Home › The Principles of Cookery › Sweetbread

Sweetbread

This is the pancreas of the animal, and is both nutritious and delicate. Sweetbreads should be chosen as fresh as possible, as they very quickly spoil. There are two sorts--heart sweetbreads and throat sweetbreads. The heart sweetbreads are the best, and also the most expensive. In whatever way sweetbreads are dressed, they should first be soaked in lukewarm water for a couple of hours. They should then be put into boiling water and simmered gently for five or ten minutes, according to size, and when taken up they should be laid in cold water. Sweetbreads vary considerably in price, according to the time of the year. They are quite as frequently employed as ingredients in sundry made dishes, such as vol-au-vents, ragouts, etc., as served alone, and as they do not possess a very decided natural flavour they need to be accompanied by a highly-seasoned sauce, or they will taste rather insipid. They are in full season from May to August.