COOKERY FOR LICENSED VICTUALLERS.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume XIV, Issue 810, 14 September 1905, Page 24

COOKERY FOR LICENSED VICTUALLERS.

(By

“ Cuisinier,”

in “

A CUP OF COFFEE.

L.V. Gazette.”)

Most people like to enjoy a good cup of coffee after dinner, but few have the good luck to get it. There is no difficulty in making a cup of coffee, but in this, as in everything else concerning the cuisine, strict attention to details is absolutely necessary if success is to be attained. The success of the coffee depends first on the quality of the bean, on its mixing, and on its roasting. Too often the bean is put into the roasting-pan when too green and not sufficiently dry and crisp, with the result that it is only half roasted, and the centre of the bean has not been reached by the heat. Such coffee, when made, has neither aroma nor colour. The reason of this, in many cases, ‘s that roasting causes loss in weight, and the grocer does not wish to lose by waste. It would be much better, however, for the sake of his own good name, if he were' to charge a little more for the article and win the favour of those of his customers who appreciate a good cup of “the fragrant berry’s juice.” The best result can only be obtained by the coffee being roasted on the same day as used, and, if possible, immediately before using. It should, therefore, never be bought ready roasted. In hotels and restaurants, where a large quantity is required daily, a coffee

roaster should be used over charcoal, coke, or gas. To have it fresh, with its full aroma, proceed as follows : Fill the

roaster half full with green coffee, then

shut it. Place it on the fire, which should be neither too fierce nor too slow,

and keep it turning constantly, taking care to watch its progress by occasionally opening the little door of the roaster. As soon as it becomes a bright darkbrown colour, it is done. Now turn it into a flat wicker basket whose sides are slightly turned in, and shake it vigorously until all the shucks have blown away, the berries remaining clean and intact.

In small establishments, where the roaster would be too large for their requirements, one may do as follows: — Put as much as is wanted of the green berries into a steel frying-pan, kept for this purpose only. Put this pan on a slow coal or gas fire, and shake it continually until it has attained a dark brown colour. Then spread it on a. clean sheet of paper and let it cool before putting it in the canister. It is preferable, however, to roast only enough to be used at once, and to grind it as soon as roasted. In this way we get the perfect coffee of the epicure. Coffeegrinders are to be had of all sizes and prices, from two shillings upwards, according to the requirements of the establishment.

Never on any account use tin coffee pots, but always china or porcelain ones. Tin always gives a bad taste to the coffee. Coffee that remains a few hours in a tin pot becomes undrinkable, and has a metallic taste.

Coffee, being an infusion, should never be boiled. Nothing is more injurious to the stomach than boiled coffee.

To make black coffee, or cafe noir, which is usually taken after dinner, put eight ounces of coffee, well roasted and freshly ground, in the filter of a china coffee pot. Then add in small quantities two quarts of boiling water, pouring slowly through the filter just sufficient at a time to thoroughly moisten the coffee. The water must be boiling during the whole of the time in which it is being added. Two quarts of boiling water will give about a quart and ahalf of good coffee.

To make coffee with milk, or cafe au lait. which is generally served for breakfast, make the coffee as in the preceding recipe. Boil the required quantity of milk, and pour it into cups along with the coffee. As a rule, half coffee and half milk is the right proportion. Never shake the coffee pot to make the liquid pass through more quickly. The hot water ought to pass through the thickness of the coffee and thus extract its essence and aroma, coming through cleai and bright; but if stirred up to hasten its filtering it will be thick and discoloured. It should be remembered that one sort of coffee alone will not make a good beverage; two or three kinds are therefore generally mixed together. The most esteemed and the dearest is old Mocha, the beans of which are small and yellow, very shrivelled, and unequal in shape. Then comes the Java, having a large bean of a dull colour and excellent flavour. Then follows the Mysore, a middle-sized closed bean, in taste resembling the Mocha. Next again is the Porto Rico, excellent to mix with the Mysore, to which it imparts a dark colour. All the South American kinds make good coffee if mixed with half quantities of Mocha, Java, or Mysore. Chicory should never be added to coffee, unless one’s customers do not appreciate the genuine article or are not willing to pay for it. It may be used in cheap coffee shops where price is the main consideration, but never in any establishment that has a reputation to maintain. lam quite aware that in coffee-drinking countries chicory is much used, but there coffee is drunk in large quantities at all hours of the day, and a cheap beverage is a necessity. The better classes on the Continent much prefer to drink it unadulterated.

. Finally, I would say, avoid all expensiye complicated coffee-making machines, of which there are many in the market The simplest plan is the best, and, by closely following the directions I have given, my readers will be able to serve a cup of coffee that will delight their customers. and will bring both fame and profit to their establishments.