As making soup is a tedious process, it is best to make enough at once to last several days. Beef shank is most generally used in making nutritious soup. It is best to get this the day before using it, and soak it all night in cold, clear water. If you cannot do this, however, get it as early in the morning as you can. Break the bones, wash it, soak it a few minutes in weak salt and water, and put it in a large boiler of cold water. As soon as it begins to simmer, remove the dark scum that rises on top. Keep the boiler closely covered, and boil very slowly till an hour or two before dinner. Then, with a ladle, remove all the fat from the top, as it is this element that makes soup unwholesome. Strain and season, or, if you prefer, season just enough for one meal, reserving the rest as foundation for another sort of soup. It is well always to keep some of this stock on hand in cold weather, as by the addition of a can of tomatoes, or other ingredients, a delicious soup may be quickly made of it. Never throw away water in which any sort of meat has been boiled, as it is much better to simmer hash or a stew in this liquor than in water, and it is also invaluable for basting fowls or meats that have not been parboiled.
Directions for soup making are so fully given in the following pages that it is needless for me to say anything further on the subject here.
Oyster Soup.
100 oysters.
1 teaspoonful salt.
1 tablespoonful black pepper.
¼ pound butter.
Yolks of 3 eggs.
1 pint rich milk, perfectly fresh.
3 tablespoonfuls flour.