Beef and mutton is preferred by some people a little underdone. Very large joints if slightly underdone, will make the better hash or broil. Lamb, pork, and veal are uneatable if not thoroughly boiled—but these meats should not be overdone. A trivet, a fish-drainer, or an American contrivance called a "spider"—which is nothing more than a wire dish raised on three or four short legs—put on the bottom of the boiling-pot, raising the contents about an inch and a half from the bottom, will prevent that side of the meat which comes next the bottom being done too much; and the lower part will be as delicately done as the upper; and this will enable you to take out the meat without inserting a fork, &c., into it. If you have not a trivet, a drainer, or a "spider," use a soup-plate laid the wrong side upwards.
1074. Stock
Take care of the liquor you have boiled poultry or meat in, as it is useful for making soup.
1075. Using the Stock
The good housewife never boils a joint without converting the broth into some sort of soup.
1076. Reducing Salt
If the liquor be too salt, use only half the quantity, and add some water; wash salted meat well with cold water before you put it into the boiler.