“They must be protected from the action of the air and frost, by laying them in heaps, burying them in sand or earth, &c., or covering them with straw or mats.
“The action of frost destroys the life of the vegetable, and it speedily rots.”—Suppl. to Edin. Encyclop. vol. iv. p. 335.
Mem.—When vegetables are quite fresh gathered, they will not require so much boiling, by at least a third of the time, as when they have been gathered the usual time those are that are brought to public markets.
[84-*] Peàrlash is a sub-carbonate, and will answer the purpose. It is a common article in the kitchen of the American housekeeper. A.
[85-*] “Cauliflowers and other vegetables are often boiled only crisp to preserve their beauty. For the look alone they had better not be boiled at all, and almost as well for the use, as in this crude state they are scarcely digestible by the strongest stomach. On the other hand, when over-boiled, they become vapid, and in a state similar to decay, in which they afford no sweet purifying juices to the body, but load it with a mass of mere feculent matter.”—Domestic Management, 12mo. 1813, p. 69.
CHAPTER VI.
FISH.
This department of the business of the kitchen requires considerable experience, and depends more upon practice than any other. A very few moments, more or less, will thoroughly spoil fish;[86-*] which, to be eaten in perfection, must never be put on the table till the soup is taken off.
So many circumstances operate on this occasion, that it is almost impossible to write general rules.
There are decidedly different opinions, whether fish should be put into cold, tepid, or boiling water.