Home › Household Conveniences › Game and Poultry (Way If game or poultry)

Game and Poultry (Way If game or poultry)

way. If game or poultry is at all strong, let it stand for several hours in water with either soda or charcoal; the latter will sweeten them when they are apparently spoiled. English or French cooks, however, never wash poultry or game in dressing, unless there is something to wash off. With skillful dressing, none is necessary on the score of cleanliness, and much washing tends to impair the fine flavor, especially of game. In all game and poultry the female is the choicer.

Sportsmen who wish to keep prairie-chickens, pheasants, or wild fowl in very hot weather, or to ship long distances, should draw the bird as soon as killed, force down the throat two or three whole peppers, tying a string around the throat above them, sprinkle inside a little powdered charcoal, and fill the cavity of the body with very dry grass. Avoid green or wet grass, which "heats" and hastens decay. If birds are to be shipped without drawing, force a piece of charcoal into the vent, and tie a string closely around the neck, so as to exclude all air, and make a loop in string to hang up by. Prepared in this way, they will bear shipment for a long distance. Ducks.-Young ducks feel tender under the wings, and the web of the foot is transparent; those with thick, hard breasts are best. Tame ducks have yellow legs; wild ducks, reddish ones.

GEESE. In young geese, the bills and feet are yellow and supple, and the skin may be easily broken; the breast is plump, and the fat white; an old goose has red and hairy legs, and is unfit for the table. WILD DUCKS, if fishy and the flavor is disliked, should be scalded for a few minutes in salt and water before roasting. If the flavor is very strong, the duck may be skinned, as the oil in the skin is the objectionable part. After skinning, spread with butter, and thickly dredge with flour, before putting in a very quick oven.

GAME.-In pheasants and quails, yellow legs and dark bills are signs of a young bird. They are in season in autumn. Pigeons should be fresh, fat and tender, and the feet pliant and smooth. In prairie-chickens, when fresh, the eyes are full and round, not sunken; and, if young, the breast-bone is soft and yields to pressure. The latter test also applies to all fowls and game birds. Plover, woodcock, snipe, etc., may be chosen by the same rules. TURKEYS are in season in fall and winter, but deteriorate in the spring. Old turkeys have long hairs, and the flesh is purplish when it shows under the skin on legs and back; when good, they are white, plump, with full breast and smooth, black legs; and, if male, soft, loose spurs. The eyes are bright and full, and the feet are supple, when fresh. The absence of these signs denotes age and staleness. Hen turkeys are inferior in flavor, but are smaller, fatter and plumper. Full-grown turkeys are best for boning or boiling, as the flesh does not tear in dressing. CHICKENS, when fresh, are known by full, bright eyes, pliable feet, and soft, moist skin. Young fowls have a tender skin, smooth legs and comb, and the best have yellow legs. In old fowls, the legs are rough and hard. The top of the breast-bone of a young fowl is soft, and may be easily bent with the fingers; and the feet and neck are large in proportion to the body. The best fowls are fat, plump, with skin nearly white, and the grain of the flesh fine. Old fowls have long, thin necks and feet, and the flesh on the legs and back has a purplish shade. Fowls are always in season. VENISON. -The choice of venison should be regulated by the fat, which, when the venison is young, should be thick, clear and close, while the meat is a reddish brown. As it always begins to taint first near the haunches, run a knife into that part; if tainted, a rank smell and a greenish appearance will be perceptible. It may be kept a long time, however, with careful management and watching, by the following process: Wash it well in milk and water, and dry it perfectly with a cloth until there is not the least damp remaining; then dust ground pepper over every part. This is a good preservative against the fly. The flesh of a female deer, about four years old, is the sweetest and best of venison.