835. How To Boil Potatoes

In Ireland potatoes are boiled in perfection; the humblest peasant places his potatoes on his table better cooked than could half the cooks in London trying their best. Potatoes should always be boiled in their "jackets;" peeling a potato before boiling is offering a premium for water to run through it, and go to table waxy and unpalatable; they should be thoroughly washed and put into cold water. In Ireland they always nick a piece of the skin off before they place them in the pot; the water is gradually heated, but never allowed to boil; cold water should be added as soon as the water commences boiling, and it should thus be checked until the potatoes are done, the skins will not then be broken or cracked until the potato is thoroughly done; pour the water off completely, and let the skins be thoroughly dry before peeling.

836. How To Boil New Potatoes

The sooner the new potatoes are cooked after being dug, the better they will eat; clear off all the loose skins with a coarse towel and cold water; when they are thoroughly clean put them into scalding water, a quarter of an hour or twenty minutes will be found sufficient to cook them; strain off the water dry, sprinkle a little salt over the potatoes and send them to table. If very young, melted butter should accompany them.

Boil the potatoes; before they are quite done take them up, place them aside, and let them get cold; cut them in slices of a moderate thickness; place in a stewpan a lump of fresh butter, and a tea-spoonful of flour; let the butter boil, and add a tea-cupful of broth; let it'boil and add the potatoes, which you have covered with parsley, chopped fine, and seasoned with pepper and salt, stew them five minutes, remove them from the fire; beat up the yolk of one egg with a table-spoonful of cold water and a little lemon juice. The sauce will set, then dish up the potatoes and serve.

838. Roasted Potatoes

Clean thoroughly; nick a small piece out of the skin, and roast in the oven of the range; a little butter is sometimes rubbed over the skin to make them crisp.

839. Broiled Potatoes

Rather more than parboil the potatoes; pare off the skin, flour them and lay them upon a gridiron over a clear fire; send them to table with cold fresh butter.

840. Fried Potatoes

Remove the peel from an uncooked potato. After it has been thoroughly washed cut the potato into thin slices, and lay them in a pan with some fresh butter, fry gently a clear brown, lay them one upon the other in a small dish, and send to table as an entremets.

841. Potatoes A Ia Creme

Boil them, not so much that they will break easily; cut them into slices of about half an inch, season them with salt and white pepper; place them in a stewpan with a third part of a pint of bechamel, toss them gently until enough.

842. Potatoes Glazed

Boll well; skin them; choose the most floury, roll them in yolk of egg, and place them before the fire to brown.

843. Potato Rissoles

Boil the potatoes floury; mash them, seasoning with salt and a little cayenne; mince parsley very finely and work up with the potatoes, adding eschalot also chopped small; bind with yolk of egg, roll into balls and fry with fresh butter over a clear fire. Meat shred finely, bacon or ham may be added.

844. Potato Souffle

Take any number of large, potatoes, the less eyes and the firmer the skin the better. Clean them thoroughly and then bake them; after which cut out a round piece, not quite so large as a half-crown, out of each potato, and remove as much of the inside as can be obtained without damage to the skin. Mash the potatoes with cream, adding a little butter, sprinkle over a little salt, and put to it half a pint of good milk; give it all a boil; take the white of three eggs, whip them until they froth, add them to the potatoes while they boil, and then make the potatoes into a paste; return them through the orifice in the skin of the potato until each skin is full; bake them, and serve.

845. Potato Ragout

Mash floury potatoes, make them into balls with yolk of egg, flour, and fry them; drain off all grease, cover them with brown sauce and serve.

846. A Puree, Or, Soup Of Potatoes

Mash them; after having boiled them quite hot, mix them with. some fine white veal gravy, thicken with cream; it Should, when done, be of the consistency of apple sauce.

847. How To Mash Potatoes

Boil the potatoes as above; peel them, remove all the eyes and lumps; beat them up with butter and salt in a wooden mortar until they are quite smooth; force them into a mould which has been previously floured, turn into a tureen which the flour will enable you easily to do; brown them before the fire, turning gently so as not to injure the shape, and when a nice colour send to table. They are sometimes coated with white of egg, but they may be cooked without.

848. Potato Balls

Mash some floury potatoes quite smooth, season with pepper and salt, add fresh butter until sufficiently moist, but not too much so; make into halls, roll them in vermicelli crumbled, or breadcrumbs, in the latter case they may he brushed with the yolk of egg, fry them a nice brown. Serve them on a napkin, or round a dish of mashed potatoes which has not been moulded.