A handbook of invalid cooking

by Mary A. Boland

TENDERLOIN STEAK

Broil a tenderloin steak, and at the same time a small piece of round steak, which usually contains a great deal of well-flavored juice. Cut the round steak into small pieces, and squeeze the juice from it over the tenderloin. Tenderloin steak is tender, but usually neither juicy nor particularly well flavored. By this method one gets a delicious steak.

BEEFSTEAK À LA MAÎTRE D'HÔTEL

Broil a steak, place it on a platter, and season it with salt and pepper; sprinkle it with finely chopped parsley, drops of lemon-juice, and some little bits of butter. Set it in the oven long enough to soften the butter. A steak done in this way may be made quite attractive by garnishing it with hot mashed and seasoned potatoes which have been squeezed through a potato-strainer. A colander may be used in lieu of a strainer. The potato loses some of its heat in the process, so care must be taken to have the dish very hot or to place it in the oven until it becomes so.

A steak may always be garnished with parsley, water-cress, or slices of lemon.

CHICKEN

(BROILED)

For broiling, select a young chicken—one from three to eight months old. Singe it. Split it down the back, and free it from all refuse, such as pin-feathers, lungs, kidneys, oil-bag, windpipe, and crop (the latter is sometimes left in when the chicken is drawn). Wash it quickly in cold water, fold it in a clean cloth kept for the purpose, and clap gently between the hands until all the water is absorbed. Separate the joints—the lower joint of the leg and the upper joint of the wing—by cutting the flesh on the under side and severing the white tough tendons. Soften some butter until it runs, then dip the chicken into it, season it with salt and pepper, dredge with flour, and broil it in a wire broiler for from fifteen to twenty minutes, according to the size.

The same principle holds in broiling chicken as in steak. The first part of the process should be done in a high temperature to coagulate the juices of the outer layers, and the last part very slowly. Care must be taken that it is thoroughly done at the thick joints of the wing and leg. Serve hot.