantity when made the day previous, and require more water when warmed up.

It will be perceived that I have omitted all kinds of spice except in those dishes which are intended expressly for them, as I consider they only flatter the appetite and irritate the stomach, and make it crave for more food; my object being not to create an appetite but to satisfy it; and when those dishes in which spice is introduced are given to the poor, it should only be done by the advice of the medical man; but in those cases where they have been accustomed to have them, they must be reduced by degrees until their taste is brought round to that point most conducive to health.

No. 1.—For Two Gallons.

I first put two ounces of dripping into a saucepan (capable of holding two gallons of water), with a quarter of a pound of leg of beef without bones,[40] cut into square pieces of about an inch; and two middling-sized onions, peeled and sliced; I then set the saucepan over a coal fire, and stirred the contents round for a few minutes with a wooden (or iron) spoon until fried lightly brown. I had then ready washed the peeling of two turnips, fifteen green leaves or tops of celery, and the green part of two leeks; (the whole of which, I must observe, are always thrown away.) Having cut the above vegetables into small pieces, I threw them into the saucepan with the other ingredients, stirring them occasionally over the fire for another ten minutes; then added one quart of cold water, and three quarters of a pound of common flour, and half a pound of pearl barley, mixing all well together; I then added seven quarts of hot water, seasoned with three ounces of salt, and a quarter of an ounce of brown sugar, stirred occasionally until boiling, and allowed it to simmer very gently for three hours; at the end of which time I found the barley perfectly tender. The above soup has been tasted by numerous noblemen, members of parliament, and several ladies who have lately visited my kitchen department, and who have considered it very good and nourishing.

This soup will keep several days when made as above described; but I must observe, not to keep it in a deep pan, but in rather a flat vessel, where the air could act freely upon it. Stir it now and then, until nearly cold: or otherwise the next day it will be in a state of fermentation: this does not denote the weakness of the soup, because the same evil exists with the very strongest of stock, or sauce, if not stirred, or if confined in a warm place—(a fact known to every first-rate cook).

The expenses make it come to three farthings per quart in London; but, as almost everything can be had at less cost in the country, the price of this soup will be still more reduced. In that case a little additional meat might be used, and by giving away a small portion of bread or biscuit, better support would be given to the poor at a trifling cost, and no one, it is to be hoped, hereafter, would hear of the dreadful calamity of starvation.

The same for one hundred gallons, to be made in the boilers, such as are given by the different relief committees, or in any other vessel, either iron or copper, in general use.

Have ready a spatula, or a piece of board the shape of a cricket-bat, about six inches wide, tapering towards the top as a handle (which must be from one foot and a half to two feet above the surface of the vessel), to stir with; take twelve pounds of solid meat, or sixteen pounds with the bones (legs or clods of beef are excellent for the purpose, but any kind of edible meat, from beef to doe venison will do), cut in pieces about one inch square; put the dripping[41] in the boiler; light the fire; when the fat is melted, add the onions: fry ten minutes, stirring it all the time; add the vegetables and the meat; fry for twenty minutes, or until a thick glaze is produced; then add the salt and sugar, and four gallons of cold water; then add the flour; keep stirring quickly, until quite smooth; add the barley, and fill by degrees with hot water;[42] boil for three hours, or until the barley is quite tender, and serve.[43]

In case either the barley or rice does not produce the thickness required (as those ingredients may differ in quality), then add, if too thin, a few pounds of flour or oatmeal, previously mixed with cold water, to make it in a liquid batter, and pour it in when boiling about twenty minutes before serving it out. But the proper thickness is easily ascertained when the soup hangs lightly on the back of the spatula or ladle, and near the consistence of a thin stirabout.

No. 2.—For Two Gallons.

Take two ounces of either dripping, American lard, or suet, to which add the turnips or carrots; fry for ten minutes, add one quart of cold water and the meal, well mixing, and moisten by degrees with seven quarts of hot water; boil for two hours, and season with three ounces of salt, one quarter ounce of brown sugar, one teaspoonful of black pepper, two drops of essence of garlic, one drop of essence of mint, one drop of essence of celery; stir quickly, and serve directly.

Receipt No. 3.

For those who have the chance of procuring a few potatoes once a week, they may be used with advantage in the following manner:—

Having prepared the soup according to Receipt No. 2, when nearly done, wash a pound of potatoes, pick out the black spots, if any, and cut them in very small dice; put them into the soup to boil for twenty minutes, or a little longer, until done, and the soup is ready, and will strongly taste of potato; the short time of ebullition preserving all the aroma of that inconstant root.

Having promised to make my receipts public, for the benefit of the laborious classes of society, as well as for the poor, I think that if a man could treat his family once a week with a food called potato soup, each member of it, who had previously fed on that root, and who are now nearly deprived of that food, would worship the day of the week when such a luxury should be displayed on their humble table.

Receipt No. 4.

Have a quarter of a pound of fat bacon[44] cut into dice, peel and slice two good-sized onions, or three small ones, and put both into a stewpan, with one ounce of dripping; fry them gently until lightly brown, then add two ounces of turnips, two ounces of carrots, and one ounce of leeks, and one ounce of celery; cut them thin and slanting (but, as I have before observed, any kind of vegetable will answer the purpose, if the same proportion is used); fry for ten minutes, and fill up with seven quarts of water, and, when boiling, add a pound and a quarter of split peas, and let them simmer for two or three hours, until reduced to a pulp, which depends on the quality of the pea; then add two ounces of salt, half an ounce of sugar, quarter of an ounce of mint, mix one half pound of flour in twelve ounces of water, to a thin batter, pour into the soup, stir it well, boil one quarter of an hour, and serve.

No. 5.—Meagre Pea Soup.

This is the same as the former, with the exception that the bacon and dripping are omitted, and oil or butter used in their stead. Buttermilk could with advantage be used; in which case, add three ounces of salt. Although this food is entirely deprived of animal substance, yet the farinaceous ingredients will act generously on the digestive organs, particularly to a stomach which has suffered from want of food.

No. 6.—The Fisherman’s Food for the Coast.

Cut four pounds of fresh fish of any kind in large pieces; put it in your pan, with three ounces of salt, half an ounce of sugar, a little pepper, two bay leaves, a little thyme, one quart of water, and let it stew gently; mix two pounds of oatmeal with seven quarts of lukewarm water, and pour it over the fish; stir it gently, so as not to break it too much; let it boil twenty minutes, and it is done.

A red herring or dried salt fish, previously soaked, is exceedingly good to make this food; but omit the salt if all salt fish is used.

No. 7.—Curry Fish.

Put into a stew-pan four onions, a small bunch of bay-leaf, thyme, and savory; two apples, if convenient, with a quarter pound of fat, three ounces of salt, and quarter ounce of sugar, and fry for fifteen minutes. Put one pound of rice, and four quarts of water, and boil till tender: add one ounce of curry powder, mixed in a little water. Cut up six pounds of cheap fish into pieces of the size of an egg; add to the above, and boil for twenty or thirty minutes, according to the kind of fish. Salt and dried fish, previously soaked, cooked in this way, is excellent, omitting the salt.

No. 8.—Food for the Coast.

Take three middle-sized haddocks; remove the gills and interior, and cut open; rub them with two pounds of salt, a quarter of an ounce of sugar; let them remain twenty-four hours, turning occasionally; pass a twig through the eyes, and hang them in a cool, well ventilated place, until rather dry.

Conger eel cut into slices one inch thick, halibut, plaice, mackerel, treated in the same manner (if large they must be crimped) will keep for some time; they can he boiled, baked, broiled, or fried. A pound haddock will take twelve minutes broiling, from fifteen to twenty frying, twenty minutes baking or boiling.

No. 9.—Savoury Rice Food.

Having saved the bones of the previous day, a very good food may be made as follows:—Take six pounds of bones, which break into small pieces, and boil in ten quarts of water for four hours; having added three ounces of salt, a small bunch of thyme, bay-leaf and savory, put into a stew-pan the fat, and two onions cut thin, half a pound of vegetables, as carrots, turnips, celery, &c., cut very thin, half ounce of sugar; put it on the fire for fifteen minutes, stirring occasionally; add half a pound of oatmeal, and mix well; moisten with two gallons of the stock from the bones, add one and a quarter pound of rice, previously soaked; boil till tender, and serve.

No. 10.—Rice Panada.

Boil a pound of rice (previously washed) in one gallon of water, for one hour; add three quarters of an ounce of sugar, two ounces of salt; mix with some cold water, to make a thin paste, one pound of flour or oatmeal, and half an ounce of curry powder; add it to the rice, and boil for twenty minutes, and serve.

Should it be preferred sweet, add a quarter of a pound of treacle instead of the curry.

This will make ten pounds of solid food.

No. 11.—Peas Panada.

Cut a quarter of a pound of fat bacon or American pork into small dice, put it into a stew-pan with two onions or tops of leeks; well wash, and cut them thin, and fry ten minutes; add one pound and a half of peas, half ounce of salt, quarter ounce of sugar, and one gallon of water, boil till it becomes a purÉe or pulp, then add sufficient oatmeal, common flour, or Indian meal, to make it thick, and boil thirty minutes.[45] This food is very strengthening, and might be made several days previous to using; it will keep well—if no vegetable is to be obtained, a small quantity of essence of herbs would improve it.

No. 12.—Peas Panada, Sweet.

Boil in one gallon of water, one pound of peas, add half an ounce of salt, one ounce of dripping or melted suet, mix with it half a pound of Indian meal, boil for two hours, stirring it well, add a quarter of a pound of treacle; this can be eaten hot or cold.

No. 13.—Cheese Stirabout.

Put two gallons of water in a stewpan, and boil; take some Indian meal, the quantity depends on the quality, and add it gradually to the water, stirring it all the time so that it should be quite smooth and thick: add three ounces of salt; simmer on the side of the fire for two hours, taking care that it does not burn; add half a pound of strong cheese, broken small or grated, with a little mustard: give it a boil and serve.

Or put it into baking tins, allow it to get cold, cut it into pieces, which fry or bake.

No. 14.—Indian Meal Poullenta.

Prepare the meal as above (which must be very thick) without the cheese; place it in baking tins; place a thin layer of sausage meat or black pudding upon it, and cover it with more of the meal; bake it for twenty minutes and serve.

This is an excellent and cheap dish, and fit for the tables of the wealthy if a strong gravy is poured over it when served.

No. 15.—Savoury Hominy.

Take two quarts of Indian corn and soak it for twenty-four hours in water, put it into a pot containing two gallons of boiling water and simmer for five hours; draw off the water, if any, add a quarter of a pound of dripping, two onions, sliced thin, three ounces of salt, put it on the fire for twenty minutes, keep stirring it all the time, so that it does not burn, and serve. This will produce two gallons of excellent food. The purÉe made from the whole corn, as above, is much sweeter and more wholesome than that made from the ground meal. The great mistake at present in the use of Indian meal is, that it is not cooked enough, it being used similar to flour; it should, on the contrary, be well mixed with boiling water and allowed to simmer for never less than two hours; it then loses its raw taste and increases in quantity.

No. 16.—St. Patrick’s Soup.

Take one pound of meat without bones, and cut into small pieces, put into a stew-pan two ounces of dripping, one ounce of leeks, one ounce of celery, one ounce of carrots, two ounces of turnips, and fry for ten minutes; then add the meat with two ounces of salt, half ounce of sugar, and fry until a thick glaze is produced; then add one quart of cold water and half a pound of flour; then add two ounces of dillisk, well washed and chopped fine; a little mixed spice and pepper. Boil three-quarters of an hour, and serve.

No. 17.—Cheap Oyster Porridge.

On many parts of the coast oysters can be had for three shillings per thousand; they can be made, without much trouble, into a nourishing and palatable food, by putting two dozen into an earthen pan, with the liquor from them, and add three spoonfuls of flour; place it on the fire, stirring them round; add a little salt and pepper and they are done. This can be added to the porridge made of the Indian corn and rice, or in the other receipts, where fish is used; a little lard is an improvement; also a bay-leaf, mint, and an onion sliced.

Mussels and cockles can be used in the same way in proportion of two dozen to the quart.

No. 18.—Cabbage Stirabout.

Well wash two pounds of cabbage, take out the stalks, and cut it slanting in slices; put into a stewpan with a quarter of a pound of dripping, lard, or butter; half ounce of salt, quarter ounce of pepper, one ounce of sugar, put it on the fire for ten minutes, stir it well, then cover it with water and stew for twenty minutes, and mix it with stirabout, previously made of Indian corn meal.

Young nettles done in this way are exceedingly wholesome, and any kind of green vegetables can be cooked in this manner.

No. 19.—Conger Eels.

Put a slice of about two pounds weight into a saucepan, or earthen pot, with two onions sliced thin; a small quantity of dillisk, well washed and chopped fine, quarter ounce of salt, and a little pepper, add two quarts of water, and stew for one hour; ten minutes before using take out the fish and thicken with a little flour, previously mixed with some water; boil ten minutes, pour it over the fish, and serve—if onions or dillisk are not to be had, use half a pound of any vegetable cut fine: halibut and similar fish can be cooked in the same manner.

Receipt No. 20.

Take three dozen of mussels, wash them, and place them in a stewing pan over the fire for five minutes, so that the shell is open; take them off, and remove the upper shell: sometimes a small crab will be found in them, which remove, as they are rather unwholesome; replace them, with their liquor and bottom shell, in the pan, add a spoonful of flour, mixed with some butter or lard, and a spoonful of chopped parsley; stir it in, and stew for five minutes, and serve.

For a large quantity have ready the large boiler, put therein four pounds of lard or butter, and four pounds of sliced onions, and fry for five minutes; have ready two pails full of mussels with their liquor out of their shell, which put in the boiler, with one pound of salt, two ounces of pepper, two ounces of sugar, and two pounds of chopped parsley; have ready two pounds of flour, mixed with water, to the consistence of good cream, and put it into the boiler; boil for ten to fifteen minutes, stir it gently with a wooden spatula, and serve; if not required meagre, use instead of the flour and water the same quantity of boiling stock, from the bones of meat, or from cow-heel, well stewed, parts of which, cut small, can be added: any flavour of herbs may be given, if liked.

No. 21.—The Poor Man’s Potato Pie.

Wash and peel six pounds of good potatoes, cut in slices, take one pound of fat mutton or beef cut into small dice, mix the whole with pepper and salt, cover with 51 paste, and bake one hour and half, and serve.

In all the foregoing receipts, a greater quantity of meat may be used by those who can afford it, as I am a great advocate that every trade should flourish and that wealth should support luxury. However great the quantity of meat that may be used, no longer time should be used in cooking it. Take the same proportion of the receipts for any larger quantity.