RICE

In many households it seems a difficulty to get rice cooked properly, that is having all the grains separate. Very often it comes to table in a soft, pulpy mass, which is certainly not appetising. To cook it in a large saucepanful of water which is then drained away is very wasteful, for a great deal of the goodness of the rice is thrown away. The following recipe will be found thoroughly reliable and satisfactory.

• RICE, HOW TO COOK.

1 lb. of good rice, 1 quart of water, 1 oz. of butter, salt to taste. Wash the rice and set it over the fire with 1 quart of cold water, the butter and salt. Let it come to the boil gently, stirring it a little to prevent the rice from sticking to the saucepan. When the rice boils, set it on the side and let it just simmer. It will be sufficiently cooked in 15 to 20 minutes and each grain will be separate. Rice should not be cooked too soft, only just cooked through.

• CURRIED RICE.

1 lb. of Patna rice, 1 quart of cold water, 1 dessertspoonful of curry, 1 oz. of butter, and salt to taste. Wash the rice, mix the curry with the proper quantity of water, and set the rice over the fire with it, adding the butter and seasoning. Let the rice come to the boil slowly, and stir it a few times to prevent it sticking to the saucepan. When the rice boils, cover it with a piece of buttered paper, and let it cook very gently, not stirring it again. When all the water is absorbed, serve the rice. Do not allow it to get very soft; the rice will take from 15 to 20 minutes’ cooking only.

• CURRIED RICE AND TOMATOES.

½ lb. of Patna rice, 1 dessertspoonful of curry powder, salt to taste, and 1 oz. of butter. Wash the rice; mix 1 pint of cold water with the curry powder, put this over the fire with the rice, butter, and salt. Cover the rice with a piece of buttered paper and let it simmer gently until the water is absorbed. This will take about 20 minutes. Rice cooked this way will have all the grains separate. For the tomatoes proceed as follows: 1 lb. of tomatoes and a little butter, pepper and salt. Wash the tomatoes and place them in a flat tin with a few spoonfuls of water; dust them with pepper and salt, and place little bits of butter on each tomato. Bake them from 15 to 20 minutes, according to the size of the tomatoes and the heat of the oven. Place the rice in the centre of a hot flat dish, put the tomatoes round it, pour the liquid over the rice, and serve.

• PORTUGUESE RICE.

1 teacupful of rice, 3 medium-sized onions, 3 tomatoes, 2 oz. of grated cheese, ½ teaspoonful of herbs, 1 oz. of butter, pepper and salt to taste. Peel and slice the onions and tomatoes and fry them in the butter for 15 minutes; place the rice over the fire with 1 pint of water; add the onions, tomatoes, herbs, and seasoning, and let all cook until the rice is quite soft; serve in a vegetable dish with the grated cheese sprinkled over.

• RICE AND LENTILS.

Boil the rice as above; stew Egyptian lentils with chopped onions, pepper, salt, and a little butter, until well done. Put the rice on a dish, pour over the stewed onions and lentils, serve, and eat with green vegetables.

• RICE AND ONIONS.

Boil whole onions in water until done quite through, remove them from the water, and put in it washed rice with a little pepper, salt, and butter. When done, serve with the onions and eat with a green vegetable.

• SAVOURY RICE (Italian).

1 breakfastcupful of rice, 4 tablespoonfuls of grated cheese (Parmesan or other cheese), 1 oz. of butter, a pinch of saffron, pepper and salt to taste. Boil the rice with water as above, then add the cheese, butter, saffron, and seasoning; mix all well, and serve.

• SAVOURY RICE CROQUETTES.

½ lb. of Patna rice, 1-1/2 pints of milk, 1 lb. of Spanish onions, 1 oz. of butter, 2 eggs, 1 teacupful of raspings, Allinson’s oil for frying. Boil the rice in the milk until soft, and turn it out to get quite cold. Meanwhile chop the onions up fine and fry them brown in the butter. Form the cold rice into balls, and with the thumb of the right hand hollow them sufficiently to admit of their receiving a stuffing of fried onions, close them again carefully, dip them in the eggs beaten up and then in the raspings, and fry them in boiling oil a light brown. Serve with gravy. There are various stuffings which can be used instead of the onions—fried mushrooms chopped up, some olives chopped fine and mixed with hard-boiled yolks of eggs, &c.

• SPANISH RICE.

6 onions, 6 tomatoes, 1-1/2 pints of vegetable stock, herbs and seasoning, 1-1/2 cupfuls of rice, butter. Fry the onions and tomatoes in butter until well browned, then place them with the seasoning into the cold stock, and add the rice. When all have boiled slowly for 20 minutes, the rice should have absorbed the stock. Serve with cheese grated over.

VEGETARIAN OMELETS RECIPES III

• OMELET SOUFFLÉ (SWEET).

6 eggs, 3 oz. of powdered sugar, 1 oz. of butter, 1 dessertspoonful of potato flour, and 1 dessertspoonful of orangeflower water. Put the yolks of the eggs into a large basin, add the sugar, potato flour, and orange water, and beat all well with a wooden spoon for 10 minutes; beat the whites of the eggs to a stiff froth, and mix them lightly with the other ingredients. Meanwhile beat the butter in the omelet pan; when boiling pour the mixture into it, and fry the omelet over a gentle fire. When it begins to set round the sides shake it very gently from side to side, and turn the omelet neatly out on a buttered dish. Set it in the oven for about 10 minutes, and serve immediately with a little castor sugar sifted over it.

• OMELET TOMATO (1).

This is made in almost the same way as the savoury omelet, but without the addition of flavouring herbs. 2 average-sized tomatoes are cut up fine, and mixed with the ingredients given above. When tinned tomatoes are used the juice may be made hot and the bread soaked in it instead of in milk and water.

• OMELET TOMATO (2).

1 lb. of tomatoes, ½ lb. of breadcrumbs, 1 large Spanish onion, 3 eggs, 2 oz. of butter, pepper and salt to taste. Stew the finely chopped onions in the butter for 20 minutes in a covered-up saucepan, add pepper and salt, cut the tomatoes up, add these to the other ingredients. Let all simmer for 20 minutes; pour the mixture over the breadcrumbs, add the eggs well beaten, mix all up thoroughly, and turn the mixture into one or more well-buttered shallow tins. Bake the omelet in a quick oven for 10 to 15 minutes.

• OMELET TRAPPIST.

4 oz. of fine breadcrumbs, 2 eggs, 1-1/2 oz. of butter, ½ teaspoonful of powdered herbs, pepper and salt to taste, ½ gill of boiling milk. Moisten the breadcrumbs with the milk, add the eggs well beaten, the herbs and seasoning. Mix all well and smoothly. Melt the butter in the frying-pan, spread the mixture in it, and fry the omelet a golden brown both sides.

• SWEET OMELET (1).

3 eggs, 2 oz. of butter, sugar to taste, 1 lemon, and ½ a teacupful of new milk. Whip the yolks of the eggs well, adding the grated rind of the lemon, half the butter melted, the milk, and sugar. Just before frying the omelet, add the lemon juice and the whites of the eggs whipped to a stiff froth. Make the rest of the butter boiling hot in an oval omelet pan, the size of the dish on which it is to be served, and fry till lightly browned. Sift sugar over it, and serve immediately.

• SWEET OMELET (2).

½ pint of new milk, 4 eggs, cinnamon and sugar to taste, 1 oz. of butter, and 1 teaspoonful of Allinson fine wheatmeal. Smooth the wheatmeal with the milk, and mix with the other ingredients. Make the butter boiling hot in a frying-pan, and fry the omelet till lightly browned. Serve immediately with sugar sifted over it.

• SWEET OMELET (3).

5 eggs, 1 tablespoonful of castor sugar, 2 tablespoonfuls of water, 2 oz. of butter, some raspberry and currant jam. Melt the butter in an omelet pan, beat the eggs well, stir in the sugar, and pour the mixture into the hot butter. Fry a pale golden colour, and turn it on to a hot dish. Spread some jam on the omelet, double it, and serve at once. The inside of the omelet should remain creamy.

VEGETARIAN OMELETS RECIPES II

• OMELET LENTIL.

It you have any cold boiled lentils, for instance, some sandwich mixture you wish to use up, proceed as follows: To 1 teacupful of boiled lentils take 3 well-beaten eggs, and pepper and salt to taste. Add 1 dessertspoonful of water to each egg, and mix the lentils and eggs smooth. Fry the mixture as an omelet in boiling butter.

• OMELET MACARONI.

3 oz. of boiled cold macaroni, 3 eggs, 1 dessertspoonful of finely chopped parsley, 1-1/2 oz. of grated cheese, ½ a saltspoonful of nutmeg, pepper and salt to taste, 1-1/2 oz. of butter. Cut the macaroni into little pieces; beat the eggs well, and mix them with the macaroni. Add the seasoning, parsley, cheese, and nutmeg; mix all well, and fry the omelet with the butter in a large frying-pan.

• OMELET ONION.

4 medium-sized English onions, 1-1/2 oz. of butter, 2 oz. of Allinson breadcrumbs, 4 eggs, 4 tablespoonfuls of milk, pepper and salt to taste. Peel and slice the onions, bake them in a pie-dish with the butter and seasoning, until quite soft. Whip the eggs up, mix them with the milk, breadcrumbs, and the baked onions. Put the mixture into a greased pie-dish, and bake in a moderately hot oven. Serve with tomato sauce.

• OMELET SAVOURY.

Soak Allinson wholemeal bread in cold milk and water until soft, then rub smooth, grate 1 onion, beat up 1 egg, and add a few flavouring herbs, and pepper and salt to taste. Mix the whole together, put in a pie-dish, place a few small pieces of butter on the top, and bake about ½ hour, or until done. Eat with vegetables and potatoes.

• OMELET SOUFFLÉ.

4 eggs, 3 oz. of sifted castor sugar, the grated rind of ½ a lemon, 1 oz. of butter. Beat the yolks of the eggs for 10 minutes with the sugar and lemon rind. Whip the whites of the eggs to a very stiff froth, mix it with the other ingredients, pour the mixture into a well-buttered pie-dish or cake tin, and bake the Soufflé in a moderately hot oven from 10 to 15 minutes. Serve immediately.