Victorian Era Recipes
Some basic choice recipes from a compilation by
Elizabeth Ellicott Lea
Domestic Cookery, Useful Receipts, and Hints to Young Housekeepers
I specifically like these vintage recipes because they are simple which was her intent. Not to overwhelm with scientific information.
Enjoy…
To Brown Flour for Gravy, &c.
Put some flour in a dutch-oven and set it over some hot coals; keep
stirring it until it is of a light-brown color; in this way several
pounds can be done at once, and kept in a jar covered; and is very
convenient to thicken brown soups and gravies with.
Vermicelli.
Beat three fresh eggs very light, make them into a stiff paste, with
flour and water; knead it well, and roll it very thin, cut it in narrow
strips, give them a twist, and dry them quickly, on tin sheets or
dishes, in the sun or a moderate oven; soak them a few minutes in cold water, and put them in chicken soup. They are very good and convenient.
Beef Steak Pie.
Take some fine beef steaks, beat them well with a rolling pin, and
season them with pepper and salt according to taste.
Make a good crust;lay some in a deep dish or tin pan; lay in the beef, and fill the dis h half full of water; put in a table-spoonful of butter and some chopped thyme and parsley, and cover the top with crust; bake it from one to two hours, according to the size of the pie, and eat it while hot.
Chickens Fried in Batter.
Make a batter of two eggs, a tea-cup of milk, a little salt, and
thickened with flour; have the chickens cut up, washed and seasoned; dip the pieces in the batter separately, and fry them in hot lard; when brown on both sides, take them up on a dish, and make a gravy as for fried chickens.
Lard fries much nicer than butter, which is apt to burn.
To Fricassee Chickens.
Cut up the chickens, and put them in a pot with just water enough to cover them; let it boil half an hour; have ready some thickening made of milk, flour, and butter, seasoned with parsley, thyme, pepper, and salt; let it boil a few minutes longer, and when it is dished, grate a little nutmeg over, if you like it. This is one of the easiest, cheapest and best ways of cooking chickens.
To Fry Fresh Fish.
Have the fish well scalded, washed and drained; cut slits in the sides of each; season them with salt and pepper, and roll them in corn flour; have in your frying-pan hot lard or bacon drippings; if the fish have been kept several days, dip them in egg before rolling them in corn flour, to keep them from breaking; fry them light brown on both sides.
(This recipe is delicious with catfish fillets but of course please use fresh)
