1664a—Chicken Croquettes and Cutlets

The croquettes and cutlets with which we are now concerned are made up of exactly the same constituents, and only differ in the matter of shape, the croquettes, as a rule, being shaped either like corks or rectangles; sometimes, too, like quoits; whereas the cutlets, as their name implies, are made in cutlet-shaped moulds.

The preparation from which they are made is as follows:—One lb. of the meat of a poached or roast fowl, thoroughly cleared of all skin, cartilage, and bones, and cut into small regular dice[Footnote 1]; six oz. of cooked mushrooms; an equal amount of salted ox-tongue or York ham, and four oz. of truffles. Cut these various products like the chicken, and mix them therewith; then add one-half pint of very reduced and finished Allemande sauce to the whole; set the preparation to dry for a few minutes over an open fire; this done, remove it from the latter, and thicken it with the yolks of four raw eggs, which should be quickly mixed with it. Now pour the preparation into a very clean, buttered tray, and butter its surface, lest a crust form thereon during the cooling.

When the preparation is quite cold, transfer it, by means of a spoon, in pieces weighing about two oz., to a flour-dusted mixing board. Make the croquettes and cutlets about the desired shape; dip them into an anglaise, and roll them in fine bread-crumbs. Definitely shape them; plunge them into very hot fat; keep them therein till they have acquired a fine golden colour; drain them, and dish them in a crown on a napkin, with a heap of fried parsley in the middle.

Croquettes and cutlets may be garnished as fancy suggests, but the accompaniment should always be served separately. Tomato and Périgueux sauces are the most commonly used, and the best garnishes for the purpose are all the purées, peas, French beans, and jardinières.