The CWI Cookbook

Archive for the ‘soups & chowders’ Category

 3 young hen lobsters, boiled
Mace or nutmeg
Lemon peel, grated
Anchovies
Cayenne pepper
1 egg yolk
3 quarts veal broth
Butter and flour for thickening
Lemon juice
Essence of anchovy

You must have three fine lively young hen lobsters, and boil them; when cold, split the tails; take out the fish, crack the claws, and cut the meat into mouthfuls: take out the coral, and soft part of the body; bruise part of the coral in a mortar; pick out the fish from the chines; beat part of it with the coral, and with this make forcemeat balls, finely-flavored with mace or nutmeg, a little grated lemon-peel, and Cayenne; pound these with the yelk of an egg.
Have three quarts of veal broth; bruise the small legs and the chine, and put them into it, to boil for twenty minutes, then strain it; and then to thicken it, take the live spawn and bruise it in a mortar with a little butter and flour; rub it through a sieve, and add it to the soup with the meat of the lobsters, and the remaining coral; let it simmer very gently for ten minutes; do not let it boil, or its fine red color will immediately fade; turn it into a tureen; add the juice of a good lemon, and a little essence of anchovy.

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

Lobsters, they say, were once so common in Atlantic waters that they were considered junk food and fed to prisoners in jail. It is unlikely that those unfortunates were given access to mace, nutmeg, lemon peel or Cayenne, so there are at least some advantages to the present day. “Chines” is a rather unusual term for the exoskeleton of a crustacean, as it usually refers to the neck bones of something like a sheep rather than the shell of a lobster. We must allow Dr. Kitchiner his little quirks. If you search your lobster innards for “coral” and don’t find a little red object, you have been given male lobsters rather than the female (hen) ones called for here.

2-3 flounders, eels or other fish
Parsley
Flour
Butter
White wine
Lemon juice
Essence of anchovy
Catchup (type not specified; mushroom or walnut probably better than tomato)

Take water used in making “Water Souchy” [or other boiled fish dish] and reserve. Thicken the liquor the fish has been stewing in with flour and butter, and flavor it with white wine, lemon-juice, essence of anchovy, and catchup; boil down two or three flounders to make a fish broth to boil the other fish in. That broth cannot be good without the fish being boiled too much.

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

Comment: This recipe has been modified just a bit to stand on its own as it was originally combined with the delicious-sounding although peculiarly named “Water Souchy.” Flounder, eel and certainly grudgeons are sea creatures better known to the English palate than the American one, but then again Dr. Kitchiner was working from a book originally published in England so this is to be expected.

The basic principles should be applicable to whatever fish one has to work with so long as they originated in salt water. We do not think this would work well with catfish or bullheads for instance.

 Clams, chopped fine
Pepper (black, white or red)
Salt
Cracker crumbs, finely crushed
Warm milk
Liquid from clams
1 or 2 eggs, beaten
Butter, melted

Chop the clams fine, and season with pepper and salt. Cayenne pepper is thought to give a finer flavor than black or white; but to some palates it is insufferable. Mix in another dish some powdered cracker, moistened first with warm milk, then with the clam liquor, a beaten egg or two, and some melted butter. Stir in with this the chopped clams. Wash as many clam-shells as the mixture will fill; wipe and butter them; fill, heaping up and smoothing over with a silver knife or tea-spoon. Range in rows in your baking-pan, and cook until nicely browned. Or, if you do not care to be troubled with the shells, bake in patty-pans, sending to table hot in the tins, as you would the scallop-shells.

From Common Sense in the Household by Marion Harland, New York, 1871

Comment: Scallop shells are perhaps the most elegant of the various housing units employed by bivalves, more symmetrical than the shells of oysters or clams. Thus they were often saved for reuse after their original occupants were devoured in other meals. As this was difficult for those who lived any distance from the coastline, small shallow saucer-shaped vessels to serve the purpose instead were made of inexpensive materials such as the tin noted above.

A distinction must be made between cookware described as “tin” and that which was “tinned.” Tin was the Teflon ™ of the 19th century, used to line pans made of sturdier materials. It was vastly easier to clean than plain cast iron and resistant to acids found in vinegar and tomato products.

Like its modern counterpart it wore out under continual use (especially since plastic utensils lay far in the future) but unlike today’s stuff the process of “re-tinning” was easily accomplished by one’s local metalworker or blacksmith.

 Salt pork
Clams (presumably shelled)
Pepper, either black or cayenne
Salt
Butter
Onions, chopped
Crackers
Milk
Wine, catsup, or other sauce

Fry five or six slices of fat salt pork crisp, and chop to pieces. Sprinkle some of these in the bottom of a pot; lay upon them a stratum of clams; sprinkle with cayenne or black pepper and salt, and scatter bits of butter profusely over all; next, have a layer of chopped onions, then one of small crackers, split and moistened with warm milk. On these pour a little of the fat left in the pan after the pork is fried, and then comes a new round of pork, clams, onion, etc. Proceed in this order until the pot is nearly full, when cover with water, and stew slowly–the pot closely covered–for three quarters of an hour. Drain off all the liquor that will flow freely, and, when you have turned the chowder into the tureen, return the gravy to the pot. Thicken with flour, or, better still, pounded crackers; add a glass of wine, some catsup, and spiced sauce; boil up, and pour over the contents of the tureen. Send around walnut or butternut pickles with it.

From Common Sense in the Household by Marion Harland, New York, 1871

Comment: We do not wish to start sectional conflict between the partisans of New England-vs-Long Island clam chowders here, so we will merely point out that, not only is “catsup” not the only flavoring agent permitted here but that “catsup” was not the same product in that day that it is now. Catsups were commonly made with a base ingredient such as fruit, walnuts, and mushrooms as well as tomatoes. Use what you prefer, and give us time to duck behind a tree before you commence discussing the matter amongst yourselves.

The issue of crackers must be addressed as well, since there are few products sold under that name today which can be split into top and bottom halves. Common saltine crackers, oyster crackers or similar items can be used whole. The major difference between this and the commercial chowders available in cans today is the absence of potatoes, but the crackers serve the same essential function of a starch here.

 6 onions, large
Drippings from salt pork
5 lb. bass or cod
Salt
Black peppercorns
Whole cloves (1 or 2)
Thyme
Parsley
1 tbs. mushroom or tomato catsup
Oysters
Oyster or other crackers
Milk
Butter
Capers (optional)
Sliced lemons (optional)
1 c. oyster liquor (juice contained in shells of fresh oysters) (optional)

Slice six large onions, and fry them in the gravy of fried salt pork. Cut five pounds of bass or cod into strips three inches long and one thick, and line the bottom of a pot with them. Scatter a few slices of onion upon them, a little salt, half a dozen black peppers, a clove or two, a pinch of thyme and one of parsley, a tablespoonful tomato or mushroom catsup, and six oysters; then comes a layer of oyster crackers, well-soaked in milk and buttered thickly. Another layer of fish, onions, seasoning, and crackers, and so on until all are used up. Cover with water, boil slowly for an hour and pour out. Serve with capers and sliced lemon. A cup of oyster liquor added to the chowder while boiling improves it.

Common Sense in the Household by Marion Harland, New York, 1871

Comment: The word “chowder” is seldom found without “clam” attached these days, but in fact it is a generic term for any sort of seafood soup. This one would seem to be so thick as to nearly qualify as a stew. This will require very careful cooking at very low heat to avoid burning the fish strips lining the bottom of the cooking vessel.

The “tomato or mushroom catsup” called for here is a more concentrated and highly spiced sauce than the versions usually found in stores today, as might be suggested by the use of only a tablespoonful to flavor this quantity of food. We have numerous recipes for both products but either one takes about six times longer to make than this chowder does, so the strongest commercial substitute sauce that can be found seems like a reasonable modification of strict historical accuracy.