Countess Vera Serkoff

“ No one can deny, however, that appetising as these homely fish are, the smell of frying kippers or bloaters is most aggressive. Not content with filling the house, it forces its way into the street, and triumphantly proclaims to our neighbours upon what humble fare we are feasting. But cooked in a “Papakuk Bag,” there is absolutely no smell to reveal the nature of the coming repast, and as many people dislike very much the smell of the food they are about to eat, and, indeed, complain that the smell takes away their appetite completely, this in itself is a great gain. ”

“ It is a great convenience to have some tins of various preserved foods in the store-room for use in emergencies. The butcher may fail to call, a downpour of rain prevent a shopping expedition, or guests may unexpectedly arrive on a “finish-up” day, that institution so dear to the heart of the thrifty housewife, who so contrives the fragments of the larder that they form a sufficient meal for the household without leaving a crumb over. In all such emergencies it is very comforting to know that the larder is well furnished with tinned foods of reliable brands. ”

“ When Primitive Man first ventured on the daring experiment of applying heat to his newly-slain prey, he would most naturally adopt the obvious plan of suspending it on three sticks over a fire. The result, though no doubt to a certain extent tasty, would be smoked, charred on one side, raw on the other, and this, coupled with the frequency of burned fingers gained while rescuing the meat from the fire into which it fell when the sticks burned through, caused Primitive Man—or, more probably, Primitive Woman—to evolve the method of cooking known to us to-day as Paper-bag Cookery. ”

“ In paper-bag cookery, the most varied assortment of dishes will lie amicably side by side on the grid supplied with the gas-cookers, and no mingling of flavours or spoiling of one or the other will result. Cooking them thus altogether, an immense saving in time and in expense for heating is effected. Even the savoury onion will cook placidly by the side of a bag of gooseberries, without imparting its flavour to the fruit. ”

“ KEDGEREE
is a splendid breakfast dish on a cold winter's morning, and as it can be entirely prepared over night, saves much time and trouble in preparing breakfast. Grease a bag very thoroughly and abundantly; place in it equal quantities of cold cooked fish freed from bone and skin, and cooked rice, pepper and salt to taste, one ounce of butter, one teaspoonful of made mustard, and two chopped hard-boiled eggs. Mix very thoroughly. Next morning all that remains to be done is to get the oven hot, put in the bag and let it remain for ten minutes, when it will be ready to serve. ”

“ It is equally unpleasant to sit in the room in which one has just dined, or to take meals in the room where they have just been cooked. With a little contrivance and ingenuity, the kitchen may be transformed into a neat little dining-room, a gas stove erected in any convenient recess or in the bathroom, and with paper-bag cookery, nothing more elaborate will be needed. ”

“ Many people prefer new potatoes plainly boiled, for the young, immature vegetable is of so watery a nature that unless the moisture be dispersed by rapid boiling, the potato is too wet and waxy to be palatable. For this reason, new potatoes cooked by steam or in a conservative boilerette are seldom liked, and paper-bagged new potatoes are open to the same objection. It is a different matter, however, with old potatoes, which, when cooked in a paper bag, are very generally liked, and several excellent and proved recipes for cooking old potatoes in paper bags are given further on. ”

“ A good crust is made from self-raising flour, butter, and an egg. Cut the pastry in two, and roll each piece into a pretty oval or round shape. Put the eels, cut into inch-long pieces, on the one half of the pastry; sprinkle them with minced parsley, a finely chopped onion, a little grated nutmeg, pepper, salt, and the juice of half a lemon. Cover over with the other piece of pastry, pinching the edges well together, and ornamenting them with a fork. Put into a very well buttered paper bag, and cook for an hour in a moderate oven. ”

“ The young couple setting up modestly in life are spared the outlay of an expensive range of cooking utensils; the occupant of cramped apartments has not to endure the obtrusive little kitchen in bed-or sitting-room, and the thrifty housewife has not the continual necessity of replacing a worn-out saucepan or burnt-out frying-pan. ”

“ The cook who has not the never-ending labour of cleaning saucepans and baking-tins, who has leisure for reasonable rest and recreation, is a contented being, not likely to give notice at awkward moments. The expense of most labour-saving domestic utensils prevents their adoption in households where means are limited, but the bags necessary for paper-bag cooking cost the merest trifle. ”

“ STEWED APPLES
are best cooked in a shallow tin or pie-dish, though they can be cooked placed simply in a well buttered bag. The apples are sliced, add a little lemon juice, sugar to taste, and a small quantity of water. Place in a well buttered bag, or put first into a pie dish which is slid into a bag—the last is really the best way. With or without the dish, cook for half an hour. The oven, after the first five minutes, must not be very hot. ”

“ In this method of cooking, the gravy stays in the meat, and that is what renders it so delicious, so juicy, so full of flavour. The meat which is dry and flavourless in proportion as its rich juices have been extracted, is the meat which yields most gravy. Therefore, paper-bagged joints yield very little gravy, and to add any water to the few spoonfuls of rich, strong gravy they do yield would be to spoil the flavour utterly. ”

“ A mixture of the above-mentioned fish is better than if the stew consist of one kind only. Add half an onion cut into very thin slices, some finely chopped parsley, two cloves, one blade of mace, two bay leaves, a sprig of thyme, salt and pepper to taste. When this is all safely in the bag, pour in a cupful of stock, fish or meat stock, or if none is at hand, water will do, but whatever it is it must be slightly thickened. A small glass of port wine or claret is a great improvement. Close the bag very securely, and put into the oven for thirty-five minutes. ”

“ The baking tin must next be attended to, and then comes the array of saucepans, stewpans, and frying-pans which have been used, and which are often so difficult to scour that one can understand and almost forgive the hard-driven “general” who puts them away in a dirty condition, trusting to be able to clean them some time before they are again required. In this particular, the contrast between paper-bag and ordinary cooking is most striking.
The meat having been cooked in a bag, there is no grease to be scrubbed from the oven, and none on the bars of the grid where it has lain ”

“ Quails, puff pastry, turbot, and salmon are all very well in their way, and it is gratifying to the wealthy epicure to know that to cook them in paper bags is to attain perfection; but there are many of us to whose limited incomes these dishes are quite unattainable luxuries, and who are more interested in knowing how to cook simple and cheap articles of food to advantage. ”

“ But stews, though nourishing and economical, are not savoury, and the thrifty housewife will rejoice to know that by placing her joint in a paper bag, her family may enjoy the savour and tastiness of roast meat, without the waste in the cooking. As the joint goes into the oven, so it comes out, the same weight, or, if in some instances there be some difference, it is so slight as to be infinitesimal. ”

“ After about ten to fifteen minutes, the gas may be turned half-way down, and this degree of heat steadily maintained till the cooking is completed.
Sometimes, when people are living in apartments, there is a supply of gas, but no cooker. In such a case, it would be easy to buy a gas ring and tubing to attach it to a gas jet. Over the ring a tin oven, such as can be had cheaply from most ironmongers, should be placed, and it will be found that a paper-bag dinner will emerge most successfully from it. ”

“ THE HOMELY IRISH STEW
is admirable cooked in a paper bag. Buy two pounds of small neck of mutton chops, trim nicely and take away excess of bone and fat. Cut two or three small onions into rather thin slices, and two pounds of potatoes into thick slices, sprinkle meat, onions, and potatoes with herbs finely rubbed to powder, salt and pepper to taste, add a large breakfastcupful of water. ”

“ A cold shoulder of lamb is delicious when devilled. Cut over night large gashes in the meat, and fill these gashes with dripping or butter, in which has been mixed plenty of pepper, salt, dry mustard, and a few drops of lemon juice if that flavour is liked. ”

“ In boiling meat less is lost, but even that little is mourned by the thrifty soul, and stews are recommended, because what is lost in the cooking goes to enrich the gravy and vegetables in the stewpan. ”

“ A gas-cooker is undoubtedly the best for paper-bag cookery, as the ease with which the heat is regulated, and a steady even degree maintained, the little attention it requires while the food is cooking, make it ideal for all ways of preparing food, but especially for the method now under consideration. Gas is absolutely perfection for paper-bag cookery. ”

“ Green peas gain a perfectly exquisite flavour when cooked in a paper bag, but a certain amount of care is required. Too much water will ruin them, and if left too long in the oven they will be hard. One family declared with one voice against paper-bag cookery, because a dish of young, fresh peas emerged from the oven looking like tiny brown bullets, and crackling crisply between the teeth of those who tried to eat them. ”

“ Practice and experience are the safest guides, and the paper-bag cook will soon learn the exact time each dish requires. There will not be many failures, for a little too long will not dry up the food in the bags, and if it be underdone, it may be turned into another bag and put back into the oven. Always have the bags large enough; they may split when the food is being put in if they are a tight fit. ”

“ Melt one ounce of butter in a small saucepan, add a tablespoonful of water, and when it boils sift in gradually two tablespoonfuls of self-raising flour, and three of grated cheese; season to taste. Stir till the mixture leaves the saucepan, and then take off the fire. When cool, stir in a well beaten egg and set aside till quite cold. Then shape into balls, put into a buttered bag, and cook fifteen minutes in a fairly hot oven. ”

“ Paper-bag cookery should appeal especially to the caterer for a small family. The difficulty of providing suitable joints for households of three or four persons is very great. A small piece of sirloin or half leg of mutton dries up to nothing when cooked in the ordinary way, and loud are the complaints that the flavour and juiciness of a large joint is not to be had under ten to twelve pounds of meat. Yet, if the housewife invests in the large, juicy joint desired, she finds it a very expensive business. One day's dinner hot and one cold is all that is really relished. ”

“ For the business woman, living in one room, ordinary cooking is out of the question, yet most landladies refuse to cook for their lodgers, except at a high charge, and restaurant living is expensive. Ordinary cooking, too, means more or less heat and odours, incompatible with keeping the one room fresh and neat. In this case, too, paper-bag cookery solves the difficulty. ”

“ But all houses are not supplied with gas, and even if they are, the economical housewife may prefer to cook by coal fires, at all events in winter, when the kitchen-range is alight all day long, or when it is going for the purpose of getting hot water for baths. ”

“ Even if nothing more than a paraffin stove is to be had, still the paper-bag cook need not despair. Longer time will be needed to get the oven placed on top of a paraffin stove to the necessary degree of heat, but by remembering this, and maintaining the same steady heat, paper-bag cookery may be managed much more satisfactorily in such an oven than ordinary cooking could possibly be. ”

“ Served cold, they neither look tempting nor taste savoury, especially on a winter's day; heated in the tin they acquire an unpleasant “tinny” flavour, re-cooked as stews, or put into a hot oven, they lose all flavour and nutritive value. So utterly do they lose their distinctive taste that it is impossible to tell beef from mutton, rabbit from chicken. It is in such cases that paper-bag cookery proves itself invaluable. ”

“ Several noted vegetarians are enthusiastic on the subject, and declare that paper-cooking is the very best possible way of conserving the juices and flavour of all vegetables. Others, again, shake doubtful heads, though they admit that some vegetables are improved by this method of cooking, while others are quite decided against it, maintaining that a new and unpleasant flavour is imparted to vegetables so cooked. On investigation, however, it will be found that these last-mentioned critics have not given paper-bag cookery a fair trial. ”

“ Then, again, tinned foods are the great stand-by of people living in apartments. There is little accommodation for storing food, and it is not pleasant to keep meat, even for a few hours only, in the room where one sits; in summer it becomes an impossibility. ”

“ Joints require no basting, and provided care is taken to lower the gas sufficiently to prevent scorching the bags, the food can be left to look after itself until the proper time for dishing up arrives.
A very great advantage both to mistress and maid is the cleanliness of the process. It is undoubtedly an advantage when doing without a servant to have no pots and pans to soil one's fingers, or to roughen one's hands with the necessary strong soda water for cleansing kitchen utensils. ”

“ If the bags are put on a hot baking sheet, the cooking will be a failure, because it is necessary for the hot air to circulate round the food and completely surround it; besides, the bags will burst as soon as they are laid on a hot solid surface. ”

“ An ordinary coal heated kitchen-range will answer very well for paper-bag cookery, if a little care and attention be given to the matter. The cook must firmly impress on [Pg 17] her mind that the bags must not be laid on a solid baking sheet, but on a wire grid, which may be cheaply acquired at an ironmonger's; that the oven must be heated to 220° Fahr. before the food is put into it—a cooking thermometer is not an expensive item; and that, though the heat may be lessened after some twenty minutes, the fire must not be allowed to go down and then be built up again to complete the cookery. ”

“ But one cannot waste time in lamentations over the few vegetables which are failures cooked in this way, when one considers how many there are which gain so much in flavour as to be a revelation in delicacy and richness of taste to those who have only known them cooked in the ordinary way. ”

“ It is, however, quite necessary to freely grease the inside of the bags containing fish or pudding, otherwise the food will stick to the bag, and although it is not wise to thickly grease one containing a joint, especially a fat joint, yet the meat itself should be lightly rubbed over with a morsel of dripping or vegetable lard to prevent the paper sticking to it. Butter should not be used, as it gives meat a bad colour. ”