 Section 35 of the Book of Household Management this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org recording by Jennifer Stearns the Book of Household Management by Isabella Beaton recipes chapter 15 part three breast of lamb and green peas 744 ingredients one breast of lamb a few slices of bacon a quarter pint of stock number 105 one lemon one onion one bunch of savory herbs green peas mode remove the skin from a breast of lamb put it into a saucepan of boiling water and let it simmer for five minutes take it out and lay it in cold water line the bottom of a stew pan with a few thin slices of bacon lay the lamb on these peel the lemon cut it into slices and put these on the meat to keep it white and make it tender cover with one or two more slices of bacon add the stock onion and herbs and set it on a slow fire to simmer very gently until tender half ready some green peas put these on a dish and place the lamb on top of these the appearance of this dish may be much improved by glazing the lamb and spinach may be substituted for the peas when variety is desired time one and a half hour average cost ten pence per pound sufficient for three persons seasonable grass lamb from Easter to Mechelmas the lamb as a sacrifice the number of lambs consumed in sacrifices by the Hebrews must have been very considerable two lambs of the first year were appointed to be sacrificed daily for the morning and evening sacrifice and a lamb served as a substitute for the first born of unclean animals such as the ass which could not be accepted as an offering to the Lord every year also on the anniversary of the deliverance of the children of Israel from the bondage of Egypt every family was ordered to sacrifice a lamb or kid and to sprinkle some of its blood upon the doorposts in commemoration of the judgment of God upon the Egyptians it was to be eaten roasted with unleavened bread and bitter herbs in haste with the loins girded the shoes on the feet and the staff in the hand and whatever remained until the morning was to be burnt the sheep was also used in the numerous special individual and national sacrifices ordered by the Jewish law on extraordinary occasions vast quantities of sheep were sacrificed at once the Solomon on the completion of the temple offered sheep and oxen that could not be told nor numbered for multitude stewed breast of lamb 745 ingredients one breast of lamb pepper and salt to taste sufficient stock number 105 to cover it one glass of sherry thickening of butter and flour mode skin the lamb cut it into pieces and season them with pepper and salt lay these in a stew pan pour in sufficient stock or gravy to cover them and stew very gently until tender which will be in about one and a half hour just before serving thicken the sauce with a little butter and flour add the sherry give one boil and pour it over the meat green peas or stewed mushrooms may be stewed over the meat and will be found a very great improvement time one and a half hour average cost 10 pence per pound sufficient for three persons seasonable grass lamb from Easter to Michael must lamb chops 746 ingredients loin of lamb pepper and salt to taste mode trim off the flap from a fine loin of lamb and cut it into chops about three-quarter inch in thickness have ready a bright clear fire lay the chops on a gridiron and boil them of a nice pale brown turning them when required season them with pepper and salt serve very hot and quickly and garnish with crisp parsley or place them on mashed potatoes asparagus spinach or peas are the favorite accompaniments to lamb chops time about eight or ten minutes average cost one shilling per pound sufficient allow two chops to each person seasonable from Easter to Michael must lamb cutlets and spinach and entree 747 ingredients eight cutlets egg and breadcrumbs salt and pepper to taste a little clarified butter mode cut the cutlets from a neck of lamb and shape them by cutting off the thick part of the chine bone trim off most of the fat and all the skin and scrape the top part of the bones quite clean brush the cutlets over with egg sprinkle them with breadcrumbs and season with pepper and salt now dip them into clarified butter sprinkle over a few more breadcrumbs and fry them over a sharp fire turning them when required lay them before the fire to drain and arrange them on a dish with spinach in the center which should be previously well boiled drained chopped and seasoned time about seven or eight minutes average cost 10 pence per pound sufficient for four persons seasonable from Easter to Michael must note peas asparagus or french beans may be substituted for the spinach or lamb cutlets may be served with stewed cucumbers soupy sauce etc etc lamb's fry 748 ingredients one pound of lamb's fry three pints of water egg and breadcrumbs one teaspoon full of chopped parsley salt and pepper to taste mode boil the fry for one quarter hour in the above proportion of water take it out and dry it in a cloth grate some bread down finely mix it with a teaspoon full of chopped parsley and a high seasoning of pepper and salt brush the fry lightly over with a yolk of an egg sprinkle over the breadcrumbs and fry for five minutes serve very hot on a napkin in a dish and garnish with plenty of crisps parsley time one hour to simmer the fry five minutes to fry it average cost 10 pence per pound sufficient for two or three persons seasonable from Easter to Michael must hashed lamb and boiled blade bone 749 ingredients three mains of a cold shoulder of lamb pepper and salt to taste two ounces of butter about half pint of stock or gravy one tablespoon full of shallot vinegar three or four pickled gherkins mode take the blade bone from the shoulder and cut the meat into colapses as neatly as possible season the bone with pepper and salt pour our little oiled butter over it and place it in the oven to warm through put the stock into a stew pan add the ketchup and shallot vinegar and lay in the pieces of lamb let these heat gradually through but do not allow them to boil take the blade bone out of the oven and place it on a grid iron over a sharp fire to brown slice the gherkins place them into the hash and dish it with the blade bone in the center it may be garnished with croutons or snippets of toasted bread time altogether half an hour average cost exclusive of the meat four pence seasonable house lamb from Christmas to March grass lamb from Easter to Megalmas roast four quarter of lamb 750 ingredients lamb a little salt mode to obtain the flavor of lamb in perfection it should not be long kept time to cool is all that it requires and though the meat may be somewhat thready the juices and flavor will be infinitely superior to that of lamb that has been killed two or three days make up the fire in good time that it may be clear and brisk when the joint is put down place it at a sufficient distance to prevent the fat from burning and baste it constantly till the moment of serving lamb should be very thoroughly done without being dried up and not the slightest appearance of red gravy should be visible as in roast mutton this rule is applicable to all young white meats serve for the little gravy made in the dripping pan the same as for other roasts and send a table with it a terrain of mint sauce number 469 and a fresh salad a cut lemon placed on the table so that when the cover separates the shoulder from the ribs they may be ready for his use if however he should not be very expert we would recommend that the cook should divide these joints nicely before coming to table time four quarter of lamb weighing 10 pounds one and three quarters to two hours average cost 10 pence to one shilling per pound sufficient for seven or eight persons seasonable grass lamb from Easter to megalmas boiled leg of lamb a la bechamel 751 ingredients leg of lamb bechamel sauce number 367 mode do not choose a very large joint but one weighing about five pounds half ready a saucepan of boiling water into which plunge the lamb and when it boils up again draw it to the side of the fire and let the water cool a little then stew very gently for about one and a quarter hour reckoning from the time that the water begins to simmer make some bechamel by recipe number 367 dish the lamb pour the sauce over it and garnish with tufts of boiled cauliflower or carrots when liked melted butter may be substituted for the bechamel this is a more simple method but not nearly so nice send a table with it some of the sauce in a terrine and boiled cauliflower or spinach with whichever vegetable the dish is garnished time one and a quarter hour after the water simmers average cost 10 pence to one shilling per pound sufficient for four or five persons seasonable from Easter to megalmas roast leg of lamb 752 ingredients lamb a little salt mode place the joint at a good distance from the fire at first and based well the whole time it is cooking we nearly done draw it nearer the fire to acquire a nice brown color sprinkle a little fine salt over the meat empty the dripping pan of its contents pour in a little boiling water and strain this over the meat serve with mint sauce in a fresh salad and for vegetables send peas spinach or cauliflower to table with it time a leg of lamb weighing five pounds one and a half hour average cost 10 pence to one shilling per pound sufficient for four or five persons seasonable from Easter to megalmas braised loin of lamb 753 ingredients one loin of lamb a few slices of bacon a bunch of green onions five or six young carrots a bunch of savory herbs two blades of pounded mace one pint of stock salt to taste mode bone a loin of lamb and line the bottom of a stew pan just capable of holding it with a few thin slices of fat bacon add the remaining ingredients cover the meat with a few more slices of bacon pour in the stock and simmer very gently for two hours take it up dry it strain and reduce the gravy to a glaze with which glaze the meat and serve it either on stewed peas spinach or stewed cucumbers time two hours average cost 11 pence per pound sufficient for four or five persons seasonable from Easter to megalmas roast saddle of lamb 754 ingredients lamb a little salt mode this joint is now very much in vogue and is generally considered a nice one for a small party have ready a clear brisk fire put down the joint at a little distance to prevent the fat from scorching and keep it well basted all the time it is cooking serve with mint sauce and a fresh salad and send to table with it either peas cauliflower or spinach time a small saddle one and a half hour a large one two hours average cost 10 pence to one shilling per pound sufficient for four or five persons seasonable from Easter to megalmas note loin and ribs of lamb are roasted in the same manner and serve with the same sauces as the above a loin will take about one and one-quarter hour ribs from one to one and one-quarter hour roast shoulder of lamb 755 ingredients lamb a little salt mode half ready a clear brisk fire and put down the joint at a sufficient distance from it that the fat may not burn keep constantly basting until done and serve with a little gravy made in the drippy pan and send mint sauce to table with it peas spinach or cauliflower's are the usual vegetables served with the lamb and also a fresh salad time a shoulder of lamb rather more than one hour average cost 10 pence to one shilling per pound sufficient for four or five persons seasonable from Easter to megalmas shoulder of lamb stuffed 756 ingredients shoulder of lamb forced meat number 417 trimmings of veal or beef two onions half head of celery one faggot of savory herbs a few slices of fat bacon one quart of stock number 105 mode take the blade bone out of a shoulder of lamb fill up its place with force meat and sew it up with coarse thread put it into a stew pan with a few slices of bacon under and over the lamb and add the remaining ingredients stew very gently for rather more than two hours reduce the gravy with which glaze the meat and serve with peas stewed cucumbers or sorrel sauce time rather more than two hours average cost 10 pence to one shilling per pound sufficient for four or five persons seasonable from Easter to megalmas lamb's sweet breads lardin and asparagus an entree 757 ingredients two or three sweet breads half pint of veal stock white pepper and salt to taste a small bunch of green onions one blade of pounded mace thickening of butter and flour two eggs nearly half a pint of cream one teaspoon full of minced parsley a very little grated nutmeg mode soak the sweet breads in lukewarm water and put them into a saucepan with sufficient boiling water to cover them and let them simmer for 10 minutes then take them out and put them into cold water now lard them lay them in a stew pan add the stock seasoning onions mace and a thickening of butter and flour and stew gently for a quarter hour or 20 minutes beat up the egg with a cream to which add the minced parsley and a very little grated nutmeg put this to the other ingredients stir it well till quite hot but do not let it boil after the cream is added or it will curdle half ready some asparagus tops boiled add these to the sweet breads and serve time altogether half an hour average cost two shillings six pence to three shillings six pence each sufficient three sweet breads for one entree seasonable from Easter to megalomus another way to dress sweet breads an entree 758 ingredients sweet breads egg and breadcrumbs half pint of gravy number 442 half glass of sherry mode soak the sweet breads in water for an hour and throw them into boiling water to render them firm let them stew gently for about a quarter hour take them out and put them into a cloth to drain all the water from them brush them over with egg sprinkle them with breadcrumbs and either brown them in the oven or before the fire half ready the above quantity of gravy to which add half glass of sherry dish the sweet breads pour the gravy under them and garnish with watercresses time rather more than half an hour average cost two shillings six pence to three shillings six pence each sufficient three sweet breads for one entree seasonable from Easter to megalomus mutton and lamb carving haunch of mutton 759 a deep cut should in the first place be made quite down to the bone across the knuckle end of the joint along the line one to two this will let the gravy escape and then it should be carved in not two of the haunch in the direction of the line from four to three leg of mutton 760 this homely but capital english joint is almost invariably served at the table as shown in the engraving the carving of it is not very difficult then i should be carried sharply down in the direction of the line from one to two and slices taken from either side as the guests may desire some liking the knuckle end as well done and others preferring the more underdone part the fat should be sought near the line three to four some connoisseurs are fond of having this joint dished with the underside uppermost so as to get at the finely grained meat lying under that part of the meat known as the pope's eye but this is an extravagant fashion and one that will hardly find favor in the eyes of many economical british housewives and housekeepers loin of mutton 761 there was one point in connection with carving a loin of mutton which includes every other that is that the joint should be thoroughly well jointed by the butcher before it is cooked this neck of jointing requires practice and the proper tools and no one but the butcher is supposed to have these if the bones be not well jointed the carving of a loin of mutton is not a gracious business whereas if that has been attended to it is an easy and untroublesome task the knife should be inserted at figure one and after feeling your way between the bones it should be carried sharply in the direction of the line one to two as there are some people who prefer the outside cut while others do not like it the question as to the choice of this should be asked saddle of mutton 762 although we have heard at various intervals growlings expressed at the inevitable saddle of mutton at the dinner parties of our middle classes yet we doubt whether any other joint is better liked when it has been well hung and artistically cooked there is a diversity of opinion respecting the mode of sending this joint to table but it has only reference to whether or no there shall be any portion of the tail or if so how many joints of the tail we ourselves prefer the mode as shown in our colored illustration oh but others may upon equally good grounds length away shown in the engraving on this page some trim the tail with a paper frill the carving is not difficult it is usually cut in the direction of the line from two to one quite down to the bones and evenly sliced pieces a fashion however patronized by some is to carve it obliquely in the direction of the line from four to three in which case the joint will be turned around the other way having the tail end on the right of the carver shoulder of mutton 763 this is a joint not difficult to carve the knife should be drawn from the outer edge of the shoulder in the direction of the line from one to two until the bone of the shoulder is reached as many slices as can be carved in this manner should be taken and afterwards the meat lying on either side of the blade bone should be served by carving in the direction from three to four and three to four the uppermost side of the shoulder being now finished the joint should be turned and slices taken off along its whole length there are some who prefer this underside of the shoulder for its juicy flesh although the grain of the meat is not so fine as that on the other side four quarter of lamb 764 we always think that a good and practiced carver delights in the manipulation of this joint for there is a little field for his judgment and dexterity which does not always occur the separation of the shoulder from the breast is not the first point to be attended to this is done by passing the knife lightly around the dotted line as shown by the figures one two three four and five so as to cut through the skin and then by raising with a little force the shoulder into which the fork should be firmly fixed it will come away with just a little more exercise of the knife in dividing the shoulder and the breast the carver should take care not to cut away too much of the meat from the ladder as that would rather spoil its appearance when the shoulder is removed the breast and shoulder being separated it is usual to lay a small piece of butter and sprinkle a little cayenne lemon juice and salt between them and when this is melted and incorporated with the meat and gravy the shoulder may has more convenient be removed into another dish the next operation is to separate the ribs from the brisket by cutting through the meat on the line five to six the joint is then ready to be served to the guest the ribs being carved in the direction of the lines from nine to ten and the brisket from seven to eight the carver should ask those at the table what parts they prefer ribs brisket or a piece of the shoulder leg of lamb loin of lamb saddle of lamb shoulder of lamb are carved in the same manner as the corresponding joints of mutton end of section 35 recording by jennifer sternes conquered new hampshire section 36 of the book of household management this is a libervox recording all libervox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit libervox.org recording by katie gibney the book of household management by isabella beaten section 36 chapter 16 general observations on the common hog the hog belongs to the order mammalia and the genus scrofa and the species packadermata or thick skin and its generic characteristics are a small head with long flexible snout truncated 42 teeth divided into four upper incisors converging six lower incisors projecting two upper and two lower canine or tusks the former short the latter projecting formidable and sharp and 14 molars in each jaw cloven feet furnished with four toes and tail small short and twisted while in some varieties this appendage is altogether wanting from the number and position of the teeth physiologists are unable to define the nature and functions of the animal and from those of the sus or hog it is evident that he is as much a grinder as a biter or can live as well on vegetable as an animal food though a mixture of both is plainly indicated as the character of food most conducive to the integrity and health of its physical system thus the pig tribe though not a ruminating mammal as might be inferred from the number of its molar teeth is yet a link between the herbivorous and the carnivorous tribes and is consequently what is known as omnivorous quadruped or in other words capable of converting any kind of element into nutriment though the hoof in the hog is as a general rule cloven there are several remarkable exceptions as in the species native to norway illyria sardinia and formerly to the berkshire variety of the british domesticated pig in which the hoofed is entire and uncloughed whatever difference in its physical nature climate and soil may produce in this animal his functional characteristics are the same in whatever part of the world he may be found and whether in the trackless forests of south america the coral aisles of pollination the jungles of india or the spicy breaks of sumatra he is everywhere known for his gluttony laziness and indifference to the character and quality of his food and though he occasionally shows an epicure relish for a succulent plant or a luscious carrot which he will discuss with all his salivary organs keenly excited he will the next moment turn with equal gusto to some carrion awful that might excite the forbearance of the unscrupulous cormorant it is this course in repulsive mode of feeding that has in every country in language obtained for him the opprobrium of being an unclean animal in the mosaic law the pig is condemned as an unclean beast and consequently interdicted to the israelites as unfit for human food quote and the swine though he divided the hoof and be cloven footed yet he cheweth not the cud he is unclean to you end quote leviticus eleven seven strict however as the law was respecting the cud chewing and hoof divided animals the jews with their usual perversity and violation of the divine commands seen afterwards to have ignored the prohibition four unless they ate pork it is difficult to conceive for what purpose they kept troves of swine as from the circumstances recorded in matthew eighteen thirty two when jesus was in gallilee and the devils cast out of the two men were permitted to enter the herd of swine that were feeding on the hills in the neighborhood of the sea of tiberias it is very evident they did there is only one interpretation by which we can account for a prohibition that debarred the jews from so many foods which we regard as nutritious luxuries that being fat and the texture more hard of digestion than other meats they were likely in a hot dry climate where vigorous exercise could seldom be taken to produce disease and especially cutaneous affections indeed in this light as a code of sanitary ethics the book of leviticus is the most admirable system of moral government ever conceived for man's benefit setting his course feeding and slovenly habits out of the question there is no domestic animal so profitable or so useful to man as the much maligned pig or any that yields him a more varied or more luxurious repast the prolific powers of the pig are extraordinary even under the restraint of domestication but when left to run wild in favorable situations as in the islands of the south pacific the result in a few years from two animals put on shore and left undisturbed is truly surprising for they breed so fast and have such numerous litters that unless killed off in vast numbers both for the use of the inhabitants and his fresh provisions for ships crews they would degenerate into vermin in this country the pig has usually two litters or pharaohs in a year the breeding seasons being april and october and the period the female goes with her young is about four months sixteen weeks or one hundred twenty two days the number produced at each litter depends upon the character of the breed twelve being the average number in the small variety and ten in the large in the mixed breeds however the average is between ten and fifteen and in some instances has reached as many as twenty but however few or however many young pigs there may be to a feral there is always one who is the dwarf of the family circle a poor little shriveled half-starved anatomy with a small melancholy voice a staggering gait a wobegon countenance and a thread of a tail whose existence the complacent mother ignores his plethoric brother and sisters repudiate and for those emaciated jaws there is never a spare or supplemental teat till one of the favored gormandisers overtaken by momentary oblivion drops the lactile fountain and gives the little squeaking straggler the chance of a momentary mouthful this miserable little object which may be seen bringing up the rear of every litter is called the tony pig or the anthony so named it is presumed from being the one always assigned to the church when tithe was taken in kind and as st anthony was the patron of husbandry his name was given in a sort of bitter derision to the starveling that constituted his dues for whether there are ten or fifteen farrows to the litter the anthony is always the last of the family to come into the world from the grossness of his feeding the large amount of element he consumes his gluttonous way of eating it from his slothful habits laziness and indulgence in sleep the pig is particularly liable to disease and especially indigestion heartburn and affections of the skin to counteract the consequence of a violation of the physical laws a powerful monitor in the brain of the pig teaches him to seek for relief in medicine to open the pores of his skin blocked up with mud and excite perspiration he resorts to a tree a stump or his trough anything rough and angular and using it as a curry comb to his body obtains the luxury of a scratch and the benefit of cuticular evaporation he next proceeds with his long supple snout to grub up anti-scorbutic roots cooling salads of malo and dandelion and greatest treat of all he stumbles on a piece of chalk or a mouthful of delicious cinder which he knows by instinct is the most sovereign remedy in the world for that hot unpleasant sensation he has had all the morning at his stomach it is a remarkable fact that though everyone who keeps a pig knows how prony is to disease how that disease injures the quality of the meat and how eagerly he pounces on a bit of coal or cinder or any coarse dry substance that will adulterate the rich food on which he lives and by affording soda to his system correct the vitiated fluids of spotty yet very few have the judgment to act on what they see and by supplying the pig with a few shovelfuls of cinders in his thigh saved the necessity of his rooting for what is so needful to his health instead of this however and without supplying the animal with what its instinct craves for his nostril is bored with a red hot iron and a ring clenched in his nose to prevent rooting for what he feels to be absolutely necessary for his health and ignoring the fact that in a domestic state at least the pig lives on the richest of all food scraps of cooked animal substances boiled vegetables bread and other items given in that concentrated essence of element for a quadruped called wash and that he eats to repletion and takes no exercise and finally sleeps all the 24 hours he is not eating and then when the animal at last seeks for those medicinal aids which would obviate the evil of such a forcing diet his keeper instead of meeting his animal instinct by human reason and giving him what he seeks has the inhumanity to torture him by a ring that keeping up a perpetual raw in the pig's snout prevents his digging for those corrective drugs which would remove the evils of his artificial existence though subject to so many diseases no domestic animal is more easily kept in health cleanliness and comfort and this without the necessity of ringing or any excessive desire of the hog to roam break through his thigh or plow up his pound whatever the kind of food may be on which the pig is being fed or fattened a teaspoon full or more of salt should always be given in his mess of food and a little heap of well burnt cinders with occasional bits of chalk should always be kept by the side of his trough as well as a vessel of clean water his pound or the front part of his thigh should be totally free from straw the brick flooring being every day swept out and sprinkled with a layer of sand his lair or sleeping apartment should be well sheltered by roof and sides from cold wet and all changes of weather and the bed made up of a good supply of clean straw sufficiently deep to enable the pig to burrow his unprotected body beneath it all the refuse of the garden in the shape of roots leaves and stalks should be placed in a corner of his pound or feeding chamber for the delectation of his leisure moments and once a week on the family washing day a pail of warm soap said should be taken into his thigh and by means of a scrubbing brush and soap his back shoulders and flanks should be well cleaned a pail of clean warm water being thrown over his body at the conclusion before he is allowed to retreat to his clean straw to dry himself by this means the excessive nutrition of his element will be corrected a more perfect digestion insured and by opening the pores of the skin a more vigorous state of health acquired than could have been obtained under any other system we have already said that no other animal yields man so many kinds and varieties of luxurious foods as is supplied to him by the flesh of the hog differently prepared for almost every part of the animal either fresh salted or dried is used for food and even those viscera not so employed or of the utmost utility in a domestic point of view though destitute of the hide horns and hoofs constituting the awful of most domestic animals the pig is not behind the other mammalia in its usefulness to man its skin especially that of the bore from its extreme closeness of texture when tanned is employed for the seats of saddles to cover powder shot and drinking flasks and the hair according to its color flexibility and stubbornness is manufactured into tooth nail and hair brushes others into hat clothes and shoe brushes while the longer and finer qualities are made into long and short brooms and painters brushes and is still more rigid description under the name of bristles are used by the shoemaker as needles for the passage of his wax and besides so many benefits and useful services conferred on man by this valuable animal his fat in a commercial sense is quite as important as his flesh and brings a price equal to the best joints in the carcass this fat is rendered or melted out of the call or membrane in which it is contained by boiling water and while liquid run into prepared bladders when under the name of lard it becomes an article of extensive trade and value of the numerous varieties of the domesticated hog the following list of breeds may be accepted as the best presenting separately all those qualities aimed at in the rearing of domestic stock as affecting both the breeder and the consumer native Berkshire Essex York and Cumberland foreign the Chinese before however proceeding with the consideration of the different orders in the series we have placed them it will be necessary to make a few remarks relative to the pig generally in the first place the black pig is regarded by breeders as the best and most eligible animal not only from the fineness and delicacy of the skin but because it is less affected by the heat in summer and far less subject to cuticular disease than either the white or brindled hog but more particularly from its kindlier nature and greater aptitude to fatten the great quality first sought for in a hog is a capacious stomach and next a healthy power of digestion for the greater the quantity he can eat and the more rapidly he can digest what he has eaten the more quickly well he fatten and the faster he can be made to increase in flesh without a material increase of bone the better is the breed considered and the more valuable the animal in the usual order of nature the development of flesh and enlargement of bone proceed together but here the object is to outstrip the growth of the bones by the quicker development of their fleshy covering the chief points sought for in the choice of a hog are breadth of chest depth of carcass width of loin chin and ribs compactness of form docility cheerfulness and general beauty of appearance the head in a well bred hog must not be too long before head narrow and convex cheeks full snout fine mouth small eyes small and quick ears short thin and sharp pendulous and pointing forwards neck full and broad particularly on the top where it should join very broad shoulders the ribs loin and hunch should be in a uniform line and the tail well set neither too high nor too low at the same time the back is to be straight or slightly curved the chest deep broad and prominent the legs short and thick the belly when well fattened should nearly touch the ground the hair belong thin fine and having few bristles and whatever the color uniform either white black or blue but not spotted speckled brindled or sandy such are the features and requisites that among breeders and judges constitute the bow ideal of a perfect pig the Berkshire pig is the best known and most esteemed of all our English domestic breeds and so highly is it regarded that even the varieties of the stock are in as great estimation as the parent breed itself the characteristics of the Berkshire hog are that it has a tawny color spotted with black large ears hanging over the eyes a thick close and well-made body legs short and small in the bone feeds up to a great weight fattens quickly and is good either for pork or bacon the new or improved Berkshire possesses all the above qualities but is infinitely more prone to fatten while the objectionable color has been entirely done away with being now either all white or completely black next to the former the Essex takes place in public estimation always competing and often successfully with the Berkshire the peculiar characters of the Essex breed are that it is tippiered has a long sharp head is roach-backed with a long flat body standing high on the legs is rather bare of hair is a quick feeder has an enormous capacity of stomach and belly and an appetite to match its receiving capability its color is white or else black and white and it has a restless habit and an unquiet disposition the present valuable stock has sprung from across between the common native animal and either the white Chinese or black Neapolitan breeds the Yorkshire called also the old Lincolnshire was at one time the largest stock of the pig family in England and perhaps at that time the worst it was long legged weakened the loins with coarse white curly hair and flabby flesh now however it is undergone as great a change as any breed in the kingdom and by judicious crossing has become the most valuable we possess being a very well-formed pig throughout with a good head a pleasant docile countenance with moderate sized drooping ears a broad back slightly curved large chin and loins with deep sides full chest and well covered with long thickly set white hairs besides these qualities of form he is a quick grower feeds fast and will easily make from 20 to 25 stone before completing his first year the quality of the meat is also uncommonly good the fat and lean being laid down in almost equal proportions so capable is this species of development both in flesh and stature that examples of the Yorkshire breed have been exhibited weighing as much as scotch ox though almost every country in England can boast some local variety or other of this useful animal obtained from the native stock by crossing with some of the foreign kinds Cumberland and the northwest parts of the kingdom have been celebrated for a small breed of white pigs with a thick compact and well made body short in the legs the head and back well formed ears slouching and a little downwards and on the whole a hardy profitable animal and one well disposed to fatten there is no variety of this useful animal that presents such peculiar features as the species known to us as the Chinese pig and as it is the general belief that to this animal and the Neapolitan hog we are indebted for that remarkable improvement which is taken place in the breeds of the English pig it is necessary to be minute in the description of this in all respects singular animal the Chinese in the first place consists of many varieties and presents as many forms of body as differences of color the best kind however has a beautiful white skin of singular thinness and delicacy the hair too is perfectly white and thinly set over the body with here and there a few bristles he has a broad snout short head eyes bright and fiery very small fine pink ears wide cheeks high chin with a neck of such immense thickness that when the animal is fat it looks like an elongated carcass a massive fat without shape or form like a feather pillow the belly is dependent and almost trailing on the ground the legs very short and the tail so small as to be little more than a rudiment it has a ravenous appetite and will eat anything that the wonderful assimilating powers of its stomach can digest and to that capability there seems no limit in the whole range of animal or vegetable nature the consequence of this perfect and singularly rapid digestion is an unprecedented proneness to obesity a process of fattening that once commenced goes on with such rapid development that in a short time it loses all form depositing such an amount of fat that it in fact ceases to have any refuse part or awful and beyond the hair on its back and the callous extremity of the snout the whole carcass is edible when judiciously fed on vegetable diet in this obese tendency checked the flesh of the Chinese pig is extremely delicate and delicious but when left to gorge almost exclusively on animal food it becomes oily coarse and unpleasant perhaps there is no other instance in nature where the effect of rapid and perfect digestion is so well shown as in this animal which thrives on everything in terms to the benefit of its physical economy food of the most opposite nature and of the most unwholesome and offensive character when fully fattened the thin cuticle that is one of its characteristics cracks from the adipose dissension beneath exposing the fatty mass which discharges a liquid oil from the adjacent tissues the great fault in this breed is the remarkably small quantity of lean laid down to the immense proportion of fat some idea of the growth of this species may be inferred from the fact of their attaining to 18 stone before two years and when further advanced as much as 40 stone in its pure state except for roasters the chinese pig is too disproportionate for the english market but when crossed with some of our own lean stock the breed becomes almost invaluable the wild boar is a much more cleanly and sagacious animal than the domesticated hog he is longer in the snout has his ears shorter and his tusks considerably longer very frequently measuring as much as 10 inches they're extremely sharp and are bent in an upward circle unlike his domestic brother who roots up here and there or wherever his fancy takes the wild boar plows the ground in continuous lines or furrows the boar when selected as the parent of a stock should have a small head be deep and broad in the chest the china should be arched the ribs and barrel well rounded with the haunches falling full down nearly to the hawk and he should always be more compact and smaller than the female the color of the wild boar is always of a uniform hue and generally of an iron gray shading off into a black the hair of the boar is of considerable length especially about the head and mane he stands in general from 20 to 30 inches in height at the shoulders though instances have occurred where he has reached 42 inches the young are of a pale yellowish tint irregularly brindle with light brown the boar of germany is a large and formidable animal and the hunting of him with a small species of mastiff is still a national sport from living almost exclusively on acorns and nuts his flesh is held in great esteem and in Westphalia his legs are made into hams by a process which it is said enhances the flavor and quality of the meat in a remarkable degree there are two points to be taken into consideration by all breeders of pigs to what ultimate use is the flesh to be put for if meant to be eaten fresh or simply salted the small breed of pigs is most suited for the purpose if for hams or bacon the large variety of the animal is necessary pigs are usually weaned between six and eight weeks after birth after which they are fed on soft food such as mashed potatoes in skimmed or buttermilk the general period at which the small hogs are killed for the market is from 12 to 16 weeks from four to five months they are called store pigs and are turned out to graze till the animal has acquired its full stature as soon as this point has been reached the pig should be forced to maturity as quickly as possible and he should therefore be taken from the fields in farmyard and shut up on boiled potatoes buttermilk and peas meal after a time to be followed by grains oil cake wash barley and indian meal supplying his dye at the same time with plenty of water cinders and a quantity of salt in every mess of food presented to him the estimated number of pigs in great britain is supposed to exceed 20 million and considering the third of the number is worth two pounds apiece and the remaining two-thirds as of the relative value of 10 shillings each would give a marketable estimate of over 20 million pounds for this animal alone the best in most humane mode of killing all large hogs is to strike them down like a bullock with the pointed end of a pole axe on the forehead which has the effect of killing the animal at once all the butcher has then to do is open the aorta and great arteries and laying the animals neck over a trough let out the blood as quickly as possible the carcass is then to be scalded either on a board or by immersion in a tub of very hot water and all the hair and dirt rapidly scraped off till the skin is made perfectly white when it is hung up opened and dressed as it is called in the usual way it is then allowed to cool a sheet being thrown around the carcass to prevent the air from discoloring the newly cleaned skin when meant for bacon the hair is singed instead of being scalded off in the country where for ordinary consumption the port killed for sale is usually both larger and fatter than that's applied to the london consumer it is customary to remove the skin and fat down to the lean and salting that roast what remains of the joint port goes further and is consequently a more economical food than other meats simply because the texture is closer and there is less waste in the cooking either in roasting or boiling in fresh pork the leg is the most economical family joint and the loin the richest comparatively speaking very little difference exists between the weight of the live and dead pig and this simply because there is neither the head nor the hide to be removed it has been proved that pork loses in cooking 13 and a half percent of its weight assaulted hand weighing four pounds five ounces lost in the cooking 11 ounces after cooking the meat weighing only three pounds one ounce and the bone nine ounces the original cost was seven shillings one half pence a pound but by this deduction the cost rose to nine pence per pound with the bone and ten shillings one quarter pence without it pork to be preserved is cured in several ways either by covering it with salt or immersing it in ready-made brine where it is kept to required or it is only partially salted and then hung up to dry when the meat is called white bacon or after salting it is hung in wood smoke to the flesh is impregnated with the aroma from the wood the Wiltshire bacon which is regarded as the finest in the kingdom is prepared by laying the sides of a hog in large wooden troughs and then rubbing into the flesh quantities of powdered bay salt made hot in a frying pan this process is repeated for four days they are then left for three weeks merely turning the flitches every other day after that time they are hung up to dry the hogs usually killed for purposes of bacon in england average from 18 to 20 stone on the other hand the hogs killed in the country for farmhouse purposes seldom way less than 26 stone the legs of boars hogs and in germany those of bears are prepared differently and called hands the practice in vogue formerly in this country was to cut out the hands and cure them separately then to remove the ribs which were roasted as spare ribs and curing the remainder of the side call it a gammon of bacon small pork to cut for table and joints is cut up in most places throughout the kingdom as represented in the engraving the sale is divided with nine ribs to the four quarter and the following is an enumeration of the joints in the two respective quarters hind quarter the leg the loin the spring or belly four quarter the hand the four loin the cheek the weight of the several joints of a good pork pig a four stone may be as follows that is the leg eight pounds the loin in spring seven pounds the hand six pounds the chime seven pounds the cheek from two to three pounds of a bacon pig the legs are reserved for curing and when cured are called hams when the meat is separated from the shoulder blade and bones and cured it is called bacon the bones with part of the meat left on them are divided into spare ribs grishkins and chines end of section 36 recording by katie gibney section 37 of the book of household management this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org the book of household management by Isabella Beaton recipes chapter 17 part one pork cutlets cold meat cookery 796 ingredients the remains of cold roast loin of pork one ounce of butter two onions one dessert spoon full of flour half a pint of gravy pepper and salt to taste one teaspoon full of vinegar and mustard mode cut the pork into nice sized cutlets trim off most of the fat and chop the onions put the butter into a stew pan lay in the cutlets and chopped onions and fry a light brown then add the remaining ingredients simmer gently for five or seven minutes and serve time five to seven minutes average cost exclusive of the meat four pints seasonable from october to march austrian method of herding pigs in the austrian empire there are a great number of wild swine while amongst the wandering tribes peopling the interior of hungry and spreading over the bar steps of that country droves of swine form a great proportion of the wealth of the people who chiefly live on coarse bread and wind dried bacon in german switzerland the tyrol and other mountainous districts of continental europe though the inhabitants almost everywhere as in england keep one or more pig they are at little or no trouble in feeding them one or more men being employed by one or several villagers has swine herds who at a certain hour every morning call for the pig or pigs and driving them to their feeding grounds on the mountain side and in the wood take custody of the herd till on the approach of night they are collected into a compact body and driven home for a night's repose in their several stars the amount of intelligence and docility displayed by the pigs in these mountain regions is much more considerable than that usually allowed to this animal and the manner in which these immense herds of swine are collected and again distributed without an accident or mistake is a sight both curious and interesting for it is all done without the assistance of a dog or the aid even of the human voice and solely by the crack of the long lashed and heavily loaded whip which the swine herd carries and cracks much after the fashion of the french postillion and which though he frequently cracks waking a hundred shark echoes from the woods and rocks he seldom has to use correctionally the animal soon acquiring a thorough knowledge of the meaning of each crack and once having felt its leaded thong a lasting remembrance of its power at early dawn the swine herd takes his stand at the outskirts of the first village and begins flourishing through the misty air his immensely long lash keeping the sort of rude time with the crack crack crack crack of his whip the nearest pigs hearing the well-remembered sound rouse from their straw and rush from their styes into the road followed by all their litters as soon as sufficient number are collected the drove is set in motion receiving right and left as their advance fresh numbers whole communities or solitary individuals just dreaming in from all quarters and taking their place without distinction in the general herd and as if conscious where their breakfast lay without wasting a moment on idle investigation all beagley push on to the mountains in this manner village after village is collected till the drove not infrequently consists of several thousands the feeding ground has of course often to be changed and the drove have sometimes to be driven many miles and to a considerable height up the mountain before the whip gives a signal for the dispersion of the body and the order to feed when the herdsman proceeds to form himself a shelter and look after his own comfort for the rest of the day as soon as twilight sets in the whip is again heard echoing the signal for muster and then the same order in which they were collected the swine are driven back each group tailing off to its respective style as the herd approaches the villagers till the last grunter having found his home they'll drove a six his cottage and repose pork cutlets or chops one seven nine seven ingredients line of pork pepper and salt to taste mode cut the cutlets from a delicate line of pork bone and trim them neatly and cut away the greater part of the fat season them with pepper place the gridiron on the fire when quite hot lay on the chops and boil them for about quarter of an hour turning them three or four times and be particular that they are thoroughly done but not dry dish them sprinkle over a little fine salt and serve playing or with tomato sauce sauce pick on or pickled gherkins a few of which should be laid around the dish as a garnish time about a quarter of an hour average cost ten pence per pound for chops sufficient allow six for four persons seasonable from october to march two another way seven nine eight ingredients loin or four loin of pork egg and breadcrumbs salt and pepper to taste to every tablespoon full of breadcrumbs allow half a teaspoon full of minced sage clarified butter mode cut the cutlets from a loin or four loin of pork trim them the same as mutton cutlets and scrape the top part of the bone brush them over with egg sprinkle with breadcrumbs with which have been mixed minced sage and a seasoning of pepper and salt drop a little clarified butter on them and press the crumbs well down put the frying pan on the fire put in some lard when this is hot lay in the cutlets and fry them a light brown on both sides take them out put them before the fire to dry the greasy moisture from them and dish them on mashed potatoes serve with them any sauce that may be preferred such as tomato sauce sauce pick on sauce robert or pickled gherkin time from 15 to 20 minutes average cost 10 pence per pound for chops sufficient allow six cutlets for four persons seasonable from october to march note the remains of roast loin of pork may be dressed in the same manner pork cheese an excellent breakfast dish 799 ingredients two pounds of cold roast pork pepper and salt to taste one dessert spoon full of minced parsley four leaves of sage a very small bunch of savory herbs two blades of pounded mace a little nutmeg half a teaspoon full of minced lemon peel good strong gravy sufficient to fill the mold cut but do not chop the pork into fine pieces and allow a quarter of a pound of fat to each pound of lean season with pepper and salt pound well the spices and chop finely the parsley sage herbs and lemon peel and mix the whole nicely together put it into a mold fill up with good strong well flavored gravy and bake rather more than one hour when cold turned it out of the mold time rather more than one hour seasonable from october to march roast leg of pork 800 ingredients leg of pork a little oil for stuffing see recipe number 504 mode choose a small leg of pork and score the skin across in narrow strips about quarter of an inch apart cut a slit in the knuckle loosen the skin and fill it with a sage and onion stuffing made by recipe number 504 brush the joint over with a little salad oil this makes the crackling crisper and a better color and put it down to a bright clear fire not too near as that would cause the skin to blister baste it well and serve with a little gravy made in the dripping pan and do not omit to send to table with it a terrine of well-made apple sauce see number 363 time a leg of pork weighing eight pounds about three hours average cost nine pence per pound sufficient for six or seven persons seasonable from september to march English mode of hunting and Indian pig sticking the hunting of the wild boar has been in all times and in all countries a pastime of the highest interest and excitement and from the age of Nimrod has only been considered second to the more dangerous sport of lion hunting the buried treasures of Nineveh restored to us by Mr. Layard show us on their sculptured annals the kings of Assyria in their royal pastime of boar hunting that the Greeks were passionately attached to this sport we know both from history and the romantic fables of the poets Mark Antony at one of his breakfasts with Cleopatra had eight wild boars roasted whole and though the Romans do not appear to have been addicted to hunting wild boar fights formed part of their gladiatorial shows in the amphitheater in France Germany and Britain from the earliest time the boar hunt formed one of the most exciting of sports but it was only in this country that the sport was conducted without dogs a real hand-to-hand contest of man and beast a hunter owned only with a boarspear a weapon about four foot long the ash dath guarded by plates of steel and terminating in a long narrow and very sharp blade this with a hunting knife or hanger competed his offensive arms thus equipped the hunter would either encounter his enemy face to face confront his desperate charge as with erectile depressed head and flaming eyes he rushed with his foamy tusks full against him who either sought to pierce his vitals through his counter or driving his spear through his chide transfix his heart or failing those more difficult aims plunge it into his frank and without withdrawing the weapon strike his ready hanger into his throat but expert as the hunter might be it was not often the formidable brute was so quickly dispatched for he would sometimes seize the spear in his powerful teeth and nip it off like a reed or coming full tilt on his enemy by his momentum and weight bear him to the earth ripping up with a horrid gash his leg or sign and before the riding hunter could draw his knife the infuriated beast would plunge his snout in the wound and rip with savage teeth the bails of his victim at other times he would suddenly swerve from his charge and doubling on his opponent attack the hunter in the rear from his speed great weight and savage disposition the wild boar is always a dangerous antagonist and requires great courage coolness and agility on the part of the hunter the continental sportsman rides to the chase in a cavalcade with music and dogs a kind of small hound or mastiff and leaving all the ottery part of the contest to them when the boar is becoming weary and while beset by the dogs rides up and drives his lance home in the beast's back or side boar hunting has been for some centuries obsolete in england animal no longer existing in a wild state amongst us but in our indian empire and especially in bengal the pastime is pursued by our countrymen with all the daring of the national character and if the animal which inhabits the cane breaks and jungles is a formidable foe the sport is attended with great excitement the hunters mounted on small active horses and armed only with long lances ride at the earliest daylight to the skirts of the jungle and having set in their attendance to beat the cover wait till the tusked monster that comes crashing from amongst the canes when the chase is immediately given until he has come up with and transfixed by the first weapon instead of flight however he often turns to bay and by more than one dead horse and wounded hunter shows how formidable he is and what those polished tusks sharp as pitchforks can affect when the enraged animal defends his life to glaze ham see recipe number 430 hashed pork 801 ingredients the remains of cold roast pork two onions one teaspoon full of flour two blades of pounded mace two cloves one teaspoon full of vinegar half a pint of gravy pepper and salt to taste mode chop the onions and fry them a nice brown cut the pork into thin slices season them with pepper and salt and add these to the remaining ingredients stew gently for about half an hour and served garnished with snippets of toasted bread time half an hour average cost exclusive of the meat three pence seasonable from october to march fried rashes of bacon and poached egg 802 ingredients bacon eggs mode cut the bacon into thin slices trim away the rusty parts and cut off the rind put it into a cold frying pan that is to say do not place the pan on the fire before the bacon is in it turn it two or three times and dish it on a very hot dish poach the eggs and slip them onto the bacon without breaking the yolks and serve quickly time three or four minutes average cost tempers to a shilling per pound for the primus parts sufficient allow six eggs for three persons seasonable at any time note fried rashes of bacon curled serve as a pretty garnish to many dishes and for small families answer very well as a substitute for boiled bacon to serve with a small dish of poultry etc broiled rashes of bacon a breakfast dish 803 before purchasing bacon ascertain that it is perfectly free from rust which may be easily detected by yellow color and for broiling the strict part of the thick flank is generally the most esteemed cut it into thin slices take off the rind and broil over a nice clear fire turn it two or three times and serve very hot should there be any cold bacon left from the previous day it answers very well for breakfast cut into slices and broil or fried time three or four minutes average cost 10 pence to a shilling per pound for the primus parts seasonable at any time note when the bacon is cut very thin the slices may be curled round and fastened by means of small skewers and fried or toasted before the fire boiled bacon 804 ingredients bacon water mode as bacon is frequently excessively salt let it be soaked in warm water for an hour or two previous to dressing it then par off the rusty parts and scrape the underside and rind as clean as possible put it into a saucepan of cold water let it come gradually to a boil and as fast as the scum rises to the surface of the water remove it let it simmer very gently until it is thoroughly done then take it up strip off the skin and sprinkle over the bacon a few bread raspings and garnish with tufts of cauliflower or brussel sprouts when served alone young and tender broad beans or green peas are the usual accompaniment time one pound of bacon three quarters of an hour two pounds one to one and a half hours average cost 10 pence to a shilling per pound for the primus parts sufficient two pounds when served with poultry or veal sufficient for 10 persons suitable at any time to cure bacon in the wheelchair way 805 ingredients one and a half pounds of coarse sugar one and a half pounds of base salt six ounces of salt peter one pound of common salt mode sprinkle each flitch with salt and let the blood drain off for 24 hours then pound and mix the above ingredients well together and rub it well into the meat which should be turned every day for a month then hang it to dry and afterwards smoke it for 10 days time to remain in the pickle one month to be smoked 10 days sufficient the above quantity of salt for one pig how pigs were formerly pastured and fed though unquestionably far greater numbers of swine are now kept in england and formerly every peasant having one or more that useful animal in feudal times immense droves of pigs were kept by the franklings and barons in those days the swine herds being a regular part of the domestic surface of every feudal household their duty consisted in daily driving the herd of swine from the cattle yard or outlying farm to the nearest woods chase or forest where the frankling of avasaur had either by right or background what was called free warren or the liberty to feed his hogs off the acorns beach and chestnuts that lay in such abundance on the earth and far exceeded the power of the royal or privilege going to consume indeed it was a license granted the nobles of free warren especially for their swine that kept up the iniquitous forest laws to so later date and covered so large a portion of the land with such immense tracts of wood and break to the injury of agriculture and the misery of the people some idea of the extent to which swine were grazed in feudal times may be formed by observing the number of pigs still fed in epping forest the forest of dean and the new forest in Hampshire where for several months of the year the beach nuts and acorns yield them so plentiful a diet in Germany where the chestnut is so largely cultivated the amount of food shed every autumn is enormous and consequently the pig both wild and domestic has for a considerable portion of the year an unfailing supply of admirable nourishment impressed with the value of this fruit for the food of pigs the prince consort has with great judgment of late encouraged the collection of chestnuts in Windsor park and by giving a small reward to old people and children for every bushel collected has not only found an occupation for many of the unemployed poor but by providing a gratuitous food for their pig encouraged a feeling of provenance and economy for curing bacon and keeping it free from rust cobbitt's recipe 806 the two sides that remain and which are called flitches are to be cured for bacon they are first rubbed with salt on the insides or flesh sides then placed one on the other the flesh sides uppermost in a salting troth which has a regatta around its edges to drain away the brine for to have sweet and fine bacon the flitches must not be sopping in brine which gives it the sort of vile taste that barrel and sepul can everyone knows how different is the taste of fresh dry salt from that of salt in a dissolved state therefore change the salt often once in four or five days let it melt and sink in but not lie too long twice change the flitches put that at the bottom which was first on the top this mode will cost you a great deal more insult than the sopping mode but without it your bacon will not be so sweet and fine nor keep so well as for the time required in making your flitches sufficiently salt it depends on circumstances it takes a longer time for a thick than a thin flitch and longer in dry than in damp weather or in a drier than a damp place but for the flitches of a hog or five score in whether not very dry or damp about six weeks may do and as yours is to be fed which receives little injury from over salting give time enough for you how to have bacon until christmas comes again 807 the place for salting should like a dairy always be cool but well ventilated confined air though cool will taint meat sooner than the midday sun accompanied by a breeze with regard to smoking the bacon two precautions are necessary first to hang the flitches where no rain comes down upon them and next that the smoke must proceed from wood not peat turf or coal as to the time required the smoker fledge it depends a great deal upon whether there be a constant fire beneath and whether the fire be large or small a month will do if the fire be pretty constant and rich as a farmhouse fire usually is but over smoking or rather too long hanging in the air makes the bacon rust great attention should therefore be paid to this matter the flitch ought not to be dried up to the hardness of a board and yet it ought to be perfectly dry before you hang it up lay it on the floor scatter the flesh side pretty thickly over with bran or with some fine sawdust not of deal or fur rub it on the flesh or pat it well down upon it this keeps the smoke from getting into the little openings and makes a sort of crust to be dried on 808 to keep the bacon sweet and good and free from hoppers sift fine some clean and dry wood ash put some at the bottom of a box or chest long enough to hold a flitch of bacon lay in one flitch and then put in more ashes then another flitch and cover this with six or eight inches of the ashes the place where the box or chest is kept ought to be dry and should the ashes become damp they should be put in the fireplace to dry and when cold put back again with these precautions the bacon will be as good at the end of the year as on the first day 809 for simple general rules these may be safely taken as a guide and those who implicitly follow the directions are given will possess that the expiration of from six weeks to two months well flavoured and well cured bacon hog not bacon antidote of lord bacon as lord bacon on one occasion was about to pass sentence of death upon a man of the name of hog who had just been tried for a long career of crime the prisoner suddenly claimed to be heard in a rest of judgment saying with an expression of arch confidence as he addressed the bench i came indulgence my lord on the plea of relationship for i'm convinced your lordship will never be unnatural enough to hang one of your own family indeed replied the judge with some amazement i was not aware that i had the honor of your alliance perhaps you will be good enough to name the degree of our mutual affinity i am sorry my lord replied the impudent thief i cannot trace the links of consanguinity but the mole evidence is sufficiently pertinent my name my lord is hog your lordships is bacon and all the world will allow that bacon and hog are very closely allied i am sorry replied his lordship i cannot admit the truth of your instance hog cannot be bacon until it is hanged and so before i can admit your plea or acknowledge the family compact hog must be hanged tomorrow morning to bake a ham 810 ingredients ham a common crust mode as a ham for baking should be well soaked let it remain in water for at least 12 hours wipe it dry trim away any rusty places underneath and cover it with a common crust taking care that this is a sufficient thickness all over to keep the gravy in place it in a moderately heated oven and bake for nearly four hours take off the crust and skin and cover with raspings the same as for boiled ham and garnish the knuckle with a paper film this method of cooking a ham is by many persons considered far superior to boiling it as it cuts fuller of gravy and has a finer flavor beside keeping a much longer time good time a medium sized ham four hours average cost from eight pence to ten pence per pound by the whole ham seasonable all year round to boil a ham 811 ingredients ham water blaze or raspings mode in choosing a ham as a tan that it is perfectly sweet by running a sharp knife into it close to the bone and if when the knife is withdrawn it has an agreeable smell the ham is good if on the contrary the blade has a greasy appearance an offensive smell the ham is bad if it has been long hung and is very dry and salt let it remain in soap for 24 hours changing the water frequently this length of time is only necessary in the case of it being very hard from 8 to 12 hours would be sufficient for a Yorkshire or Westmoreland ham wash it thoroughly and trim away from the underside all the rusty and smoked parts which would spoil the appearance put it into a boiling pot with sufficient cold water to cover it bring it gradually to boil and as the scum rises carefully remove it keep it simmering very gently until tender and be careful that it does not stop boiling nor boil too quickly when done take it out of the pot strip off the skin and sprinkle over it a few fine bread raspings put a fill of cut paper around the knuckle and serve if to be eaten cold let the ham remain in the water until nearly cold by this method the juices are kept in and it will be found infinitely superior to one taken out of the water hot it should however be borne in mind that the ham must not remain in the saucepan all night when the skin is removed sprinkle over bread raspings or if wanted particularly nice glaze it place a paper fill around the knuckle and garnish with parsley or cut vegetable flowers time a ham weighing 10 pounds four hours to simmer gently 15 pounds five hours a very large one about five hours average cost from 8 pence to 10 pence per pound by the whole ham season them all the year round how to boil a ham to give it an excellent flavour 8 1 2 ingredients vinegar and water two heads of celery two turnips three onions a large bunch of savory herbs mode prepare the ham as in the preceding recipe and let it soak for a few hours in vinegar and water put it on in cold water and when it boils add the vegetables and herbs simmer very gently until tender take it out strip off the skin cover with bread raspings and put in a paper rush or fill around the knuckle time a ham weighing 10 pounds four hours average cost 8 pence to 10 pence per pound by the whole ham season them all at any time how to silence a pig antidote of Charles V when the emperor Charles V was one day walking in the neighbourhood of Vienna full of pious considerations engendered by the thoughts of the Dominican cloister he was about to visit he was much annoyed by the noise of a pig which a country youth was carrying a little way before him at length irritated by the unmitigated noise have you not learned how to quiet a pig demanded the imperial traveler tartly Noah replied the ingenuous peasant ignorant of the quality of his interrogator Noah I should very much like to know how to do it changing the position of his burden and giving his load a surreptitious pinch on the ear which immediately altered the tone and volume of his complaining why take the pig by the tail said the emperor and you will see how quiet he will become struck by the novelty of the suggestion the countrymen at once dangled his noisy companion by the tail and soon discovered that under the partial congestion caused by its inverted position the pig had indeed become silent when looking with admiration on his august advisor he exclaimed ah you must have learned the trade much longer than I for you understand it a great deal better fried ham and eggs a breakfast dish 813 ingredients ham eggs mode cut the ham into slices and take care they have the same thickness in every part cut off the rind and if the ham should be particularly hard and salt it will be found an improvement to soak it for about 10 minutes in hot water and then dry it in a cloth put it into a cold frying pan set it over the fire and turn the slices three or four times whilst they are cooking when done place them on a dish which should be kept hot in front of the fire during the time the eggs are being poached poach the eggs slip them onto the slices of ham and serve quickly time seven or eight minutes to broil the ham average cost from eight pence to 10 pence per pound by the whole ham seasonable at any time note ham may also be toasted or broiled but with the latter method to ensure it being well cooked the fire must be beautifully clear or it will have a smoky flavor far from agreeable potted ham that will keep good for some time one eight one four ingredients to four pounds of lean ham allow one pound of fat two teaspoons fulls of powdered mace half a nutmeg grated rather more than half a teaspoon full of cayenne clarified lard mode mince the ham fat and lean together in the above proportions and pound it well in a mortar seasoning it with cayenne pepper pounded mace and nutmeg put the mixture into a deep baking dish and bake for half an hour then press it well into a stone jar fill up the jar with clarified lard cover it closely and paste over a piece of thick paper if well seasoned it will keep a long time in winter and will be found very convenient for sandwiches etc time half an hour seasonable at any time two a nice addition to the breakfast or luncheon table eight one five ingredients to two pounds of lean ham allow half a pound of fat one teaspoon full of powdered mace half a teaspoon full of pounded allspice half a nutmeg pepper to taste clarified butter mode cut some slices from the remains of a cold ham mince them small and to every two pounds of lean allow the above proportion of fat pound the ham in a mortar to a fine paste with the fat gradually add the seasoning and spices and be very particular that all the ingredients are well mixed and the spices well pounded press the mixture into potting pots pour over clarified butter and keep in a cool place average cost for this quantity two shillings and sixpence seasonable at any time importance of the boar's head Scottish foods etc the boar's head in ancient times formed the most important dish on the table and was invariably the first place on the board upon Christmas day being preceded by a body of servitors a flourish of trumpets and other marks of distinction and reverence and carried into the hall by the individual of next rank to the lord of the feast at somehow colleges and inns of court the serving of the boar's head on a silver platter on Christmas day is accustomed still followed and until very lately a boar's head was competed for at Christmas time by the young men of a rural parish in Essex indeed so highly was the grisly boar's head regarded in former time that had passed into a cognizance of some of the noblest families in the realm thus it was not only the crest of the nevels and warrics with their collateral houses but it was the cognizance of Richard the third that wretched bloody and usurping boar that spoiled your summer fields and fruitful vines swirls your warm blood like wash and makes his trough in urine bath bosoms and his nature was supposed to typify and was universally used as a sign to taverns the boar's head in East Cheep which tall within the last 25 years still stood in all its primitive quaintness though removed to make way for the London Bridge approaches it will live vividly in the mind of every reader of Shakespeare as a resort of the Prince of Wales points and his companions and the residents of Falstaff and his Kearney catching knaves Bardolf Pistol and Nim and whose sign was a boar's head carved in stone over the door and a smaller one in wood on each side of the doorway the traditions and deeds of savage vengeance recorded in connection with this grim trophy of the chase are numerous in all parts of Europe but the most remarkable connected with the subject in this country were two events that occurred in Scotland about the 11th and 15th century a border family having been dispossessed of their castle and lands by a more powerful chief were reduced for many years to great indigents the expelled owner only living in the hope of wreaking a terrible vengeance which agreeably to the motto of his house he was content to buy his time for the usurper having invited a large number of his kindred to a grand hunt in his new domains and a feast after in the great hall returned from the chase and discovered the feast not spread fented his wrath in no measured terms on the heads of the tally servitors at link the menial approach followed by a line of servants and placing the boar's head on the table the guests rushed forward to begin the meal went to their horror they discovered not a boar's but a bull's head a sign of death the doors were immediately closed and the false servants who were the adherents of the dispossessed chief threw off their disguise and falling on the usurper and his friend butchered them at every soul in the castle belonging to the rival faction a tribe of catarans or mountain robbers in the western highlands having been greatly persecuted by a powerful chief of the district waylade him and his retinue put them all to the sword and cutting off the chief's head repaired to his castle where they ordered the terrified wife to supply them with food and drink to appease their savage humor the lady gave order for their entertainment and on returning to the hall to see her orders were compiled with discovered in place of the boar's head that should have graced the board her husband's bleeding head the savage catarans in rude derision as a substitute for the apple or lemon usually placed between the jaws having thrust a slice of bread in the dead man's mouth for curing ham monster uders recipe 816 ingredients for two hams weighing about 16 or 18 pounds each allow one pound of moist sugar one pound of common salt two ounces of salt pita one quart of good vinegar mode as soon as the pig is cold enough to be cut up take the two hams and rub them well with common salt and leave them in a large pan for three days when the salt has drawn out all the blood drain the hams and throw the brine away mix sugar salt and salt pita together in the above proportion rub the hams well with these and put them into a vessel large enough to hold them always keeping the salt over them let them remain for three days then pour over them a quart of good vinegar turn them in the brine every day for a month then drain them well and rub them with brand have them smoked over a wood fire and be particular that the hams are hung as high as possible from the fire otherwise the fat will melt and they will become dry and hard time to be pickled one month to be smoked one month sufficient for two hams of 18 pounds each seasonable from october to march the price of a sour in africa in one of the native states of africa a pig one day stole a piece of food from a child as it was in the act of conveying the morsel to its mouth upon which the robbed child cried so loud that the mother rushed out of a hovel to ascertain the cause and seeing the poloning pig make off munching his booty the woman in her heat struck the grunter so smart a blow that the surly rascal took it into his head to go home very much indisposed and after a certain time resolved to die a resolution that he accordingly put into practice upon which the owner instituted judicial proceedings before the star chamber court of his tribe against the husband and family of the woman whose rash act had led to such results and as the pig happened to be a sour in the very flower of her age the perspective lost to the owner in unnumbered teams of pigs with the expenses attending so high a tribunal swelled the damages and costs to such a sum that was found impossible to pay them and as in the barbarous justice existing amongst these rude people every member of a family is equally liable as the individual who committed the wrong the father mother children relatives a entire community for the sum of 32 souls were sold as slaves and a fearful sum of human misery perpetrated to pay the value of a thieving old sale to salt two hams about 12 or 15 pounds each 817 ingredients two pounds of treacle half a pound of salt peter one pound of basalt two pounds of common salt mode two days before they are put into the pickle rub the hams well with salt to draw away all simon blood throw what comes from them away and then rub them with treacle salt peter and salt lay them in a deep pan and let them remain one day boil the above proportion of treacle salt peter basalt and common salt for quarter of an hour and pour this pickle boiling hot over the hams there should be sufficient of it to cover them for a day or two rub them well with it afterwards they will only require turning they ought to remain in this pickle for three weeks or a month and then be sent to be smoked which will take nearly or quite a month to do an ox tongue pickle in this way is most excellent to be eaten either green or smoked time to remain in the pickle three weeks or a month to be smoked about a month seasonable from october to march to cure sweet hams in the west moorland way 818 ingredients three pounds of common salt three pounds of coarse sugar one pound of basalt three quarts of strong beer mode before the hams are put into pickle rub them the proceeding day well with salt and drain the brine well from them put the above ingredients into a sauce and boil for quarter of an hour pour over the hams and let them remain a month in the pickle rub and turn them every day but do not take them out of the pickling pan and have them smoked for a month time to be pickled one month to be smoked one month seasonable from october to march to pickle hams suffoc recipe 819 ingredients to a ham from 10 to 12 pounds allow one pound of coarse sugar three quarters of a pound of salt one ounce of salt peter half a tea cup full of vinegar mode rub the hams well with common salt and leave them for a day or two to drain then rub well in the above proportions of sugar salt salt peter and vinegar and turn them every other day keep them in the pickle one month drain them and send them to be smoked over a wood fire for three weeks to a month time to remain in the pickle one month to be smoked three weeks or one month sufficient the above proportion of pickle sufficient for one ham seasonable ham should be pickled from october to march novel way of recovering a stolen pig it is a well-known fact that in Ireland the pig is in every respect a domesticated animal sharing often both the beard and board of the family and making an outer ring to the domestic circle as seated round the pot of potatoes they partake of the midday meal called dinner an Irishman upon one occasion having lost an interesting member of his household in the form of a promising young porker consulted his priest on the occasion and having hinted at the person he suspected of perloining the elegant slip of a pig he was advised to take no further notice of the matter but leave the issue to his spiritual advisor next sunday his reverence aftermath came to the front of the altar rail and looking very hard at the supposed culprit exclaimed who stole Pat Doolan's pig to this inquiry there was of course no answer the priest did not expect there would be any the following sunday the same query was propounded a little stronger whoever it was that I say who stole poor Patrick Doolan's pig it now became evident that the culprit was a hardened sinner so on the third sunday instead of repeating the unsatisfactory inquiry the priest after his usual eye in the object offenders said in a tone of pious sorrow Mike Regan Mike Regan you treat me with contempt that night when the family was all asleep the latch of the door was noisesly lifted and the elegant slip of a pig cautiously slipped into the cabin to smoke hams and fish at home 820 take an old hog's head stop up all the crevices and fix a place to put a cross stick near the bottom to hang the articles to be smoked on next in the side cut a hole near the top to introduce an iron pan filled with sawdust and small pieces of green wood having turned the top upside down hang the articles upon the cross stick introduce the iron pan in the opening and place a piece of red hot iron in the pan covered with sawdust and all will be complete let a large ham remain 40 hours and keep up a good smoke to cure bacon or hands in the Devonshire way 821 ingredients to every 14 pounds of meat allowed two ounces of salt to answers of salt pranella one pound of common salt for the pickle three gallons of water five pounds of common salt seven pounds of coarse sugar three pounds of bay salt mode weigh the sides hams and cheeks until every 14 pounds allow the above proportion of salt Peter salt pranella and common salt pound and mix these together and rub well into the meat lathe in a stone trough or tum rubbing it thoroughly and turning it daily for two successive days at the end of the second day pour on it a pickle made as follows put the above ingredients into a saucepan set it on the fire and stir frequently remove all the scum allow it to boil for a quarter of an hour and pour it hot over the meat that the hands etc be well rubbed and turned daily if the meat is small a fortnut will be sufficient for the sides and shoulders to remain in the pickle and the hams three weeks if from 30 pounds and upwards three weeks will be required for the sides and from four to five weeks for the hams on taking the pieces out let them drain for an hour cover with dry sawdust and smoke from a fortnight to three weeks boil and carefully skim the pickle after using and it will keep good closely corked for two years when boiling it for use add about two pound of common salt and the same of treacle to allow for waste tongues are excellent put into this pickle cold having been first rubbed well with salt Peter and salt and allowed to remain 24 hours not forgetting to make a deep insertion under the thick part of the tongue so as to allow the pickle to penetrate more readily a fortnight or three weeks according to the size of the tongue will be sufficient time small meat to remain in the pickle a fortnight hams three weeks to be smoked for a fortnight to three weeks end of section 37