Bacon, Fried

Slice quite thin. Remove the rind, as it not only is unsightly but makes the slices curl up in the pan. Put pan half full of water on fire; when water is warm, drop the bacon in, and stir around until water begins to simmer. Then remove bacon, throw out water, fry over very few coals, and turn often. Remove slices while still translucent, and season with pepper. They will turn crisp on cooling. Some prefer not to parboil.

Bacon, Broiled

Slice as above. Turn broiler repeatedly until bacon is of a light brown color, Time, three to four minutes.

Bacon, Boiled

Put in enough cold water to just cover. Bring to a boil very gradually. Remove all scum as it arises. Simmer gently until thoroughly done. Two pounds take hours; each additional pound, 1/2 hour.

Bacon, Toasted

Cut cold boiled bacon into thin slices. Sprinkle each with fine bread crumbs peppered with cayenne. Toast quickly in wire broiler.

Bacon And Eggs

Poach or fry the eggs and lay them on fried bacon.

Bacon Omelet

See Ham Omelet, near end of chapter.

Bacon Gravy, Thin

Pour off the fat and save it for future use. Pour in enough water to supply the quantity of gravy desired. Add the juice of a lemon. Boil and pour upon the bacon. If a richer gravy is desired, follow recipe given below.

Pork Gravy, Thickened

This can be made with ham or salt pork, as well as with bacon. To make gravy that is a good substitute for butter, rub into the hot grease that is left in the pan 2 tablespoonful of flour, keep on rubbing until smooth and brown; then add two cups boiling water and a dash of pepper. A tablespoonful of catchup may be added for variety. If you have milk, use it instead of water (a pint to the heaping tablespoonful of flour), and do not let the flour brown; this makes a delicious white gravy.

Salt Pork, Fried

Same as fried bacon, above. Pork should be firm and dry. Clammy pork is stale.

Salt Pork, Broiled

Same as bacon; but it is usually so salty that it should be parboiled first, or soaked at least an hour in cold water.

Salt Pork, Boiled

Nearly always cooked with vegetables or greens; hence need not be soaked or parboiled. See page 299.

Pork Fritters

Make a thick batter of corn-meal one-third and flour two-thirds, or of flour alone. Fry a few slices of salt pork or bacon until the fat is tried out. Then cut a few more slices, dip them in the batter, drop them in the bubbling fat, season with salt and pepper, fry to a light brown, and eat while hot. It takes the stomach of a lumberjack to digest this, but it is a favorite variant in frontier diet.

Pork And Hardtack

Soak hardtack in water until it is partly softened. Drop it into hot pork fat, and cook. A soldier's resource.

Ham, Fried

Same as bacon. Parboil, first, for eight or ten minutes, if hard and salty.

Ham And Eggs

Same as bacon and eggs.

Ham, Broiled

If salty, parboil first. Cut rather thick slices, pepper them, and broil five minutes. Ham that has been boiled is best for broiling. A little mustard may be spread on the slices when served.

Ham, Boiled

Wash the ham, and let it soak over night in cold water. In the morning, cover it well with fresh water, bring to a boil, and hang the kettle high over the fire where it will boil gently until dinner time. When the bone on the under side leaves the meat readily, the ham is done. If you have eggs, the nicest way to serve a boiled ham is to remove the skin, brush over the top of ham with yolk of egg, sprinkle thickly with finely grated crumbs or cracker-dust, and brown in an oven.

Ham And Macaroni

" Boil an inch-thick slice of ham half an hour, at the same time boiling the required amount of macaroni in salted water. When the macaroni is done, drain off the water and put in a baking dish and pour over it a can of tomatoes, which should be seasoned with salt and pepper. Place slice of ham on top, and bake half an hour. A little grated cheese is an improvement when mixed with the macaroni, before adding the tomatoes." (Arthur Chap/nan).

Ham Chow

Slice the required amount of potatoes in thin slices, season with salt and pepper, and place in baking dish. Add one can of tomatoes. Cover and cook for an hour. Then place slices of boiled ham, or some well seasoned chops, over the potato and tomato mixture, return to the oven without the cover, and bake half an hour. Thinly sliced bacon will take the place of ham or chops, but must only be left in the oven a few minutes. (Same).

Pork Sausages

Cut links apart, prick each with a fork so it will not burst in cooking, and broil on forked stick; or, lay in cold frying-pan, and fry fifteen to twenty minutes over a slow fire, moving them about so they will brown evenly all over. Serve with mashed potatoes, over which pour the fat from the pan. Apples fried to a light brown in the sausage grease are a pleasant accompaniment.

Corned Beef, Boiled

Put the ham into -enough cold water to cover it. Let it come slowly to a boil, and then merely simmer until done. Time, about one-half hour to each pound. Vegetables may be added toward the end, as directed on page 299. If not to be used until the next day, leave the meat in its liquor, weighted down under the surface by a clean rock.

Corned Beef Hash

Chop some canned corned beef fine with sliced onions. Hash up with freshly boiled potatoes, two parts potatoes to one of meat. Season highly with pepper (no salt), and some mustard if liked. Put a little pork fat in a frying-pan, melt, add hash, and cook until nearly dry and a brown crust has formed. Dehydrated potatoes and onions can be used according to directions on packages.

Stew With Canned Meat

Peel and slice some Onions. If the meat has much fat, melt it ; if not, melt a little pork fat. Add onions, and fry until brown. Mix some flour into a smooth batter with cold water, season with pepper and salt, and pour into the camp kettle. Stir the whole well together. Cut meat into slices, put into the kettle, and heat through.