A guide to modern cookery by A. Escoffier
4. Whether the foie gras be added or not, chicken forcemeat may always
712 words | Chapter 73
be completed with two or three oz. of chopped truffles per lb. of its
volume.
201—GAME FORCEMEAT FOR PIES AND TERRINES
This follows the same principles as the chicken forcemeat, _i.e._,
the weight of the game-meat determines the quantities of the other
ingredients. The proportions are precisely the same as above as regards
the veal, the pork, the bacon, and the seasoning. The procedure is also
the same, while the appended remarks likewise apply.
202—GRATIN FORCEMEAT FOR ORDINARY HOT, RAISED PIES
Put into a sautépan containing one oz. of very hot butter, one-half lb.
of fresh, fat bacon, cut into large cubes, brown quickly, and drain on
a dish.
Quickly brown in the same butter one-half lb. of fillet of veal cut
like the bacon and drain in the same way.
Now rapidly brown one-half lb. of pale, calf’s liver, also cut into
large cubes. Put the veal and the bacon back into the sautépan with
the liver, add the necessary quantity of salt and pepper, two oz. of
mushroom parings, one oz. of truffle parings (raw if possible), chopped
shallots, a sprig of thyme, and a fragment of bay. Put the whole on the
fire for two minutes, drain the bacon, the veal, and the liver, and put
the gravy aside. Swill the sautépan with one-quarter pint of Madeira.
Pound the bacon, veal, and liver quickly and finely, while adding
consecutively six oz. of butter, the yolks of six eggs, the gravy that
has been put aside, one-third pint of cold, reduced Espagnole, and the
Madeira used for swilling.
Strain through a sieve, place in a tureen, and smooth with the wooden
spoon.
N.B.—To make a gratin forcemeat with game, substitute for the veal that
game-meat which may happen to be required.
203—PIKE FORCEMEAT FOR QUENELLES A LA LYONNAISE
Forcemeats prepared with the flesh of the pike are extremely delicate.
Subject to circumstances, they may be prepared according to any one
of the three formulæ (Nos. 193, 194, 195). There is another excellent
method of preparing this forcemeat which I shall submit here, as it is
specially used for the preparation of pike forcemeat à la Lyonnaise.
Pound in a mortar one lb. of the meat of a pike, without the skin or
bones; combine with this one-half lb. of stiff frangipan, season with
salt and nutmeg, pass through a sieve, and put back into the mortar.
Vigorously work the forcemeat in order to make it cohere, and gradually
add to it one-half lb. of melted beef-fat. The whole half-pound,
however, need not necessarily be beef-fat; beef-marrow or butter may
form part of it in the proportion of half the weight of the beef-fat.
When the forcemeat is very fine and smooth, withdraw it from the mortar
and place it in a bowl surrounded with ice until wanted.
204—SPECIAL STUFFINGS FOR FISH
These preparations diverge slightly from the forcemeats given above,
and they are of two kinds. They are used to stuff such fish as
mackerel, herring, shad, &c., to which they lend a condimentary touch
that makes these fish more agreeable to the taste, and certainly more
digestible.
_First Method._—Put into a bowl four oz. of raw, chopped milt,
two oz. of bread-crumb, steeped in milk and well pressed, and one and
one-half oz. of the following fine herbs, mixed in equal quantities and
finely chopped:—Chives, parsley, chervil, shallots, sweet basil, half a
garlic clove (crushed), then two whole eggs, salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
Chop up all these ingredients together so as to mix them thoroughly.
_Second Method._—Put into a bowl four oz. of bread-crumb steeped in
milk and well pressed; one-half oz. of onion and one-half oz. of
chopped shallots, slightly cooked in butter, and cold; one oz. of raw
mushrooms, chopped and well pressed in a towel; a tablespoonful of
chopped parsley; a piece of garlic the size of a pea, crushed; salt,
pepper, and nutmeg, and two eggs.
Mix it as above.
205—FORCEMEAT BALLS OR QUENELLES
_Divers ways of Moulding and Poaching them._—Whatever be the required
size or shape of quenelles there are four ways of making them:—(1) By
rolling them; (2) by moulding them with a spoon; (3) by forming them
with a piping-bag; (4) by moulding them by hand into the shape of a
kidney.
Reading Tips
Use arrow keys to navigate
Press 'N' for next chapter
Press 'P' for previous chapter