1885 New Guide Hotel Bar Restaurant

HOTEL AND RESTAURANT COOKERY.

4OI

powdered alum, over a low fire. Let it get right hot and crisp, then lift out the samphire, place it in jars, pour over it white wine vinegar, 1 oz. each of cloves, long peppers, all- spice and ginger, to each 3 pints of vinegar. The vinegar must cover the samphire. In three days look at it, and fill up with vinegar, repeat this at the end of the week. In a month it will be fit for use.

To Choose Lemons.

The large coarse fruit one sees in the markets are of the lemon tribe, but not pure lemons, they are what the shad- docks is to the orange. The large so-called " lemons " have thicker rinds, there is a bitter principle in the white pith, that renders them undesirable for many dishes. Besides bulk for bulk the large lemon" has less aromatic principle or essen- tial oil than its smaller relative, and the juice is neither so acid nor so plentiful as in the true lemon, but rather tends to pungency. The rind of the lemon should be fine grained, it should feel Jirm without feeling hard, withered or dried up. I am particular on this point, because I have suffered through bad goods. Again in the East end of London, Bethnal Green, for instance, old wizened lemons, limes, and oranges, are revived by placing in a tank, pot, or pan, or worse still, the copper, where they boil clothes at small laundries. The vessel is filled with cold water, a fire is lighted under, the goods just come to the boil, then the fire dies out, the revived goods are taken out, wiped dry, and sold as fast as convenient, or they mould soon. The appearance is pale yellow with darker spots, like gelatine semi-opaque, or the small pin points seen on the shell of a bad egg is a better description. The oil is nearly gone and the fruit of little or no use. z