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Asparagus and Shrimp Salad
1 pint (2 cups) boiled as- Mayonnaise dressing paragus tips 1 pint (2 cups) cooked and sliced shrimps 1 tablespoonful capers 1 tablespoonful chopped olives 1 teaspoonful French mustard Boil the asparagus tips and let them get cold; then put them into a fireproof dish with the shrimps. Put the capers, olives, and French mustard into the mayonnaise dressing, then mix it with the asparagus and shrimps.
A cold composed salad that needs no cooking beyond the asparagus and shrimp, both of which must be fully chilled before dressing.
- QuantitiesA pint here is a volume measure of prepared food, not weight: 2 cups of trimmed asparagus tips takes roughly a pound or more of spears once the woody ends are gone, and 2 cups of sliced cooked shrimp is somewhere near 3/4 lb peeled. Probably enough for four as a first course.
- The fireproof dishNothing is baked here, so the fireproof dish is serving as the bowl rather than as ovenware; any shallow dish will do.
- French mustardThis means a smooth Dijon-style mustard, not the bright yellow American kind. A teaspoonful is enough to sharpen the dressing without dominating the shrimp.
- Cook the asparagus brieflyPeriod boiling times for asparagus ran long. Give the tips 2 to 4 minutes in salted water until just tender, then drop them into ice water so they hold their colour and do not slump into the dressing.
- ShrimpPoach until just opaque, 2 to 3 minutes for medium shrimp, and cool completely. "Sliced" most likely means halved lengthwise or cut across into rounds, which lets the dressing coat more surface.
- Dress at the last momentBoth vegetable and shellfish shed water as they sit. Fold the seasoned mayonnaise through only when you are ready to serve, or the dressing thins and separates.
- OlivesProbably green olives in brine, though the recipe does not say. Rinse them if they are very salty, since capers and mayonnaise are already carrying salt.
- If using raw-egg mayonnaiseA homemade mayonnaise on a chilled seafood salad should be made with pasteurised eggs and kept refrigerated; commercial mayonnaise avoids the question entirely.
Casserole cookery books of the early twentieth century almost always carried a short salad chapter, because the fireproof earthenware and glass dishes then being marketed were sold as table service as much as ovenware -- a dish you could cook in, carry in, and serve from. Cold shellfish bound with mayonnaise was fashionable luncheon food of the period, and the trio of capers, chopped olives and mustard stirred into the dressing turns up often enough in recipes of the era to look like a familiar formula, close cousin to the remoulade and tartare sauces of contemporary hotel kitchens. Asparagus tips, sold canned as well as fresh, were a mark of a genteel table; pairing them with shrimp gave a dish that looked expensive and required no cooking skill beyond boiling and cooling.