ready for those who wish them ; then all maj' " fall to."
Fingers must be used. A Hhode Islander would laugh at
an}^ one trying to use a knife and fork. Pull off the thin
skin, take them by the black end, dip them in the prepared
butter, and bite off close to the end. If you swallow them
whole, they will not hurt you. At a genuine Ehode Island
clam bake, blue-fish, lobsters, crabs, sweet potatoes, and
ears of sweet corn in their gauzy husks are baked with
the clams. The clam steam gives them a delicious flavor.
Brown bread✪ Steamed Clams is served with the clams, and watermelon for
dessert completes the feast.
Scallops.
This shell fish has a round, deeply grooved shell. The
muscle which unites the shell is the only part eaten. Scal-
lops have a sweet flavor, and are in season during the fall
and winter. The}^ may be stewed like oysters, but are
better fried.
Fried Scallops, — Pick over, and wash quickly ; drain
between towels ; season Jine cracker crumbs with salt and
pepper. Dip the scallops in the crumbs, then in beaten egg^
and again in crumbs. Fry in smoking hot fat^ and serve
at once.
Lobsters.
The markets are now so well supplied with these deli-
cious shell fish, that they may be obtained in good condi-
tion all the year. The canned lobster is also convenient
in an emergency, for use in soups and salads. Lobsters
are put alive into boiling salted water, and cooked twenty
minutes from the time the water boils. They should not
be eaten until cold, and never be kept more than eighteen
hours after boiling. Lobsters are difficult of digestion,
and should be eaten with mustard, cayenne pepper, and
lemon juice or vinegar.
To Choose a Lobster. — Select one of medium size, heavy
in proportion to the size. Those with hard, solid shells,
streaked with black, will be found full of meat ; those with
The Boston Cook Book.
thin shells are water3^ If the tail spring back quickly
when straightened, the lobster is fresh.
To Open a Lobster, — Wipe the shell with a wet cloth.
Break off the large claws, separate the tail from the body
and the body from the shell, leaving the stomach, or ladj',
in the shell ; then remove the small claws. Save the
green liver and coral. Crush the tail b}^ pressing the
sides together, then pull it open on the under side, and
take out the meat in one piece. Draw back the flesh
on the upper end of this meat, and remove the intestinal
canal, which runs the entire length. This is sometimes
black, and sometim-es the color of the meat. Break olf all
the gills on the body before picking the meat from the
joints, as they are liable to drop off with the meat, and
are too w^oolly to be palatable. The gills, stomach, and
intestines are the only parts not eaten. Break the body
in the middle, and pick the meat from the joints, being
careful not to take any of the bones. When the shells of
the large claws are thin, cut off a strip down the sharp
edge, and remove the meat whole ; or break them by
hammering on the edge. Never pound them in the mid-
dle, as that crushes the meat. If the lobster shell is to
be used for serving the meat, cut down the under side of
the tail with a sharp knife, and remove the meat without
breaking the outside shell. Trim the inside, and clean
the shell. The body shell may be cleaned, split in halves,
and trimmed with sharp scissors into the shape of clam
shells. ✪ Plain Lobster
Page 111 · 3 recipe records on this page
Presented as published in 1884. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
ready for those who wish them; then all may "fall to." Fingers must be used. A Rhode Islander would laugh at any one trying to use a knife and fork. Pull off the thin skin, take them by the black end, dip them in the prepared butter, and bite off close to the end. If you swallow them whole, they will not hurt you. At a genuine Rhode Island clam bake, blue-fish, lobsters, crabs, sweet potatoes, and ears of sweet corn in their gauzy husks are baked with the clams. The clam steam gives them a delicious flavor. Brown bread is served with the clams, and watermelon for dessert completes the feast.
Scallops.
This shell fish has a round, deeply grooved shell. The muscle which unites the shell is the only part eaten. Scallops have a sweet flavor, and are in season during the fall and winter. The}^ may be stewed like oysters, but are better fried.
Fried Scallops, — Pick over, and wash quickly ; drain between towels ; season fine cracker crumbs with salt and pepper. Dip the scallops in the crumbs, then in beaten egg, and again in crumbs. Fry in smoking hot fat, and serve at once.
Lobsters.
The markets are now so well supplied with these delicious shell fish, that they may be obtained in good condition all the year. The canned lobster is also convenient in an emergency, for use in soups and salads. Lobsters are put alive into boiling salted water, and cooked twenty minutes from the time the water boils. They should not be eaten until cold, and never be kept more than eighteen hours after boiling. Lobsters are difficult of digestion, and should be eaten with mustard, cayenne pepper, and lemon juice or vinegar.
To Choose a Lobster. — Select one of medium size, heavy in proportion to the size. Those with hard, solid shells, streaked with black, will be found full of meat ; those with
The Boston Cook Book.
thin shells are water3^ If the tail spring back quickly when straightened, the lobster is fresh.
To Open a Lobster, — Wipe the shell with a wet cloth. Break off the large claws, separate the tail from the body and the body from the shell, leaving the stomach, or ladj', in the shell ; then remove the small claws. Save the green liver and coral. Crush the tail b}^ pressing the sides together, then pull it open on the under side, and take out the meat in one piece. Draw back the flesh on the upper end of this meat, and remove the intestinal canal, which runs the entire length. This is sometimes black, and sometim-es the color of the meat. Break olf all the gills on the body before picking the meat from the joints, as they are liable to drop off with the meat, and are too w^oolly to be palatable. The gills, stomach, and intestines are the only parts not eaten. Break the body in the middle, and pick the meat from the joints, being careful not to take any of the bones. When the shells of the large claws are thin, cut off a strip down the sharp edge, and remove the meat whole ; or break them by hammering on the edge. Never pound them in the middle, as that crushes the meat. If the lobster shell is to be used for serving the meat, cut down the under side of the tail with a sharp knife, and remove the meat without breaking the outside shell. Trim the inside, and clean the shell. The body shell may be cleaned, split in halves, and trimmed with sharp scissors into the shape of clam shells.
Records on this page
Fried ScallopsSteamed ClamsPlain Lobster