Melt the butter in a small cooker-pail or pan, add the flour and blend the two evenly, then add the milk, one-third at a time; when it boils, put in the salt, pepper, and potatoes. Let the whole reach boiling point and set it in a large cooker-pail of boiling water, unless it fills a small pail full, in which case it can be placed directly in a cooker nest which exactly fits it, and left for one hour or more.
Serves six or eight persons.
Peas
Shell young, green peas and bring them to a boil, using about one cupful of salted water for each quart of shelled peas. Put the pail or pan inside of another cooker-pail of boiling water and set all in a cooker for from one to two hours or more. Old peas may be left all night or all day in the cooker.
Rice, No. 1
- 1 cup rice
- 3 qts. water
- 3 teaspoons salt
Look over the rice and remove any husks or undesirable substances. Wash it by allowing cold water to run through a strainer containing the rice. Sprinkle it, gradually, into the boiling salted water in a cooker-pail. When it is boiling put it into a hay-box for one hour. There is a considerable difference in rice, and the time for cooking it will vary; but one hour will usually be found sufficient. Rice is injured by overcooking. When the rice is soft, drain it in a colander and set this in the oven, with the door open, for five minutes. Serve at once. Rice, when cooked, swells to four times its original bulk.
Serves six or eight persons.
Rice, No. 2
- 1 cup rice
- 2 to 21⁄2 cups water
- 1 teaspoon salt