Fish is best broiled. Rub fat on the grid to prevent sticking. If the fish is large remove head and entrails, split down the back and lay on the broiler with slices of bacon or pork placed across. Pepper and salt to suit taste. To fry small fish, put in pan with plenty of bacon or pork fat. Turn frequently to insure thorough cooking. When done spread with butter and brown for a few minutes. To bake small fish wrap each in wet paper and cover in hot ashes.
Squirrels should be broiled, using only young ones. After skinning and cleaning, soak in cold salted water for an hour. Wipe dry and place on a grid with slices of bacon laid across for basting. To fry old ones, parboil slowly for half an hour in salted water and fry in fat or butter until brown.
Rabbits, after being cleaned and skinned, should have the head removed. Then cut off the legs at the body joint and cut the back into three or four [[119]]pieces. Parboil in salted water. To stew leave in pot, add pepper, a tablespoonful each of rice and beans and a teaspoonful of dried onions. Add water so that the pieces of meat keep covered and boil until the meat will separate from the bones. To fry, remove from the pot when parboiled, sprinkle the meat with flour and fry in butter or fat until brown. Use only young animals for frying. To roast, remove from pot and place in pan, spread a piece of pork on each piece of rabbit, and baste frequently until done.
Game Birds should first be plucked, then cleaned, singed, and the head and legs removed. To fry, cut into convenient pieces and parboil until tender. Sprinkle with pepper, salt, and flour. Fry in pork fat. When done stir into frying pan a half cupful of flour until dark brown, add some of the liquor in which the bird was parboiled and bring to a boil. Pour this gravy over the bird on the dish. To broil, split the bird up back and place on the grid. Baste with drippings from a piece of pork held above on a stick. Cuts of larger birds like ducks or prairie chickens may be sliced off and held over the coals on sticks. To fricassee, cut into convenient pieces and parboil. When tender, drain off the water and sprinkle the pieces with salt, pepper, and flour. Fry some slices of pork and add to the fat some flour, stirring until brown. Pour into this the liquor in which the bird was parboiled and bring to a boil. Put the pieces of bird in a hot dish and pour the gravy over them. [[120]]
How to Boil Potatoes. This may seem superfluous, but of a truth most campers do not have much success in boiling potatoes, but get a soggy product which is anything but appetizing.
Peel the potatoes and allow them to stand in water for a short time. Then place the pot over hot coals. When boiling add salt and when the potatoes are done drain off the water thoroughly. Put the pot with the lid on back over the fire for a minute. Then, holding the lid on firmly, shake the pot well, and turn out the potatoes. They will be mealy and delicious. To bake potatoes, wrap each potato in wet paper and place in hot ashes until done, which will be in about half an hour—depending somewhat on the size of the potatoes and the heat of the ashes.
To make mashed potatoes, take a cup of dried (dehydrated) potatoes and a cup and a half of boiling water. Boil and stir for three minutes, and then add a dessertspoonful of evaporated milk. Salt, pepper, and butter to taste. To make potato cakes, prepare as above, add a teaspoonful of flour and form into small cakes. Sprinkle with flour and fry in pork fat.
Pork fat is frequently mentioned in these recipes. A vegetarian will perhaps be better satisfied by using a vegetable substitute.
Baking in Clay where clay is procurable gives satisfactory results. Cover bird or fish drawn, or undrawn, with a coating of wet clay a couple of inches thick. Place in live coals and cover with [[121]]hot ashes. In about an hour the clay will be baked hard. Crack open lengthwise and remove the meat, which will be tender, well-flavored and juicy. If baked undrawn the entrails should be removed after baking. [[122]]