RABBIT A small burrowing mammal closely related to
the hare that has been regarded as a pest for many years, because of the damage
it infliect on crops and also as a result of it prolific breeding habits. An old name for the rabbit is coney or cony
derived from the Old French conies, from
the Latin cuniculus. Rabbit was regarded as a fertility symbol,
especially in Germany, and was often included in Easter menus. Rabbits have been domesticated for many
generations, and in 17th century France the practice of rearing
rabbits for the table was widespread.
The meat was prepared as a civet, in a mustard or a poulette sauce, with onions or prunes,
jellied or made into rilettes. The
tastier wild rabbits was roasted, grilled (broiled) or fried.
Domestic rabbits which are raised
not only for their meat but also for their fur distinguished by their size, the
colour and texture of their fur, and the quality of their meat. Some notable French varieties are the
Burgundy tawny, the silver field rabbit and the Bouscat glant.
Efforts have been made in introduce the cottontail rabbit, a native of
North America, to France to raise it commercially for its meat.
A medium rabbit should be joined
into six pieces; two front ,egs, two hind legs and the two halves of the
saddle, Marinating in wine seasoned with
shallots, carrots parsley, garlic and thyme improves a commercially reared
rabbit before it is made into a pie or a stew, and the addition of pig'’ blood
brings about an even greater improvement.
Rabbit can be deep frozen either raw or cooked.
RECIPES
Rabbit
coquibus
Joint
a rabbit into small portions and marinate is overnight in 250 ml (8 fl oz, 1
cup) white wine with a bouquet garni, including a sprig of savory. Drain and wipe, reserving the marinade. Peel 24 small onions. Blanch 24 strips of slightly salted belly
pork or bacon. Heat 40 g (1½ oz, 3 tablespoons) butter in a large flameproof
casserole and lightly brown the pieces of rabbit in it, together with the onions and bacon. Sprinkle with a little flour and cook until
golden. Pour in the reserve marinate with the bouquet
garni. Add enough stock to cover the pieces of rabbit and sprinkle
with salt and pepper. Bring, to the
boil, reduce the heat and cover the casserole.
Simmer for 15 minutes. Then add
500 g (18 oz) peeled new potatoes, cover and continue cooking for 45
minutes. Taste for seasoning before
serving.
Rabbit roasted in a
caul
Soak a large pig’s caul
in fresh, joint a rabbit weighing 1.25 kg (2¾ lb); season the pieces with salt
and pepper, sprinkle with a little dried thyme
Sauteed rabbit chasseur
Joint the rabbit and
prepare exactly like sauteed chicken chasseur, with mushrooms and strips of
larding bacon. Serve with steamed
potatoes.
Sauteed rabbit with
prunes
Soak 350 (12 oz, 2
cups0 prunes in a tea until swollen, then drain them.Saute a rabbit of about
1.25 kg (2¾ lb) as in the recipe for rabbit sauteed a la minute. Pound the rabbit’s liver with 1 tablespoon
vinegar (or put through a blender). When
the rabbit is cooked keep hot in a serving dish. Dilute the pan juices with 150 ml (¼ pint,
2/3 cup) white wine, add the prunes,
then reduce a little. Mix in the pounded liver and adjust the seasoning. Pour
the prunes and gravy over the rabbit.
RABBIT, COTTONTAIL North American rodent, sylvilagus,
intermediate between the hare and the wild rabbit, although it is not a close
relation of either and it differs from them in its ability to climb trees.
RABELAIS, FRANCOIS French humanist and writer (born Chinon, c
1483, died Paris 1553). He became
successively a monk, a doctor and a professor of anatomy before ending his days
as the parish priest of Meudon. He is best known, however, as the author of
the comic satires Pantaruel (1532), Gargaantua(1534) Tiers Livre (1546) and
Quart ivre (15520. This powerful and
original body og work, which one has to ‘crack like a bone’ to get the ‘real
marrow’, is very much occupied with eating and drinking. The terms ‘pantagruelian’ and ‘gargantuan ‘
are used to describe an appetite, meal or stomach of gigantic size, worthy of a
well laden festive board.
In the Book IV of Pantategruel (chapter LIX and LX),
Rebelais makes a long list of dishes and foods , giving us some idea of what
was eaten in the 16th century... soups made with prime cuts of meat,
bay leaf soups, soups lionnoise (with onion and cheese) olive oickled in brine,
caviar, boutargue ( a paste of dried salted and dried cod), roast capons with
their cooking ducks a la dodine (boned and served with a sauce). Pigeons,
squabs,geese, swans herons, cranes, partridge, francolins, turtledoves, rock
pigeons, pheasants, quails, plovers, blackbirds woodcocks, hazel grouse, loons,
etc. leverets, fawns, young rabbits, saussages, black puddings (blood sausage),
saveloys, andouilles spread with fine mustard, potted boar’s head; bleaks,
eels, barbels, pike, young carp, loach, tench, trout, shad, white apron (small
perchlike fish), whales, plaice, dolphins, sea beam, sturgeons, lobsters,
oysters in their shells, fried oyster lampreys in hippocras sauce, dabs,
laveret (salmon like lake fish), salted hake, Moray eels, sea anemones, sea
urchins, bonito, skate, salmon, turtles or other etc.
RABOTTE Also known as rabote, An apple or pear enclosed in pastry, cooked
in the oven and served warm or cold. It
is the name used in Pcardy. Ardennes and
Champagne for the Norman doullon or bourdelot.
In Picardy it is also called talibur and in Ardennes and Champagne the
name boulaud is sometimes used. The name
rabote comes from the word rabote, which was the old term for the ball used in real tennis.
RACAHAOUT A culinary starch used in the Middle East and
Arab countries. It is a greyish powder,
consisting salep, cocoa sweet corns, potato flour rice, flour, sugar and
vanilla, which is mixed with water or milk to make a drink or soup.
RACHEL The stage of the great tragic actress
Elizabeth Felix 91821-58). She was the
mistress of the famous gastronome Doctor Veron, whose dinners are still a
byword, and many dishes in classic cuisine have been named after her. The Rachel garnish – for small grilled
(broiled) or sauteed cut of meat, braised calves sweetbreads, or poached or
soft boiled eggs – consists of artichoke hearts stuffed with thin slices of
beef marrow, with a bordelaise or beef marrow sauce. Artichoke hearts are also used in the Rachel
mixed salad. Whiting (or turbot) Rahel
is poached, masked with Nantua sauce and garnished with a julienne of truffle.
RECIPE
Rachel salad
Clean and string some
celery sticks and cut them into chunks.
Cook some potatoes and some artichoke hearts in salted water and cut
them into small dice. Mix equal amounts
of these ingredients and dress them with a well flavoured mayonnaise. File into salad bowl and garnish with
asparagus tips, cooked in salted water and well drained. If desired the salad can be garnished with
slices of truffle.
RACK A trellis or grid of varying shape, size
material and function.
Round or rectangular wire racks, usually with small legs,
are used to cool cakes and pastries, after they have been taken out of the oven
and removed from their tins )pans). This
allows the steam to be released during cooling; otherwise, the cakes would
retain too much moisture. A similar rack
is also used in a roasting tin. By
roasting the meat on the rack, the joint is prevented from lying in its cooking
juices.
Wooden racks serve for storing fruits or vegetables,
wicker trays are used for drying crystallized (candied) fruits; and racks or
stainless steel or plastic covered wire form storage units in refrigerators and
landers.
RACLETTE A cheese fondue from the canton of Valais in
Switzerland. It is prepared by holding
it half-round of the local cheese close to the fire; as it melts, the softened
part is scraped off and eaten (the word raclette means literary ‘a
scraping’) Traditionally, the cheese
should be grilled in front of a wood fire.
It is held slantwise over a plate and the runny part is scraped off
together with part of the grilled rind (after several scrapings, when the rind
becomes coated with the melted cheese,
it is called a religieuse and is a much-coveted morsel). The
melted cheese is shared between the guests and is eaten hot, with boiled
potatoes, freshhly ground pepper, gherkins and pickled onions. Raclette should be accompanied by Ferdant, a
white wine from Valais and must be made from a fatty and highly flavoured cheese. Bagnes, Conches or Orsieres. It is now possible to buy a ‘raclette oven’
for the table which is filled with a support for the cheese while it is exposed
to an electric element.
RADICCHIO A variety of chicory (endive) of Itallian
origin now also cultivated in the south of France and other countries throughout
the world. Radicchio keeps well. Its small beans, red with white veins, are
round and crunchy and have a taste which is at once bitter, peppery and
slightly acid. It is sweetest late in
the yea, most bitter in the summer. It is generally used in salads, mixed with
other salad vegetables and looks particularly attractive when mixed with lecurly endive (chicory) and green
lettuce or lamb’s lettuce (corn salad).
It is often served with terrines, pies and pates, a suitable dressing is
walnut-oil vinaigrette. It is also used
in some cooked dishes for example, as a topping for pizza.
RADISH A cruciferous plant, cultivated for its
edible root, which is generally eaten raw in European dishes, as an hors
d’oeuvre or in salads. In East Asian
dishes, the long white radish is used both raw and cooked, as a vegetable in
its own right, as well as for garnishing or as a relish to accompany main
dishes.
There are many varieties of radish, differing in size,
shape and colour, the main types being ‘small pink’ and ‘large black’. The radish has been grown in China for more
than 3000 years and was esteemed by the Greeks and the Romans. In France, it was not cultivated until the 16th
century and is now grown principally in the Loire region, being available throughout
almost the whole year.
RED RADISHES These are small, flattish, round or slightly
elongated and pink or scarlet, with or without a white tip. Their flavour is particularly good in
March-April and September-October, when they are not too hot (in summer they
may be too strong)
There are pale pink or yellow radishes round or slightly
elongated. There are also some
traditional regional varieties, the Strasbourg – small, white and top-shaped, 5
cm (2 in0 across, the turnip radish very long and narrow, with a red skin and
juice scented flesh – which is found in eastern France and in Nice; and the
golden yellow radish – with flesh of this colour, 3-4 cm ( 1¾-1½ in) long –
which is grown in Alsace.
*WHITE RADISH. These large, elongated radishes are also
known as mooli or daikon. They are
milder in flavour than the small red ones and are popular as a raw or cooked
vegetable in East Asian cooking. The
leaves may also be used in cooking. The
large white radishes are also carved into elaborate garnishes.
*BLACK RADISH. The black skinned radishes, also known as the
Spanish black or Spanish, radish, are old varieties. They are still cultivated,especially in Spain
as well as in Italy,and they may be round or elongated. The coarse black skin concels white flesh
with a strong flavour.
Today there are two basic types of ragout – brown and
white. For a brown ragout, of which the
best known example is ragout of mutton, the meat is first browned in fat, then
sprinkled with flour, cooked a little and finally moistened with clear stock or
water (or thickened meat juices, if the meat has not been floured). For a white ragout (as for a fricassee), the
meat is cooked until firm but not coloured, then sprinkled with flour and
diluted with stock. (A white ragout, should
not, however, be confused with a blanquette).
Vegetables for ragout – chicory (endive), celery, mixed
root vegetables, mushrooms – are usually browned, then cooked in their own
juices, with herbs and tomatoes )peeled, seeded and coarseley chooped).
RECIPES
Ragout of celeriac
Peel a celeriac root
and cut it into small ovalshaped pieces.
Blanch these for 5 minutes in boiling water, then place in a flameproof
casserole with butter, salt and pepper and let in stew gently, with the lid on,
for about 30 minutes. Bind with cream
sauce, sprinkle with coarsely chopped parsley and serve as a garnish to roast
or braised white meat.
Ragout of mushrooms
Clean and slice 500
g(18 oz, 6 cups) large cultivated mushrooms, saute them in butter or oil, then
add a small glass of Madiera and some cream sauce. Reduce over a low heat until thick and
creamy, sprinkle with coarsely chopped parsley and serve as a garnish for roast
or braised white meat or for braised fish.
West Indian ragout
Cut 800 g (1¾ lb)
shoulder of beef or neck of mutton into small pieces. Chop 3 onions and slice 3 carrots, 6 potatoes
and 3 ripe tomatoes. Brown the meat in
oil or butter in flameproof casserole, add the vegetables and mixtogether. Then pour in 175 ml (6 fl oz, ¾ cup) water
and simmer over a now heat, stirring occasionally. When the ragout has been cooking for 45
minutes, take out the vegetables, drain them and keep warm.
Add 1 small
chopped chilli, salt and pepper, 3 tablespoons vinegar and 1 tablespoon
peanut butter to the casserole.
Bone a herring and grill (broil) it gently, turning once,
until cooked through. Mash the flesh and
mix it into the sauce, adding a little hot water if necessary. Cover the casserole and simmer for a further
hour. Transfer the vegetables and the meat
to a deep dish, pour the sauce over and served very hot with rice a la creole.
RAGU The name for the celebrated Bolognese meat
sauce, commonly served with spaghetti, the principal ingredients of which are
minced (ground) meat, usually beef, cooked with chicken livers, unsmoked bacon,
onion, celery, tomato puree (paste) and wine.
Curiously, given the popularity of the pairing elsewhere, meat sauce in
Bologna is never served over spaghetti, but with tangliatelle or lasagna.
RAGUENEAU, CYPRIEN Parisian pastrycook (born Paris 1608, died
Lyon, 1654). He established himself in
the Rue Saint-Honore, displaying the sign ‘Amateur de Haulte Gresse, where he
created the tartelettes amanding (almond tarts) mentioned by Edmond Rostand in
Cyrano de Bergenrac. He kept open house
for half starved poets and bohemians, who paid in poetry. He was renowed for his tarts, marzipan,
confections, savoury pies flavoured with musk and amber, puff pastries,
fritters and biscuits (cookies). Charles
d’ Assoucy relates that he would give away these delicacies to anyone who
flattered him by calling him ‘Apollo reborn as a pastrycook’.
RAIL Any of a large family of wading birds. Two species are regarded as delicacies in
France – the corncake, found in wet meadowland, and the water rail, living in
marshland. The corncake is particularly,
valued, its size and the influence that it is supposed to have on quail
migration has resulted in its nickname of the king of quails’ in France. It is cooked in the same ways as quail.
RAIISINE A jam made without sugar, by simmering grape
juice (or even sweet wine) with various fruits cut into pieces,. It is a speciality of Burgundy. Raisine
is usually spread on slices of bread; it does not keep as well as jam.
RECIPE
Select some very sweet
grapes, either black or white, discarding any which are marked or bad. Put them into a preserving pan over a low
heat and crush them with a wooden spoon.
Strain the pulp through a cloth and collect the juice in a bowl. Pour half of this juice into a saucepan and
boil briskly. Skimming the pan
creafully. When the juice rises in the
pan add some fo the reserved juice; do this each time the juice boils up. Stir constantly.
When the must has reduced by half, add the fruit (such as
pears, quinces, apples, peaches and melon) peeled, seeded; add at least the
same quantity of fruit as there were grapes.
Cook until the jam becomes quite thick (a drop taken up between the
thumb and index finger should form a sticky thread when the finger are
separated), The jam may be passed
through a sieve (if desired) and then potted in the usual way.
RAISSON,
HORACE-NAPOLEON French writer and
gastronome (born Paris, 1798, died Paris 1854).
Under different pseudonyms, one of which was A, B de Perigord, he
published several cookery books, notably a Nouvel Almanach des gourmands
(1825-30), borrowing this title from Grimod de La Reyniere. His Code gourmand went through several
editions. In 1827 he published a
Nouvelle Cuisiniere bourgeoise under the name of ‘Mile Manguerite’ This book remained popular for quite a long
time, the last edition published in 1860.
Raita An Indian side dish based on raw vegetables
such as cucumber, or fruits, mixed with plain yogurt and salt (in the case of
vegetables) or sugar (for fruits).
RAITO Also known as raite or rayte. Provencal condiment which may have originated
in Greece. The sauce consists of olive
oil and red wine, with tomatoes, onions crushed walnuts and garlic, flavoured
with bay leaf, thyme, parsley, rosemary fennel and a clove, and sometimes
garnished with capers and black (ripe) olives, the mixture is simmered for a
long time until very thick, and then strained.
It is served very hot with certain frried or sauteed fish, often cod.
RAKI A Turkish aniseed-flavoured apentif, very
similar to the Greek ouzo. The best
rakis, with 45-50º alcohol are made from selected aged branches, some like the
Greek mastika, have mastic, (resin of the mastic tree) added. Raki should be served cold. Traditionally, it is drunk neat from a small
glass sips, alternated with mouthfuls of iced water.
RAMADAN The ninth month of the Muslim lunar year,
during which the faithful must fast from dawn until dusk. During this period, a Muslim must not drink
(except to rinse the mouth out), eat smoke, have sexual relations or apply
perfume during the daytime. A meal is
eaten at sundown, usually consisting of soup (barina), hard boiled (hard
cooked) eggs, dates and sweet cakes.
After evening prayer and before it is time to fast again, just before
dawn, a second meal is eaten, this may include pancakes honey and sometimes
also soup (bazine, made from semolina with butter and lemon juice added or
balalim, made of pulse and herbs and containing sausages, lamb or veal and
dumplings, made from leavened semolina).
Halfway through the mont, a traditional meal is served. In Morocco, for instance, this consist of
pastilla, roast chicken with lemon, and a sweet pastry. The end of Ramadan is celebrated by a feast,
during which a sheep is ritually roasted.
RAMAIN, PAUL, French doctor(born Thonon, 1895; died
Douvanie, 1966). He liked to describe
himself as an ‘indipendent provincial gastronome’ and was a great connoisseur
of wines, choosing for his motto ‘Jamais en vain, toujours en vin’.
A well known mycololgist, he was the author of
Mycogastronomie (1953), which is still
regarded as an authority and which gives some very good, little-known mushroom
recipes. Writing on the best wines to
accompany meals, he suggests that all good meals could well be accompanied solely by ‘;excellent
authentic champagnes’ ranging from the blanc de blanes to the blanc de rouges
or the oeil de perdrix (pink champagne_.
But he also recommends locally grown wines and mentions a meal he ate in
Aveyron of an ‘extremely high gastronomic standard’, accompanied by an Cahots
wine, apparently the wine and the food together created ‘a faultless gustatory
and olfactory symphony.
RAMBUTAN A fruit, belonging to the same family as the
lychee originating in Malaysia and very common throughout South-East Asia. Crimson, green, orange or yellow in colour,
the thick shell is covered with hooked hairs and has a translucent sweet pulp
that is more acidic but also more aromatic than that of the lychee. The fruit is available fresh in November and
December and can be bought canned in syrup all the year round. The rambutan is eaten peeled, in fruit
salads, but can also accompany poultry or pork.
RAMEKIN A small, round, straight sided souffle dish,
8-10 cm (3-4 in) in diameter, in ovenproof china or glass; it is used to cook
and serve individual portions of a veriety of hot entrees, small cheese,
seafood or fish, souffles, eggs en cocotte a la creeme, or aux fines
berbes. It is equally useful for serving
aspics (particularly eggs en gelee, served unmoulded), as well as for cold
creams and custards, which may or may not be unmoulded.
In former times, ramekin was a slice of toasted bread
spread with ‘meat, kidneys, cheese, onions or galic cloves’ (according to La
Varenne), moistened) with cream, and as was often done with various dishes,
sprinkled with soot from the chimneys.
Nowadays, the word is still used in the swiss canton of Vaud for a type
of toasted cheese. The word is derived
from ramken, the diminutive of the German rabm (fresh cream) thus, it came to
mean a little dish with cream. Later on,
it denoted either a tarlet filled with a cream
cheese or a type of gongere (chourx pastry) sometimes made in a small
mould.
Two French regional specialties are still called
‘ramekin’ used in its old sense; the ramequin donaisten (baked bread rolls,
stuffed with a mixture of chopped kidney, breadcrumbs soaked in milk, eggs, and
herbs) and the ramequin de pays de Gex cheese melted together in a saucepan
with stock, red wine, butter, garlic and mustard, served like a fondue with
cubes of bread.).
RECIPES
Ramekin
Pour 250 ml (18 fl oz,
1 cup) milk into a saucepan and season with a generous pinch of salt, a small
pinch of sugar and a little white pepper.
Add 25 g (1 oz, 2 tablespoons) butter and bring to the boil. As sson as the milk begins to boil, move the
pan half off the heat and mix in 100 g (4 oz, 1 cup) sifted plain (all-purpose)
flour, Return to the heat and stir
vigorously with a wooden spoon, as for choux paste, until the mixture has dried
out. When it is quite dry, take me pan
off the heat and add 3 eggs, one by one, and 50 g (2 oz, ½ cup) finely diced
Gruyere cheese. Put this paste into a
piping (pastry) bag with a plain nozzle and pipe small buns on a baking
sheet. Brush with beaten egg and
sprinkle with tiny pieces of Gruyere.
Bake the ramekin in a preheated oven at 190ºC (375º F, gas 5) for 15
minutes.
Jellied eggs in
ramekins
Arrange 2 blanched leaves of tarragon, in a cross shape in the
bottom of each ramekin dish. Coat the
inside of each ramekin with a little tarragon flavoured meat aspic and leave in
the refrigerator to set. Then put in a
small slice of very good ham, cut to the shape of the dish. Arrange shelled soft boiled (soft cooked) egg
on top, fill the dish with aspic and leave to set in the refrigerator. Unmould just before serving.
Ramekin vaudois
Cut some thin, slices
from a large white load and slice some Gruyere cheese – 300 g (11 oz) of
each. Arrange alternate slices of bread
and cheese in a buttered gratin dish.
Beat together 2 eggs and 500 ml (17 fl oz, 2 cups) milk, season with
salt, pepper and nutmeg, and pour the mixture over the bread and cheese (the
liquid should half-fill the dish). Dot
with butter and cook in preheated oven at 190ºC (375º, gas 5) for 25 minutes.
RAMPION A plant of the
campanula family with edible roots.
These may be eaten raw in salads, for which they are cut into pieces and
usually mixed with beetroot (red beet) or celery; or they can be cooked in the
same way as salsify or turnips. The
leaves, which have a refreshing taste, can also be eaten in salads or cooked
like spinach, ampion is rarely used in cooking today.
RAMPONEAUX, JEAN Also known as Rampioneau, Parisian innkeeper
and restaurant (born Vignol, 1724, died Paris, 1802). As his wine cost 1 sou per pint less than
that sold by his fellow innkeeper in the Courtille du Temple, at the lower end
of Belleville, he attracted a lot of curious idles hoping for a cheap drink’,
as Grimm commented in 1760. A number of
prints from that period show the interior of the Tambour Royal, as his inn was
called, and it was the subject of poems and songs.
His son took over this flourishing business, and Jean
opened a restaurant in the Chaussee d’ Antin, with tables for 600 diners,
called La Grand Pinte. Filled with
dconfidence over his successful ventures.
Ramponeaux tried to make a name for himself in the world of the theatre,
here, however, he failed, la Grand-Printe was closed in 1851
RANCID Describing state fat or fatty foods which
have developed strong smell and an acid taste, due to oxidation of the
fat. Rancidity is accelerated by
exposure to light, high temperatures and metallic contamination.
RANCIO Term used to describe wines of the vin doux naturel type, which owe their special
taste to ageing in cask over several years, in theory under the sun the
resulting oxidation produces a very smooth wine.
RANGE. A large stove with hotplates or burners and
one or more ovens, heated by solid fuel, oil gas or electricity. The range was originally made of masonry, and
then of either thick sheet metal or cast iron.
It is the main basic piece of equipment in a kitchen, especially in the
restaurant trade. The range often has a
polished cast iron hotplate and pans can be moved along easily to the desired
position. A hot water boiler may also be
heated by this type of stove. There are
also models modified for use in a large kitchen: ‘browning’ ranges, ‘live’fire’
ranges and ‘simmering-plate’ ranges.
The first ranges appeared in the 18th century
and caused a revolution in the kitchen by replacing the large fireplace, which
until then, was the only source of heat available. The introduction of the range meant that
several sources of heat at different temperatures, were available and several
dishes requiring different temperatures could be cooked at the same time, so
items could be roasted, boiled simmered or simply kept warm. It is no accident
that the 18th century is noted for the invention of co many new
dishes. Another decisive development
occured at the end of the 18th century, when the cast-iron range,
which burned coal, replaced the wood-burning stove., However, the problem of ventilation was still
concern and led Careme to comment, ‘Coal is killing us’. In the 1850s in London, the chef Soyer
introduced the gas cooker and today,
most stoves are heated by either gas or electricity.
RAPE A plant related to the cabbage that is widely
cultivated for the coil contained in its seeds, although they also contain
toxins that have to be removed. Rapeseed
oil cannot be heated to very high temperatures, but it keeps well and remains
in a liquid state down to freezing point.
The flower buds of rape may be eaten in the same way as broccoli.
RAS EL HANOUT A complex mixture of twenty or more ground
spices, used mainly in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. The mixture varies but may typically include
cardamom, cumin ginger, cinnamon cloves, black pepper, turmeric, coriander,
nutmeg, chilli and wild herbs. The
Tunisian version is generally less hot and is perfumed with dried
rosebuds. The literal meaning is ‘head’
or ‘top of the shop.’
Ras el hanout is used to season soups and stews and is
known as a flavouring for the broth which accompanies couscous. It is also used in many other North African
dishes.
RASPBERRY. The fruit of the raspberry cane which grows
wild in the woods or can be cultivated in the garden. In Europe and America, it is cultivated in
open soil or under frames.
The raspberry has been known since prehistoric times and
the Ancients attributed its origin to divine intervention; the nymph Ida
pricked her finger while picking berries for the young Jupiter and thus
raspberries, which had been white until then, turned red. Raspberries have been cultivated since the
Middle Ages, although cultivation methods were improved in the 18th
century, the fruit did not become widely cultivated until the 20th
century.
Raspberries are oval or conical in shape, rather small,
and have a sweet, slightly acid, flavour.
They are usually fairly dark red, but yellow coloured varieties have
also been produced, as have orange, pink, puple and black. Greenhouse raspberries are marketed from mid
April onwards but do not have the delicious flavour of those grown in open soil
from mid June to October. Raspberries
must always be firm, plump and ripe when they have delicious flavour. The fruits are delicate and must be handled
carefully; they do not keep for very long.
The loganberry is a cross between a blackberry and a
raspberry. It is an American hybrid
named after James h Logan, who first grew it in California in 1881. The loganberry is a large juicy, dark-red
fruit and is marketed in September and October.
It also has a tart flavour but is considered by some people to be less
delicious than the raspberry.
Other hybrids of more recent origin include the tayberry
(name after a river i Scotland) and the boysenberry (named after its inventor)
RECIPES
Raspberry barquettes
Prepare some barquettes
(boat-shaped tartlets) of shortcrust pastry (basic pie dough) and leave them to
cool. Spread a little confectioner’s
custard (pastry cream) in each tarlet and top with fresh raspberries. Coat the fruit with some warmed red currant
or raspberry jelly.
Raspberry charlotte
Line a charlotte mould
with sponge fingers (lady fingers) soaked in raspberry-flavoured syrup. Whip some fresh cream with caster (superfine)
sugar and vanilla sugar. Add an equal
quantity of raspberry puree made with either fresh or frozen raspberries. Fill the lined mould with the mixture and
cover with a layer of sponge fingers, also soaked in raspberry syrup. Press the sponge fingers down, put a plate
over the mould and chill for at least 3 hours.
Invert on to a plate just before serving.
Raspberry jam
Select firm ripe fruit
and remove the items. Put them into a
preserving pan. For each 1 kg (2¼ lb, 4½
cups) sugar, boiled to the ‘soft ball’ stage.
Pour the syrup over the raspberries, bring back to the boil, cook gently
for 5-6 minutes, then remove from the heat.
Put the jam into clean, sterlized jars, cover, seal, label and store.
RASSOINICK A Russian sup made from poultry stock
flavoured with cucumber, thickened with egg yolk and cream, and garnished with
cucumber cut into shapes and finely diced pieces of poultry meat (classically
duck). A richer version is made by
adding brisket of beef and vegetables, such as beetroot (red beet), leeks and
cabbage to the stock. The soup is
thickened with cream and beetroot juice, seasoned with fennel and parsley, then
garnished with the diced meat and possibly small grilled (broiled) sausages.
RASTEAU A village in the southern Rhone producing
red, white and rose wines sold as Cotes-du-Rhone Villages. The AOC relates to vins doux naturels made from Grenache.
RASTEGAI A small over, Russian patty made of puff
pastry and normally filled with a mixture of sturgeon spinal marrow, hard
boiled (hard cooked) egg and fresh salmon.
It is served with melted butter as a hot entree or as part of the
zakuski.
RATAFIA A home made liqueur produced by macerating
plants or fruit in sweetened spirit, some traditional ingredients are:
angelica, cherries, black currants, quinces raspberries, walnuts, oranges and
cherry kernels.
The name is also given to a sweet apetitif made in the
French provinces this is a mixture of two thirds fresh grape juice (must ) and
one third brandy. These liqueurs are mostly intended for home
consumption but some have achieved a higher status., such as Plateau from
Charentes, the Floc of Gascony and the Ratafia Champenois from the Champagne
region.
RATATOUILLE. A vegetable stew typical Provencal of cookery, originally from Nice, which is
now found all over south-east Franch and is popular abroad. The word derived from the French touiller(to
mix or stir), at first designated an unappetizing stew.
A ratatouille from
Nice (ratatouille nicoise) is made from onions, courgettes (zucchini),
aubergines (eggplants), sweet (bell) peppers and tomatoes simmered in olive oil
with herbs. It accompanies roasts
sauteed chicken or small cuts of meat, as well as braised fish, omelettes and
scrambled eggs. According to the purist,
the different vegetables should be cooked separately, then combined and cooked
together until they attain a smooth creamy consistency.
RECIPE
Ratatouille nicoise
Trim the ends of 6
courgettes (zucchini) and cut them into rounds (do not peel them). Peel and slice 2 onions. Cut the stalks from 3 green (Bell) peppers,
remove the seeds and cut them into strips.
Peel 6 tomatoes, cut each into 6 pieces and seed them. Peel and crush 3 garlic cloves. Peel 6 aubergines (eggplants) and cut them
into rounds. Heat 6 tablespoons olive
oil in a cast iron pan. Brown the
aubergines in this, then add the peppers, tomatoes and onions, and finally the
courgett3es and the garlic. Add a large
bouquet garni containing plenty of thyme, salt and pepper.. Cook over
a low olive oil and continue to cook until the desired consistency is
reached. Remove the bouquet garni and
serve very hot.
RATON The former name for a small tarlet filled
with either sweetened cream cheese or confectioner’s custard (pastry
cream). A raton can also be made with a
mixture of flour, sugar, crushed macaroni, pounded almonds, eggs and milk, this
is cooked in a pie, turned over halfway through cooking and served hot.
Nicolas de Bonnefons, inhis Delices de la campagne (1650)
gives another recipe using puff pastry (quoted by P. Androuet in La Cuisine au
fromage); during the last turn and rolling a well drained cream cheese is
incorporated into the dough, which is rolled out, cut into small rectangles,
brushed with beaten egg, sprinkled with grated cheese and baked.
RAVE In France, the
word rave is used loosely for several vegetables regarded as having a low
culinary status such as kohrabi, turnip.swedes and black radishes. In former times, the name was applied to all
root vegetables as opposed to herbes.
RAVIGOTE A spicy sauce serve hot or cold but always
highly seasoned. Cold ravigote is a
vinaigrette mixed with capers, chopped herbs and chopped onion. The hot sauce is made by adding veal veloute
sauce to equal quantities of white wine and wine vinegar, reduced with chopped
shallots; it is finished with chopped herbs and served particularly with calf’s
head and brains and boiled fowl. Savoury
butter and mayonnaise a la ravigote are flavoured with chopped herbs and
shallots and sometimes with mustard.
RECIPE
Ravigote sauce (cold0
Prepare 120 ml (4½
teaspoon chopped tarragon, 1 teaspoon chopped parsley, 1 teaspoon fines herbes,
2 teaspoons chervil, 1 finely chopped small onion and 1 tablespoon dried and
chopped capers.
RAZOR-SHELL Also known as razor clam. A sand-burrowing bivalve mollus with an
elongated tubular shell. It can be made to come to the surface of its burrow by
placing a little coarse salt at the opening of the hole. The tw main types are the straight
razor-shell, which is 10-20 cm (4-8) long, and the curved razor-shell, which is
10-15 cm (4-6 in) long. They may be
eaten either raw or cooked (after cleaning)
REBLOCHON A cow’s milk
cheese made in Savoy (50% fat content) with a pressed uncooked curd and a
washed rind, yellow, pink or orange in colour.
It is very pliable, creamy and fine-textured, with a sweet nutty taste,
and was known in the 15th century.
Its name comes from the French
verb rebloche, meaning to milk a second time because the cheese used to be made
in the Alpine meadows from the last milk to be drawn from the cow, which is
very rich in fat.
It shaped like a flat disc 13 cm (5 in) in diameter and
2.5 cm (1 in) thick; there is also a smaller version, 9 cm (3½ in) in diameter
and 3 cm (1½ in) thick. It is made both
on farms and in diaries and can be tean from May to october.
REBOUX, PAUL French writer and journalist (born Henri
Amillet, Paris 1877; died Nice, 1963 ). He
was the author of several recipe books including Plats nouveaux, 300 recetters
on singuleires (1927), Plats du jour (1936) and Le Nouveau Savoir Manger
(1941), which were much criticized by chefs of the classic cuisine, he was
however, a pioneer and an enlightened lover of good food. He wrote a memorable homage to mustard. A touch of these mustard bring out the
flavour of Gruyere cheese season a salad, gives a lift to white sauces, and
gives style to a ragout. The hors d’
oeuvre is the first dish to feel their good effect, which ceases only with the
dessert.
REDCURRANT A shrub of the genus Ribes that is cultivated
for its fruit-small red, acid-tasting berries growing in clusters of 7-20. (The white currant is a variety producing slightly
sweeter white barries – it is prepared and used in the same way as the
redcurrant) Redcurrants were introduced into France from Scandinavia in the
Middle Ages. In France they are now cultivated principally in the Rhone
valley and (on a smaller scale) on the cote d’Or and in the Loire valley.
RECIPES
Redcurrant jelly (1)
Use either all
redcurrants or two thirds redcurrants and one-third white currants. Weigh 100 g (4 2/3 oz) raspberries for each 1
kg (2¼ lb0 curants.
Crush the currants and raspberries together and strain
them through a cloth which is wrung at both ends. Measure the juice. Aloow 1 kg (2¼ lb, 4½ cups) granulated sugar
for each 1 litre (1¾ pints, 4½ cups) fruits juice. Heat the sugar in a pan with little water –
just enough in which to dissolve the sugar.
Add the fruit juice and cook until setting point is reached then pot and
cover as usual.
Redcurrant jelly (2)
Put
the prepared and weighed currants in a
pan, add a small glass of water for each 1 kg (2¼ lb) currants, then heat them
gently until the skins burst and the juices come out. Add raspberries (the same proportion as in
the recipe above) and boil for a few seconds only. Strain the fruit and filter the juice. Continue as described above.
REDFISH a FISH, ALSO CALLED Norway haddock, related
to the scorpion fish. There are two main
varieties the smaller one lives in the Mediterranean and in the atlantic as far
north as the River Loire, the larger one is found in the North Atlantic and in
colder waters. The redfish has a large
spiny head, like the scorpion fish, but lacks spines on its fins. It is bright pink with a silvery sheen and
the inside of its mouth is black or bright red.
The fish is plumper than the scorpion fish and there is less waste
(40-50%) when it is prepared for cooking.
It has lean firm flesh and is tastier than the scorpion fish. It yields very good fillets which taste like
crab.
RED
KIDNEY BEAN. Variety of bean eaten
widely in the USA, Spain and the West Indies in its dried form. Red kidney beans accompany chilli con carne,
the beef ragout typical of the cooking of the pioneers of Texas. In France, where they are cultivated a
little, they are often cooked with red wine and bacon. Dried red kidney beans have to be soaked,
boiled for 10 minutes and then simmered in unsalted water for about 1 hour or
until tender.
RECIPE
Red
beans a l;a bourguignonne
Soak
and drain red kidney beans, then boil them for 10 minutes and drain. Cook the beans with a little streaky bacon in
equal quantities of water and red wine until tender. When the beans are cooked drain them a little
and place in a deep saute pan. Cut some
bacon into dice, cook gently in butter then add to the pan. Thicken with beurre manie and season to
taste.
REFORM
SAUCE An English sauce, originating from
the Reform Club in London, based on an espagnole sauce well seasoned with black
pepper and with the addition of gherkins, hard boiled egg whites, mushrooms,
pickled tongue and truffle. It is
traditionally served with lamb cutlets or may be used to fill an omelette. The sauce can also be prepared using the
same ingredients but with a base of game sauce (half pivrade and half
demi-glace with redcurrant jelly added); itis served with game cutlets and
small single cuts of venison.
REGENCE. The name given to various elaborate dishes
associated with the style of cooking of the Regency period in France. Regence garnish consists of quenelles (fish,
poultry or veal, according to the main
dish) poached mushrooms caps and sliver of truffle. Poached oysters may be added for fish dishes
and slices of foie gras for meat, offal (variety meats) or poultry dishes, fish
dishes are masked with normande sauce flavoured with truffle essence and meat
dishes with a supreme or allemande sauce.
Regence sauce was formerly served with calves sweetbreads and pached or
braised fowl.
RECIPES
Calves
sweetbreads regence
Prepare
the sweetbreads, stud them with truffles and braise them in white stock. Meanwhile, makke some large chicken
quuenelles with truffles and saute some slices of foie gras in butter. Prepare an allemande sauce using the reduced
braising liquor from the sweetbreads.
Arrange the sweetbreads on a hot dish and surround them with the quenelles
and foie gras slices. Garnish with
silvers of truffle tossed in butter and coat with the sauce.
Regence
sauce
Coarsely
dice 100 g (4 oz, ¾ cup) lean ham and cut 1 onion into quarters, melt 50 g (2
oz,¼ cup) butter in a saucepan and cook the
ham
and onion without letting them brown.
When the onion is almost cooked, add 1 sliced shallot. Deglaze the pan with 100 ml (4 fl oz, 7
tablespoons) Graves wine, reduce by two-thirds, then add 200 ml (7 fl oz, ¾
cup) white chicken stock. Reduce further
until the sauce coats the back of a spoon, then strain.
*****
ROYALE,
A LA Describing clear soups garnished with a royale the term
is also applied to various other dishes which have a light and delicate
garnish.
Fish a la royale (salmon, turbot, trout) are
poached and served hot, garnished with quenelles, mushrooms, poached oysters and
truffles, accompanied by a mouseline sauce. Poultry a la royale is poached,
garnished with quenelles and mushrooms (sometimes with the addition of slices
of foie gras), and covered with royale sauce ( a thick veloute to which cream
and chopped truffles are added). Hare a la royale is a famous dish claimed by
Perigord and Odenais. The description a la royale may also apply to hot or cold
desserts puddings, souffles, stuffed pineapple, ice cream sundaes which are
made from unusual ingredients and are presented with sophistication.
RECIPES
Consomme a la royale
Make some meat or
chicken consomme, prepare a plain or herb flavoured royale. Let the royale get
completely cold, unmould it on to a cloth (this will absorb any moisture) and
cut it into small cubes, circles, stars or leaves, just before serving add this
garnish to the hot soup.
Hare a la royale
Collect the blood from
a good sized skinned hare, reserve the liver, heart and lungs, and remove the
head.Carefully grease the bottom and sides of a very large stewpot with goose
fat. Make a bed of bacon rashers ( slices) in the pot, place the hare ( on its
back0 on top and cover with bacon rashers.Add 1 sliced carrot, 20 garlic
cloves, 40 shallots, 4 onions studded with cloves, and a bouquet garni. Pour in
250 ml ( 8 ft oz. 1 cup) wine vinegar and a bottle and a half of
Burgundy.Season with salt and pepper. Put the pot over a low heat, cover it and
cook for 3 hours.
Finely chop 125 g ( 4 ½ oz) bacon, the
hare’s offal (variety meat) 10 garlic cloves and 20 shallots. Mix all these
together very thoroughly. Remove the stewpot
from the heat. Lift out the hare very carefully and put it on a dish,
leaving the bacon and vegetables in the stewpot. Tip the contents of the pot
into a strainer, pressing to extract as much liquid as possible. Add this to
the chopped bacon, offal and vegetables and pour in half a bottle of heated
Burgundy. Pour this mixture into the stewpot, replace the hare and cook over a
low heat for 1 ½ hours. Skim off the surface fat. About 15 minutes before
serving, add the blood, well whisked and diluted with Cognac. When cooking is
complete, arrange the hare on a serving dish and pour the sauce around it.
Serve the same type of wine that was used to cook the hare.
Royale sauce
Mix together 200 ml ( 7
ft oz, ¾ cup) chicken veloute sauce and 100 ml ( 4 ft oz, 7 tablespoons) white
chicken stock.Reduce by half, adding 100 mll ( 4 ft. oz. 7 tablespoons) double
(heavy0 cream during the reduction. Just before serving add 2 tablespoons
finely chooped raw truffle, then whisk in 50 g ( 2 oz. 4 tablespoons) butter,
and finally add 1 tablespoon sherry.
Salpicon a la royale
Prepare 3 tablespoons
chopped mushrooms and 1 tablespoon chopped truffle.Cook the mushrooms in
butter, then add the truffle and 4 tablespoons chicken puree. Mix well and use
as a filling for bouchess or barquettes.
RUN IN To mix fat into dry ingredients, usually
flour, using the fingertips to achieve a crumbly consistency similar to
breadcrumbs.This is done fairly rapidly by pinching or rubbing the small pieces
of fat with the flour, allowing it to drop back into the bowl.The technique is
quick cool and light the palms of the hands should remain clean. The aim is to
incorporate some air as well as combining fat with flour, without melting it or
reducing the mixture to a paste. If the rubbed in mixture is to be bound
together, for example into a dough, a little liquid is added after rubbing in.
A food processor is often used for this technique, but care must be taken to
avoid overprocessing the mixture into a paste.
RUBENS Sauce made from a brunoise of vegetables
combined with white wine and then reduced, fish stock is added and the sauce is
then simmered, sieved, degreased and reduced again. This preparation is then
flavoured with Madeira, combined with egg yolks, thickened with beurre rouge
and finished with a dash of anchovy essence.
RUDD rotengle A freshwater fish, known also an
France as gardon rough (red roach) as it is similar to the roach in appearance
and habitat. It is cooked in the same way as the roach. Lied, grilled (broiled)
or meuniere.
RUE A perenial
herbaceous plant with small, greyish blade, bitter-tasting leaves. It is
an ancient herbal remedy, and during the Middle Ages was among the plants used
for making liqueurs, Traditionally it was used to flavour the herb based
hippocras. In Italy it is used to flavour grappa (a mare brandy) a small bunch
of fresh rue sprigs is put into the bottle to macerate. In eastern Europe, it
is an ingredient of meat stuffings and is added to flavour cheeses and
marinades.
RUIFARD A dessert typical of the Dauphine region of
France, particularly the Valbonnais area. It is a large pie made from yeast
dough filled with sliced pears, apples and quinces cooked in butter, sweetened
and flavoured with Charteause.
RECIPE
RUIFARD
Dissolve 15 g ( ½ oz)
dried yeast ( 2 packages active dry yeast) in 2 tablespoons warm water. Sift
250 g (9 oz. 2 ¼ cups) strong plain
(bread) flour into a heap and pour the dissolved yeast into a well in the
centre. Mix in a little of the flour to make a thick cream. Leave it to rise
for 10 minutes. Then add 1 whole egg 20
g ( ¾ oz. 1 ½ tablespoons) softened butter, 1 tablespoon oil, 100 ml ( 4 ft oz, 7 tablespoons) double (heavy)
cream, 15 g ( ½ oz, 1 tablespoons ) sugar and ¼ teaspoon salt. Work with the
hands to incorporate all the flour and knead until the dough leaves the fingers
cleanly, then put it in a bowl and leave to rise for 30 minutes at 25 oC
(77 oF).
Peel and slice 5 large apples, 5 pears and
2 small quinces. Cook them for 10 minutes with 50 g ( 2 oz. ¼ cup) butter and
150 g ( 5 oz, 2/3 cup) sugar, flavour
with 2 tablespoons Chartreuse. Butter a 20 cm ( 8 in) sandwich tin (layer cake
pan) and roll out half the dough to a thickness of 5 mm ( ¼ in) Line the base
and sides of the tin with this dough and pour in the cooked fruit. Roll out the
remaining dough a little more thinly and cover the fruit, sealing the edges
with a little cold water.
Leave to rise for a further 10-15 minutes,
then brush the surface with egg yolk. Bake in a preheated oven at 290 oC
(375 oF, gas 5) 30 minutes.
RULLY A village in the
Cote Chalonnaise area of Burgundy
producing red and white wines. Nineteen vineyards have premier cru status.
Sparkling Cremant de Bourgogne is also made.
RUM A spirit distilled from sugar cane. The
origin of the word is disputed, it may be a corruption of the Spanish ron, it
may derive from the Latin sacharum (sugar) or it may be a contraction of
rumbustion or rumbullon, formerly meaning strong liquor. The Oxford English
Dictionary prefers the latter etymology and dates the use of the word rum from
1654.
History. According to
legend, sugar cane was brought to the West Indies by Christopher Columbus from
the Canaries, where it had been introduced from the Orient. Distillation from
sugar cane or its by products was taking palce in Hispaniola around the start
of the 17th century, but these rough spirits were drunk by colonists
only in the absence of imports of anything better, a contemporary description of
them is hot, hellish, and terribleGradually, rum became more refined, sea
farers acquired a taste for it and introduced it into Europe, particularly
western England, France and Spain and it eventually spread all over the known
world.
Historically, rum was powerful and strong in
flavour. The cane juice, or diluted molasses would ferment violently in hot
climates when it contact with natural yeasts, producing an alcohol wash.From
this rum was distilled, and often redistilled, in pot-stills. There were improvements
in techniques cultured yeasts were discovered, filtration improved and the
value of maturing appreciated but no basic change took place in rum production
until the invention in Britain of continuous distillation, which was perfected
in the 1830s. Patent stills, were soon in operation in the Caribbean region and
they were to have a profound effect. Continuous distillation permitted
increased volume with less labour and gave improved control over the final
product’s strength and degree of flavour.
Types of rum Some de
luxe rums are wholly from pot stills, but most of the rums of normal commerce
come from the column stills at very high strength and as almost flavourless
spirit. They are either left as white rum or coloured and flavoured in various ways.
Blending of rums of diverse origins is commonly practiced.
Since all distillates are initially
colourless, regardless of absence or presence of natural flavour, it is
necessary to adjust dark rums to the required colour, ranging from pale golden, through amber, to deep brown, by the
addition of caramel.Certain premium rums are matured in oak cask long enough to
acquire some natural tint from the wood.Colour is however, principally a matter
of style, it has nothing to do with taste and only marginally with quality. The
consumer has come to associate a dark hue with a pungent rum and white rum with
virtual lack of flavour.Yet there are excellent full flavoured rums that are
almost colourless.
In speciality
rums, there are two outstanding types. Rhum agricole is particularly
relished in France and theere is some demand for it in the United State. This
agricultural rum is made not from molasses but entirely from straight cane
juice this confers prestige in the opinion of some drinkkers. The best known
comes from Marinique and is aged for six years.British Navy Rum from the
British Virgin Island, is relatively new to general commerce formerly it was
exclusively sold to be used as the Royal Navy’s official daily issue of
powerful, highly aromatic rum.The issue was stopped in 1970.
Rum of sorts is made wherever sugar cane
flourishes, often for purely local use. In world terms by far the largest
producer is Puerto Rico. All styles are made there, including some unusual
anejos (aged) rums. However, white rum predominates, typified by Ron Bacardi,
progenitor of Cuban rum, whose largest distillery is in Puerto Rico. The next
most important rum island is Jamaica. Jamaica rum is traditionally double
distilled in pot still and distinctly pungert.. but Jamaica also produces light
white rums by continuous distillation. Martinique is principally noted for rich
fragrant rum. Other important producers are Guyana which intils heavy,
sometimes exceptionally strong rums, but also white varieties. Barbados, famous
for Mount Gay, a smoothly medium rich rum and
Trinidad.
Uses of rum. White rum
is best for punches, daiquiris and other cocktails, while the stronger and
darker rums are used in grogs, flamed dishes, cooking and patisserie. Old rums
can be drunk as liqueurs.
There
are many uses for rum in cooking from soaking sponge cakes (for desserts and
charlottes) to flavouring pancake batters, dessert creams, mouses, zabaglione,
sorbets and fruit salads, or sprinkling on babas and savarins, flaming pancakes and omelettes, and
macerating crystallzied (candied) or dried fruit.
Rum combines particularly well with sweet
potatoes, pineapple and bananas and the meat and fish turkey, scampi or
monkfish kebabs, kidneys, roast duck). The aroma enhances sauces and marinades,
Rum is suitable for flaming only very tender meat, such as offal (variety
meats) and spring chicken.
RUMEN The first compartment of the stomach of
ruminants, the three others being smaller.Before it is used, the rumen is
emptied, heated I n water at 70 oC (158 oF), then
scraped, to remove any food particles which may be sticking to its lining. It
is then hardened in boiling water, this results in boeuf blanch (white beef)
This is used to make tripe or for preparing gras double (a dish made with three
stomachs) a la lyonnaise, a la florentine, or even as tablier de sapeur
(fireman’s apron). Tripouts of the Auvergne are made from lamb rumen and other
internal organs.
RUMFORD, BENJAMIN
THOMPSON, COUNT American physicist (born
Woburn, Masschusetts, 1753, died Paris 1814), He came to Europe to reorganize
the army of the Elector of Bavaria, and during this period became interested in
the problems of nutrition in particular how to extract the maximum benefit from
food while using the minimum of fuel. As a result, he invented a brick
cooker, with separate adjustable
burners, which made the cook’s job very much easier and also saved fuel.
He also invented a pressure cooker and a
kitchen stove.
Having discovered that the volatile oils in
coffee were responsible for its taste, he suggested making coffee in a closed
container, over a constant heat which kept the liquid just below boiling point
and so avoided destroying the aroma, he could thus claim to be the inventor of
the percolator. He is often credited with the invention of baked Alaska.
RUHOHR, KARL FREDERICH
VON German writer and patron of the arts (born Dresden, 1785,
died Dresden, 1843) Rich and independent, writer of nvoels and travel books, he
is best known as the author of a cookery book, Der Geist der Kochkunst, which
appeared in 1823, two years before Brilla Savarin’s La Physiologie du gout/
Karl von Rumohr was an enlightened amateur, a fastidious connoiseur, a
historian, even a dietician, his book deals with the nature of food, the
origins of cookery and cooking methods, and the preparation of meat and fish
sauces, pates and conserves. It then goes on to discuss vegetables, herbs,
spices sugar and jams. The third volume is devoted to table manners and how to
receive guests. The book relates remarkably well to modern culinary practice.
RUMP STEAK A cut of beef taken from between the buttock
and the sirloin. Less tender than fillet but with a better flavour, the cut
yields steaks for rapid grilling (broiling) or frying, when cut into pieces it
can be used for kebabs of a fondue bouguignoanne,. It can be cooked as a roast
for which a piece of least 7 cm ( 2 ¼ in) thick is required usually from the
top rump, which is treated in the same way as fillet or sirloin, the meat which
is dense and lean, should be lightly barded.
RUNNER BEAN A climbing bean plant widely culltivated for
its edible green pods, which are cooked and prepared in the same way as French
beans. A famous variety is the scarlet runner (baricot d’ Espagne) name after its
red flowers.
RUSK A slice of bread made from a special kind of
dough (containing flour, water, salt, yeast, fat and sugar) and rebaked in the
oven.Rusks are widely consumed in France (as biscottes) and also in other
countries such as Germany (as Zwieback) and the Netherlands. The bread is first
baked I n a mould, then sliced. The stale slices are rebaked in the oven,
giving them a golden colour. They must have a crumbly texture with very small
holes.
RUSSE, ALA Describing preparation of shellfish coated
in aspic jelly, covered with a chaud- froid sauce or a thick mayonnaise, and
accompanied by a Russian salad (a macedoine of vegetables bound with mayonnaise
set in an aspic lined mould or served in glass disches) Russian sauce served in glass dishes) Russian sauce served
with crudites or cold fish, is made from mayonnaise mixed with caviar and
possibly the creamy parts of lobster or crayfish.
All thee dishes are inspired by the classic
cuisine as practised at the time of the tsars, particularly by French chefs,
and are not really representative of true Russian cookery. However, some
recipes described as a la russe are based on
Slav traditions, including those featuring cucumbers, and gherkins,
bitoke, herrings, stuffed (bell) peppers, fillet of beef, kacha and pirosbki.
RECIPES
Canapes a la russe
Remove the crusts from
slices of white bread and cut into small rounds, squares or triangles.
Spread with butter flavoured with herbs, cover with
Russian salad and then coat with a thin layer of aspic. Refrigerate and serve as
an hors d’oeuvre. A small slice of truffle may be placed in the centre of each
canape.
Fllets of herring a la
russe
Boil some potatoes in
their skins, then peel and slice them.Take some large herring fillet in oil and
slice them very thinly.Reshapes them placing a slcie of potatoe between each
slice of herring.Arrange on a long serving dish and dress with a herb
vinaigrette (made with parsley, chervil, tarragon and chives) to which some
finely chopped fennel and shallots have been added.
Russain mayonnaise
Melt 400 ml (14 ft oz.
1 ¾ cups) aspic jelly, but do not let it get too warm. Mix with 300 ml ( ½
pint, 1 ¼ cups) mayonnaise and 1 tablespoon wine vinegar. Pour the mixture into
a bowl placed over crushed ice and beat with a whisk until it becomes frothy
(never use a wooden spoon) This sauce can be used to bind a dry macedoine of
vegetables, which is then set in aspic
lined moulds.
Russian salad
Boil and finely dice
some potatoes, carrots and turnips, boil some French (green) beans and cut into
short pices. Mix together equal quantites of these ingredients and add some
well draiend cooked petits pois. Bind with mayonnaise and pile up in a salad
bow. Garnish with a julienne of pickled tongue and truffles and add some finely
diced lobster or langouste meat.
For a more elaborate dish, the ordinary
mayonnaise can be replaced by thickened mayonnaise and the salad is poured into
mould lined with aspic and garnished with slivers of truffle and picked tongue.
Chill in the refrigerator for 4 hours and remove from the mould just before
serving.
Russian sauce (cold)
Mix equal quantities of
caviar and the finely sieved creamy parts (liver of lobster. Make some
mayonaise and add the caviar mixtrure use 1 part mixture to 4 parts mayonnaise.
This sauce may be seasoned
with a little mild mustard.
RUSSULA A short, brightly coloured mushroom with
granular, crumbly flesh. There are numerous species, not all of which are
edible. They can be differentiated by colour or more reliably by tasting a very
small fragment of the raw mushroom. If it has a bitter or a hot taste. It
should not be eaten, mild tasting
species can be eaten., but experience is needed to select the edible varieties.
The best species, which are cooked in the same way as cultivated mushrooms, are
the green russula, and the variety known
in France as charbonnier or charbonniere, with a purple violet or green cap and
a pleasant but rather insipid taste.
RUSTER AUSBRUCH An Austrian white wine, produced near
Rust in the Burgenland, from Late picked
grapes. It is therefore somewhat concentrated and sweet the term ausbruch in
the context of Austrian wines, signifies that the gapes are not picked until
very ripe.
RYE A cereal native to western Asia which
appeared in Europe before the from Age and to grown mainly in Nordic regions,
in the mountain and on poor soil.Rye flour can b made into bread, because it
does not have a light gluten content it is usually mixed with wheat flour.This
results in bread with a fine crumb and dense texture. The higher the proportion of wheat flour, the better the
gluten content and elasticity of the dough, and the lighter the bread, Ryebread
rolls are popular served with oysters and seafood. Rye flour is also used to
make gingerbread and certain cakes
Scandinavian pies and crispbread. Some spirits can also be made bread on
rye, for example, vodka and whiskey.
RYE WHISKEY An American whiskey, produced and consumed
mainly in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Canada. It is made from nonmalted rye and
barley or rye malt. It is not matured for as long as Scotch or Bourbon and it
has a more pungent taste.
