Breast of Mutton to Grill.
Cut off all fat which will not be eaten with the lean, score that in diamonds, and season with pepper and salt. Brush it with egg, and strew a mixture of bread-crumbs and chopped parsley over. Either roast or broil it in a Dutch oven, baste well with butter, strewing more crumbs and parsley over. Serve with chopped walnut or capers in butter.
Neck of Mutton to Stew.
Cut off some of the fat, and the meat into chops, put it into a stew-pan with water or broth to cover it, pepper, salt, an onion, and what herbs you like, cover close, and let it stew very gently; when half the water is wasted, put it by the side to let the fat rise, take that off, put in ½ pint claret, 12 oysters, and let it stew till quite tender; take out the herbs, thicken the gravy, and add the juice of ½ a lemon, and what catsup you like.
To Dress Kidneys.
Skin and split mutton kidneys, rub with salt and pepper, and pin them out with small wire skewers, to keep them open. Dip in melted butter, then lay them on the gridiron, the inside downwards first, that when you turn them the gravy may be saved. Put the kidneys in a very hot dish, and pour melted butter into each one.—Or: cut a fresh kidney into slices or mouthfuls; soak in warm water and well dry them, dust them with flour, and then brown with butter in the frying-pan: put them in a stew-pan with the white of 3 young onions chopped, salt, pepper, parsley, a table-spoonful of eschalot vinegar, and then let them simmer till the kidney is quite done. Mushroom or walnut catsup may be used. Serve mustard with this.—Or: mince the kidney and season well with salt, pepper, and cayenne; fry this, and moisten it with gravy or boiling water, or use what catsup or flavouring vinegar you like. Serve on a hot dish for breakfast.—Or: put the mince into a stew-pan with a bunch of sweet herbs and an onion tied up in muslin, as soon as it is just browned cover with boiling water and let it simmer 3 hours, then take out the herbs, and sprinkle over the mince a table-spoonful of sweet herbs in powder.
Mutton or Lamb Chops and Collops.
Cutlets for a supper or breakfast dish may be cut from a rather underdone leg: put a good sized piece of butter in the frying-pan, when hot lay the slices of meat in, and turn them often till done, then take them out and keep them hot, while you make a little gravy in the pan, of parsley, other herbs if you like, and a very little broth or boiling water; any flavouring sauce you have, and cayenne. The gravy should be thick of herbs; dish the cutlets in the centre, and the herbs round.—Or: pare and slice some cucumbers, sprinkle them with salt and pepper, pour a little vinegar over, and let them lie an hour; then stew them with the collops in broth, enough to make sufficient gravy; season with catsup and what flavouring ingredient you prefer, skim the gravy when the meat is done, and serve in a hash dish.—Or: chop the leaves of 6 sprigs of parsley with 2 eschalots, very fine, season with salt and cayenne, and mix all well together with a table-spoonful of salad oil, cover the cutlets on both sides with this, then shake grated bread-crumbs over, and fry them in fresh butter.
Cutlets à la Maintenon.
Lightly season and lay them in a pan with 3 table-spoonsful of oil; fry over a moderate fire till 3 parts cooked, then take them out, and fry 2 table-spoonsful of chopped onions of a light brown, pour off the oil and put in a pint of good brown sauce, 3 table-spoonsful of tomata sauce, a tea-cupful of chopped parsley, a little sugar, nutmeg, pepper and salt, reduce it till rather thick, then put in the cutlets for about 5 minutes: take them out, let them be cold in the sauce, and fold each one (the gravy about it), in white paper (oiled), and broil them 10 minutes over a moderate fire. Serve in the papers.