A Course of Lectures on the Principles of Domestic Economy and Cookery

the breast has been taken off, cut it up in several pieces. First, cut off the entire tip, leaving that in one piece. Then cut the remainder in two or four pieces, according to its size. Next cut the back bone. There is a natural division in the upper part of the back bone that breaks there; cut that off and trim off the ribs. In cutting the lower part of the back bone, instead of cutting it just in two, making rather queer pieces to help, cut off the upper part of it leaving it entire, not splitting that part of it. In that way, cut off the portion called the "oysters,"--two little pieces of flesh in the upper part of the back bone, that are considered very nice. On one plate we have the inferior parts, on the other the nice parts of the chicken, being all cut in pieces of one size. It is easy to help, it cooks more evenly, and is rather nicer than if you had it in two or three sizes. Part of the chicken I am going to make into a brown fricassee, and part of it I am going to fry. There would be thirteen pieces if we counted the two pieces of the back bone. There are half a dozen of the poor pieces, not counting the wing pieces or neck. The question is asked whether the cords or sinews should be drawn from the legs. You can do that with old poultry if you want to, because those cords never get very tender. It is not necessary to do it with medium tender poultry. First brown the chicken, using either some of the chicken fat, or butter, or salad oil for browning it. Now, since the question of using salad oil in cooking has come up, suppose I cook this chicken with salad oil so that you can taste it. After all, that is the best test you possibly can have as to whether you like salad oil in cooking. I shall put in just salad oil enough to