CUCUMBERS STEWED

Cucumbers, peeled and quartered
Flour
Butter for frying
Sliced onions (optional)
Stock or water ("gravy")
Pepper
Salt

Peel and cut cucumbers in quarters, take out the seeds, and lay them on a cloth to drain off the water; when they are dry, flour and fry them in fresh butter; let the butter be quite hot before you put in the cucumbers; fry them till they are brown, then take them out with an egg-slice [spatula] and lay them on a sieve to drain the fat from them (some cooks fry sliced onions, or some small button onions, with them, till they are a delicate light-brown color, drain them from the fat, and then put them into a stew-pan with as much gravy as will cover them): stew slowly till they are tender, take out the cucumbers with a slice, thicken the gravy with flour and butter, give it a boil up, season it with pepper and salt, and put in the cucumbers; as soon as they are warm, they are ready.
The above, rubbed through a tamis or fine sieve, will be entitled to be called "cucumber sauce." This is a very favorite sauce with lamb or mutton-cutlets, stewed rump-steaks, &c.

The Cook's Oracle by William Kitchiner, MD, New York, 1829

Comment: This is the companion recipe to Dr. Kitchiner's "Vulgar Cucumbers," which gets its name because it does not undergo the purifying ritual of cooking but sits there on the table in a raw and uncouth state. The same vegetable, treated as directed above, becomes an elegant addition to the upper class dining regime. To remove the seeds from cucumber cut them in half longways and run a large tablespoon down the middle to scoop out the offending particles.

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