Volume 1

The encyclopædia of practical cookery : a complete dictionary of all pertaining to the art of cookery and table service ... / edited by Theodore Francis Garrett, assisted by William A. Rawson, and, in special departments, by the following and other distinguished chefs de cuisine and confectioners: C.J. Corblet [and others].

Date:
[1892-94]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The encyclopædia of practical cookery : a complete dictionary of all pertaining to the art of cookery and table service ... / edited by Theodore Francis Garrett, assisted by William A. Rawson, and, in special departments, by the following and other distinguished chefs de cuisine and confectioners: C.J. Corblet [and others]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The University of Leeds Library. The original may be consulted at The University of Leeds Library.

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    Annatto—continued. The best Annatto should be in the form of a paste, soft and smooth to the touch, and with a peculiar odour, but not putrid or disagreeable. The colour should be deep red, brighter in the middle than on the outside. Inferior or adulterated Annatto is sold in the form of a hard, brown cake, frequently with the manufacturer’s name stamped Fig. 26. Flowering Branchlet of Annatto Plant. thereon, and the mystic word “patent.” The texture of these specimens is generally hard and leathery, and the smell extremely disagreeable. Annatto is very sparingly soluble in water, but freely so in spirits, ether, oils, or fats. Plain, it gives an orange colour; the addition of an alkali darkens it, strong acids turn it blue, and most acids will cause it to fall from the solution in a dark orange-red precipitate. ANTELOPES.—The Antelopes constitute a very large and varied class of warm-climate animals. The flesh of some is considered very delicate, and of others quite uneatable. It is usually cooked in plain hunter’s style, but may be treated like venison. ANTHRACITE.—A species of hard, dull-looking coal, which is beginning to find favour for kitchen purposes. It is difficult to kindle, and requires a strong draught to keep it burning; then it makes up for its deficiencies by showing neither flame nor smoke, and throwing out an intense heat. In the United States it is commonly employed in kitchen stoves, and will be used more in Great Britain when it is better known. Culm is an inferior kind of Anthracite, of no use for cooking. ANTIPERMENTS.—Chemists have long striven to discover some agent which, when added to fruit-juices, jams, syrups, and other foods, will prevent fermentation setting up, as it frequently does, and spoiling the goods. Salicylic Acid, Sulphate of Lime, Marble Dust, Ground Oyster-shells, Chalk, Sulphate of Potash, new Black Mustard Seed ground, Cloves, Capsicum, &c., are claimed as Antiferments, but are scarcely eligible for mixing with foods. Some of them are used occasionally, however, but then they become forms of adulteration. APES.—Some species of Ape are mentioned by hun- gered travellers as forming a palatable diet; but this would much depend upon the kind and quality of the animal, and the taste of the individual. No special style of cooking is prescribed. APICIUS.—The name of a celebrated Roman gastro- nome, who lived in the time of Augustus and Tiberius Caesars. It is said that he spent an enormous fortune in inventing and producing new dishes. Several dishes and sauces are named after him by modern cooks, who regard him in the light of the father of the art. APOSTELKUCHEN.—A German savoury cake eaten with cheese. APPEARANCES.—Mr. C. J. Corblet expresses him- self upon this subject as follows : “ There are two important principles to be constantly borne in mind in cookery : one is to please the palate, the other to please the eye. I have called them two principles, but in reality they are one, for the reason that the palate is pleased by means of the eye. There are some good old sayings pregnant with meaning, such as ‘ It makes one hungry to look at it,’ or ‘ It makes one’s mouth water.’ I believe that, in teaching young cooks, one cannot begin too soon to impress upon them the importance of appearances. For instance, in London, at times, in cheap eating-houses, will be seen a window with perhaps fifty or a hundred cold roast fowls all heaped up together, ‘ going cheap.’ Does it make your mouth water even if you are hungry p No. Suppose, how- ever, we were to take one of these fowls, put it on a nice bright silver dish, and ornament it with some green double parsley and a few thin slices of cut lemon, and place the dish on a cloth as white as snow. What a difference! Again, look at a sirloin of beef that has got cold in the dish in which it was originally served hot—the gravy has settled, and the whole joint is studded with wafers of fat; the edge of the dish, too, is greasy. Suppose some stupid servant were to bring up the joint just as it is. It is per- fectly wholesome, but would it look tempting? On the other hand, look at a cold sirloin on the sideboard, in a large, clean dish, with plenty of curly, white horse-radish and parsley. There are, to my mind, few dishes more tempting. Tet, bear in mind, the difference between the two is simply that of Appearance. I have known cooks exclaim, ‘ Oh, never mind what it looks like, as long as it tastes all right.’ This is, however, a great mistake. Ex- perienced cooks will put a few drops of vinegar into the water in which they poach eggs. Why? For the simple reason that the eggs will look whiter; the colouring matter mixed in with the eggs is more soluble in boiling water slightly acid than in ordinary water, and, consequently, poached eggs treated this way will come to table present- ing that snowy appearance that renders them far more appetising—not that they taste better, but that the palate is affected through the eye.” [The principle of pleasing the palate through the eye can be extended indefinitely, and it is upon the acceptation of that fact that the instructions given in this Encyclopaedia are based.—Ed.] APPETITE.—All the cooking in the world would be useless except for an Appetite, which is, as we are told by a philosopher, “the best sauce.” Appetite, like hunger, should be ready at regular intervals, and whilst proclaim- ing the system’s need of supplies, should continue up to, and last no longer than, the amount required shall be swallowed. Disordered or irregular Appetite indicates some systemical derangement requiring medical treatment; and the famous maxim applies here that “ a stitch in time saves nine.” The ingenuity of man has created for us numerous Appetisers, which will be further mentioned under the heading Bittees; but it is not our province to recommend “Appetite forcers” when Nature leaves a ready means open to us of promoting a healthy desire for food by exercise in the open air, regular feeding hours and not too many of them, and total abstinence between meals, combined with discretion in eating and a wise choice of foods. Some good suggestions on this and kindred subjects will be found under other headings; but as this is not a medical encyclopaedia, we must content ourselves with observing to those who purpose concocting and enjoying some of the good things provided for them in these pages, “May good digestion wait on Appetite, and health on both! ” APPLE JACK.—See Apple Brandy.