The Somerset reporter., 1896-05-14

TRICKS OF TIE COOKS AND The
MARKETMEN OF PARIS.

Partisan Deceptions.
We often hear people Who have pain
- minute visits u Paris talk of tie
bclui - e Partisan cuisine Here are
few Il taom. Just as the Parisians,
like the cocl,ney coffee house keepers,
have found out how 10 make coffee
without coffee 50 have also the Partisan
restaurateurs found out how to make
bouillon or beef tea, without beef. At
the gargotes, the lowest class Of Paris
restaurants, Il species of very ingenious
fraud has now been common for over
half a century and maybe more. 1t con
sists in passing off warm water, colored
and favored with burned onions and
caramel and into which some little
grease bubbles have been injected, is
soup. 1t is true that bones which have
been twice stewed first by the larger
restaurants and secondly by the inferior
class of traiteurs and cast away as done
with, are steWed i'll this water for the
third time, i'll order that it may be inI-
pregnated, if possible, with some parti-
Gle of animal substance; but, as this OPP
Grafton fails to impart to it those little
greasy bubbles which the French term
eyes and for which the shrcwd fire.
quenters Of these establishments invaria-
bly, look i'll order to satisfy themselves
that the broth thev drink has been act.
ually made from meat a clever cook
got over the difficulty by blowing Il
spoonful Of fish oil which, falling into
the caldron or soup tureen, formed the
eyes SO dear to epieures.
Parisians of certain class are inordi-
nate eaters Of ham-in fact, almost It's
many hams are eaten in Paris as could
be furnished by all the pigs killed
throughout the whole of France, even
allowing for both shoulder and leg be
ing cured in accordance with French
practice. The demand used-and may
be now-to be supplied in this wise
The dealers in cooked hams bought up
the old ham bones II Il couple of soils Il
piece and ingeniously inserted them into
pieces Of picked pork, which they trim
med into shape and coated with grated
crusts. In this way many bones did duty
hundreds of times over lasting, in fact,
for years They would leave the dealers
i'll the morning and frequently return
to them the same night to quit them
again the following day. Nevertheless
the supply could hardly keep pace with
the demand. Only fancy the inconYen-
fence # having 10 wait fer your ham
until Your noighbGr' ) servant took back
the hum bone which the eharcutjtr t.
lied upon receiving yesterday! 1t Was to
obviate such a state of things that an
ingenious individual conceived the idea
of manufacturing ham bones wholesale.
and ere long he drove a thriving trade
at 10 Saus dozen, since which time
the stock of hams has augmented and
the delicacy has become less difficult of
attainment Much III the same way an
other ingenious individual, knowing the
immense consumption of cocks combs III
Paris for ragouts ccQuilles of cocks
combs and vOl-au-VentS and seeing the
high prices the said cocks combs com
manded owing to the limited supply,
set to work to minister to the demand
and duly established himself as II man
ufacturer of cocks combs. So extensive
was the trade dome by HIM that he
found II necessary To set up Il small
steam engine. He was great enthusiast
and was accustomed to pride himself
upon the artificial cocks combs which
cmanated from his atclier being great
ly superior to the natural article.
This Is the way our artist went to
work. As the same method is largely
worked at this day in London as we'll
as in Paris-ay, and in New York and
New Orlcans-we purposely use the
present tense for Il time He takes the
palate of Il bullock, COW, calf, sheep or
goat-eithcr will do, though he prefers
the first. After having blanched it in
boiling water he macerates it and de-
taches the flesh of the palatic vault
without in the slightest degree derang-
ing it and then places it under IA stamp
ing machine, which punches out cocks
combs more perfect in shape than those
produced by nature, yet sufficiently re-
sembling them To deceive the connois-
seurs. STILL there is way of detecting
the artificial production-the cocks
combs of clumsy nature have papille ON
both sides, whereas those of art have
them only on one Counterfeit cocks
combs are sold as low as sous the
dozen III Paris to poulterers, keepers Of
restaurants, pastry cooks, etc, and at 6
sous to cooks in private families.
Apropos of our subject, this man, in
his intercourse with poulterers, got to
learn that when they did not sell their
turkeys off at once they We're obliged
to lower the price about one-tifth every
subsequent day or submit to loss, al
though the turkey might present the
same appearance OF freshness that it did
when first killed And yet no cook could
be deceived, and this solely because the
bird s legs, which were black and shiny
on the day Of its death, assumed a more
and more grayish tone as time went on
This was quite sufficient for our man Of
genius The shreWd manufacturer of
cocks combs FASTENED home and set TO
work to compound a yarnish which
should defy the attacks OF time and
render turkeys legs ever fresh and
youthful In couple of days he return
ed triumphant to the market and fnr-
nished the best proof Of his success by
dccciylng the dealers themselves Trials
were next made upon the public, and
turkeys with vanished legs We're offered
% the cunnngest cooks who deceived
by appearances made their purchases