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Chicken Salad, Plain

Take a well-boiled fowl, and cut it into neat, small pieces. Make a pickle of equal parts of oil and vinegar, with a little finely-minced onion, salt, and pepper; let the pieces lie in this two or three hours, turning them occasionally that the chicken may become impregnated with the flavour of the pickle. Prepare some lettuce; if it is a young, the little heads may be cut into halves; if large, the hearts may be cut length-ways and divided; but especial care should be taken in making salads that the lettuce is perfectly dry. It is a good plan to wash it some hours before it is needed, and hang it in a wire basket in an airy situation. If after this it is not quite free from moisture, two or three leaves at a time should be put into a clean dry towel, and shaken gently about. A salad is never properly made unless attention is paid to this point, as the dressing, instead of mixing with the salad, will be all at the bottom of the bowl. Make a sauce as in the following recipe. Arrange the chicken and salad in the dish as prettily as you can, and pour the sauce over them; garnish with thin slices of beetroot cut into shapes with an ordinary pastry cutter, hard-boiled eggs cut into slices or quarters, and a little green parsley between the pieces of egg. A chicken salad neatly and tastefully arranged has a good appearance, and is generally a welcome dish. Time to boil the chicken, half an hour. Probable cost: chicken, 2s. 6d.; salad and dressing, 1s. Sufficient for six persons.