Ingredients.—Potatoes; to each ½ gallon of water allow 1 heaped tablespoonful of salt. Mode.—Do not have the potatoes dug long before they are dressed, as they are never good when they have been out of the ground some time. Well wash them, rub off the skins with a coarse cloth, and put them into boiling water salted in the above proportion. Let them boil until tender; try them with a fork, and when done, pour the water away from them; let them stand by the side of the fire with the lid of the saucepan partially uncovered, and when the potatoes are thoroughly dry, put them into a hot vegetable-dish, with a piece of butter the size of a walnut; pile the potatoes over this, and serve. If the potatoes are too old to have the skin rubbed off, boil them in their jackets; drain, peel, and serve them as above, with a piece of butter placed in the midst of them. Time.—¼ to ½ hour, according to the size. Average cost, in full season, 1d. per lb. Sufficient.—Allow 3 lbs. for 5 or 6 persons. Seasonable in May and June, but may be had, forced, in March.
POTATOES, Fried (French Fashion).
Ingredients.—Potatoes, hot butter or clarified dripping, salt. Mode.—Peel and cut the potatoes into thin slices, as nearly the same size as possible; make some butter or dripping hot in a frying-pan; put in the potatoes, and fry them on both sides until nearly cooked. Now take the potatoes out of the fat, make the fat quite boiling, then throw in the potatoes for a minute or two until sufficiently done. The immersion of the vegetable in the grease a second time after it is partially cooked, causes it to puff or “gonfler,” as the French say, which is the desired appearance for properly-dressed fried potatoes to possess. When they are crisp and done, take them up, place them on a cloth before the fire to drain the grease from them, and serve very hot, after sprinkling them with salt. These are delicious with rump-steak, and, in France, are frequently served thus as a breakfast dish. The remains of cold potatoes may also be sliced and fried by the above recipe, but the slices must be cut a little thicker. Time.—Sliced raw potatoes, 5 minutes; cooked potatoes, 5 minutes. Average cost, 4s. per bushel. Sufficient,—6 sliced potatoes for 3 persons. Seasonable at any time.
POTATOES, a German Method of Cooking.
Ingredients.—8 to 10 middling-sized potatoes, 3 oz. of butter, 2 tablespoonfuls of flour, ½ pint of broth, 2 tablespoonfuls of vinegar. Mode.—Put the butter and flour into a stewpan; stir over the fire until the butter is of a nice brown colour, and add the broth and vinegar; peel and cut the potatoes into long thin slices, lay them in the gravy, and let them simmer gently until tender, which will be in from 10 to 15 minutes, and serve very hot. A laurel-leaf simmered with the potatoes is an improvement. Time.—10 to 15 minutes. Seasonable at any time.
POTATOES, à la Maître d’Hôtel.
Ingredients.—Potatoes, salt and water; to every 6 potatoes allow 1 tablespoonful of minced parsley, 2 oz. of butter, pepper and salt to taste, 4 tablespoonfuls of gravy, 2 tablespoonfuls of lemon-juice. Mode.—Wash the potatoes clean, and boil them in salt and water; when they are done, drain them, let them cool; then peel and cut the potatoes into thick slices: if these are too thin, they would break in the sauce. Put the butter into a stewpan with the pepper, salt, gravy, and parsley; mix these ingredients well together, put in the potatoes, shake them two or three times, that they may be well covered with the sauce, and, when quite hot through, squeeze in the lemon-juice, and serve. Time.—½ to ¾ hour to boil the potatoes; 10 minutes for them to heat in the sauce. Average cost, 4s. per bushel. Sufficient for 3 persons. Seasonable all the year.
POTATOES, Mashed.
Ingredients.—Potatoes; to every lb. of mashed potatoes allow 1 oz. of butter, 2 tablespoonfuls of milk, salt to taste. Mode.—Boil the potatoes in their skins; when done, drain them, and let them get thoroughly dry by the side of the fire; then peel them, and, as they are peeled, put them into a clean saucepan, and with a large fork beat them to a light paste; add butter, milk, and salt in the above proportion, and stir all the ingredients well over the fire. When thoroughly hot, dish them lightly, and draw the fork backwards over the potatoes to make the surface rough, and serve. When dressed in this manner, they may be browned at the top with a salamander, or before the fire. Some cooks press the potatoes into moulds, then turn them out, and brown them in the oven: this is a pretty mode of serving, but it makes them heavy. In whatever way they are sent to table, care must be taken to have them quite free from lumps. Time.—From ½ to ¾ hour to boil the potatoes. Average cost, 4s. per bushel. Sufficient,—1 lb. of mashed potatoes for 3 persons. Seasonable at any time.