Mackenzie's Ten Thousand Receipts

Ten thousand receipts from the great Victorian household compendium — cookery, brewing, dyeing, gilding, fireworks, medicine, farriery and the rest of the useful arts, in one volume.

HomeThe Art Of Carving › A Shoulder of Mutton

A Shoulder of Mutton

No. 1. a d C 9 C e f d Figure 1 represents a shoulder of mutton, which is sometimes salted and boiled by fanciful people; but customarily served up roasted, and laid in a dish, with the back or upper side uppermost, as here represented.

When not over-roasted it is a joint very full of gravy, much more so than a leg, and as such by many preferred, and particularly as having many very good, delicate, and savory parts in it.

The shank-bone should be wound round with writing paper, as pointed out in the leg, that the person carving may take hold of it to turn it as he wishes. Now, when it is first cut, it should be in the hollow part of it, in the direction a b, and the knife should be passed deep to the bone.

The gravy then runs fast into the dish, and the part cut opens wide enough to take many slices from it readily.

The best fat, that which is full of kernels and best flavored, lies on the outer edge, and is to be cut out in thin slices in the direction e f. If many are at table, and the hollow part, cut in the line a b, is all eaten, some very good and delicate slices may be cut out on each side of the ridge of the blade-bone, in the direction cd. The line between these two dotted lines is that in the direction of which the edge or ridge of the bladebone lies, and cannot be cut across. A Shoulder of Mutton-No. 2.

The upper part, as here shown, is certainly the handsomest, fullest of gravy, most tender, and is encircled with fat; but there are still some who prefer a slice on the under side, which is quite lean. But as it is a heavy joint and very troublesome to turn, that person cannot have much good manners who requests it.

The skewer that keeps the meat together when boiling is here shown at a. It should be drawn out before the dish is served up to table, or if it be necessary to leave a skewer in, that skewer should be a silver one.

A Knuckle of Veal. k g h C ド /// b On the under side of the shoulder, as represented in figure 2, there are two parts very full of gravy, and such as many persons prefer to those of the upper side. One is a deep cut in the direction gh, accompanied with fat, and the other all lean in a line from i to k. The parts about the shank are coarse and dry, as about the knuckle in the leg, but yet some prefer this dry part, as being less rich or luscious, and of course less apt to cloy.

A shoulder of mutton over-roasted is spoiled.

A Leg of Pork, Whether boiled or roasted, is sent up to table as a leg of mutton roasted, and cut up in the same manner; of course I shall refer you to what I have said on that joint, only that the close firm flesh about the knuckle is by many reckoned the best, which is not the case in a leg of mutton.

A Shoulder of Pork Is never cut or sent to table as such, but the shank-bone, with some little meat annexed, is often served up boiled, and called a spring, and is very good eating. b C Edge-Bone of Beef. d A knuckle of veal is always boiled, and is admired for the fat, sinewy tendons about the knuckle, which, if boiled tender, are much esteemed. A lean knuckle is not worth the dressing.

You cannot cut a handsome slice, but in the direction a b. The most delicate fat lies about the part d, and if cut in the line d c, you will divide two bones, between which lies plenty of fine, marrowy fat. The several bones about the knuckle may be readily separated at the joints, and, as they are covered with tendons, a bone may be given to those who like it.

A Breast of Veal, Roasted. aaaa a In carving it, as the outside suffers in its flavor from the water in which it is boiled, the dish should be turned towards the carver, as it is here represented, and a thick slice should be first cut off the whole length of the joint, beginning at a and cutting it all the way even and through the whole surface, from a to b.

The soft fat that resembles marrow lies on the back below the letter d, and the firm fat is to be cut in thin horizontal slices at the point c; but as some persons prefer the soft fat and others the firm, each should be asked what he likes.

This is the best end of a breast of veal, with the sweetbread lying on it, and, when carved, should be first cut down quite through in the first line on the left, dc; it should next be cut across in the line ac; from c to the last a on the left, quite through divides the gristles from the rib-bones; this done, to those who like fat and gristle, the thick or gristly part should be cut into pieces as wanted, in the lines a b. When a breast of veal is cut into pieces and stewed, these gristles are very tender and eatable. To such persons as prefer a bone a rib should be cut or separated from the rest in the line dc, and with a part of the breast, a slice of the sweetbread, e, cut across the middle.

A Saddle of Mutton. a Б This is by some called a chine of mutton, the saddle being the two necks; but as the two necks are now seldom sent to table together, they call the two loins a saddle.

A saddle of mutton is a genteel and handsome dish; it consists of the two loins together, the back-bone running down the middle to the tail.

Of course, when it is to be carved, you must cut a long slice in either of the fleshy parts on the side of the back-bone, in the direction a b.

There is seldom any great length of the tail left on, but if it is sent up with the tail many are fond of it, and it may readily be divided into several pieces by cutting between the joints of the tail, which are about the distance of one inch apart.

A saddle of venison is cut similarly to the above.

A Spare-Rib of Pork. line cd, and which is esteemed the best part in the head. Many like the eye, which is to be cut from its socket a, by forcing the point of a carving knife down to the bottom on one edge of the socket, and cutting quite round, keeping the point of the knife slanting towards the middle, so as to separate the meat from the bone. This piece is seldom divided, but if you wish to oblige two persons with it, it may be cut into two parts. The palate is also reckoned by some a delicate morsel. This is found on the under side of the roof of the mouth; it is a crinkled, white, thick skin, and may be easily separated from the bone by the knife by lifting the head up with your left hand.

There is also some good meat to be met with on the under side, covering the under jaw; and some nice gristly fat to be pared off about the ear, g.

There are scarcely any bones here to be separated, but one may be cut off at the neck, in the line fe, but this is a coarse part.

There is a tooth in the upper jaw, the last tooth behind, which, having several cells, and being full of jelly, is called the sweet tooth. Its delicacy is more in the name than in anything else. It is a double tooth, lies firm in its socket at the further end, but if the calf is a young one, may readily be taken out with the point of a knife.

A Ham. a A spare-rib of pork is carved by cutting out a slice from the fleshy part in the line a b. This joint will afford many good cuts in this direction, with as much fat as people like to eat of such strong meat. When the fleshy part is cut away, a bone may be easily separated from the next to it in the line d be, disjointing it at c.

Half a Calf's Head Boiled. f g C a A ham is cut two ways; across, in the line b c, or with the point of a carving knife, in the circular line in the middle, taking out a small piece as at a, and cutting thin slices in a circular direction, thus enlarging it by degrees. This last method of cutting it is to preserve the gravy and keep it moist, which is thus prevented from running out.

A Haunch of Venison.

C a d b d There are many delicate bits about a calf's head, and when young, perfectly white, fat and welldressed, half a head is a genteel dish, if a small one.

When first cut it should be quite along the cheek bone, in the fleshy part, in the direction e b, where many handsome slices may be cut. In the fleshy part at the end of the jaw-bone, lies part of the throat sweetbread, which may be cut into in the In carving a haunch of venison, first cut it across down to the bone, in the line dca, then turn the dish with the end a towards you, put in the point of the knife at c, and cut it down as deep as you can in the direction cb; thus cut, you may take out as many slices as you please, on the right or left. As the fat lies deeper on the left, between b and a, to those who are fond of fat, as most venison eaters are, the best flavored and fattest slices will be found on the left of the line cb, supposing the end a turned towards you. Slices of venison should not be cut thick nor too thin; and plenty of gravy should be given with them.

An Ox Tongue. a C

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