BOILING. Cleanliness here is of great consequence; and for this purpose
all culinary vessels should be made of iron, or of other metals well
tinned. The pernicious effects of copper or brass may be perceived by
rubbing the hand round the inside of a pot or kettle made of either of
those metals, and which has been scoured clean and fit for use; for
though it may not discolour the hand, yet it will cause an offensive
smell, and must in some degree affect every article which is put into
it. If copper or brass be used, they should be well cleaned, and nothing
suffered to remain in the vessels longer than is necessary for the
purposes of cooking. In small families however, block-tin saucepans and
boilers are much to be preferred, as lightest and safest. If proper care
be taken of them, and they are well dried after being cleaned, they are
also by far the cheapest; the purchase of a new tin saucepan being
little more than the expense of tinning a copper one. Care should be
taken to have the covers of boiling pots fit close, not only to prevent
an unnecessary evaporation of the water, but that the smoke may not
insinuate itself under the edge of the lid, and give the meat a bad
taste. A trivet or fish drainer placed in the boiler to lay the meat on,
and to raise it an inch and a half from the bottom, will prevent that
side of it which comes next the bottom from being done too much, and the
lower part of the meat will be as delicately done as any other. Instead
of a trivet, four skewers stuck into the meat transversely will answer
the purpose, or a soup plate whelmed the wrong side upwards. With good
management it will take less fire for boiling than for roasting, but it
should be kept to a regular pitch, so as to keep the pot gently boiling
all the time. If it boils too fast, it will harden the meat, by
extracting too much of the gravy; but if it be allowed to simmer only,
or to boil gently, it will become rich and tender. The scum must be
carefully taken off as soon as the water boils, or it will sink and
discolour the meat. The oftener it is scummed, and the cleaner the top
of the water is kept, the cleaner will be the meat; and if a little cold
water be occasionally thrown in, it will bring up the remainder of the
scum to the surface. Neither mixing milk with the water nor wrapping up
the meat in a cloth are necessary, if the scum be attentively removed;
and the meat will have a more delicate colour, and a finer flavour, if
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