Lightly Salted Hen

How to make it

1. 1

   Clean the hen as usual, wash it well, and dry it lightly.

2. 2

   Truss the hen and rub it with the mixed salt, sugar, and saltpeter, hang it up over a bowl containing a little of the salt mixture; the hen hangs like this for 2–3 days and nights, basting it now and then. Don't forget it.

3. 3

   Now wash it well, put it in lukewarm water for about an hour, put it over the heat in slightly lukewarm — rather cold than boiling — water, and skim well during cooking.

4. 4

   Add 1 carrot, 1 parsnip, a couple of onion slices, and a couple of white peppercorns, and let it all cook until the hen is tender; you should count on at least a couple of hours.

5. 5

   The stock is used for sauce and for cooking rice in, if you have it or have the chance.

6. 6

   For the sauce, take a tablespoon of chicken fat worked together with one large boiled potato, thin little by little with the strained chicken stock.

7. 7

   To make the sauce completely smooth, you can rub it all through a sauce strainer. A little lemon, capers, or chopped pickled onion is good in the sauce.