Diamondback Terrapin Stew Chesapeake Bay Style Food

DIAMONDBACK TERRAPIN STEW, CHESAPEAKE BAY STYLE

Steps:

• Drop live terrapin into boiling water and let stand for 5 minutes.
• Remove from water; rub skin off feet, tail and head with a towel, drawing the head out with a skewer.
• Clip off claws.
• Scrub shell with boiling water; break apart with a cleaver or axe.
• Remove meat and liver.
• Discard heart, sandbag, entrails and gall bladder (taking caution not to break it as it's bitter).
• Cut the liver in thin slices.
• Take out eggs, remove film and set aside in cold water.
• Mash yolks of eggs; add flour, nutmeg, lemon juice and rind.
• Stir in 1 cup of soup stock.
• Add onion, celery, terrapin and terrapin eggs and enough more stock to cover meat.
• Cook in double boiler until meat falls from bones.
• Remove bones, add worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, chopped egg whites, cream, sherry and milk (if necessary).
• Heat thoroughly and serve with toast.

TERRAPIN STEW

Steps:

• Put the terrapins alive in boiling water.
• Let them remain for fifteen minutes and then take the shells from them, being careful not to break the galls.
• Clean the entrails from the meat, and scrape the black skin from the feet with a knife.
• After thoroughly cleaning the terrapins, lay then in a clear water for ten minutes, and then put then in a kettle to stew with 1 cup of water, and stew very slowly for about three hours.
• Boil the eggs hard, and rub the yelks (not misspelled) to a powder.
• Then add the butter to the eggs and beat together until it becomes cream.
• To this cream add the sherry wine and mix it well.
• Then add this preparation to the stew very gradually, stirring well, so as to thoroughly mix it in.
• While the stew is cooking, mix the mustard and the tbsp of wine and put in.
• Slice one lemon add to stew just before dishing it up for table.
• Three hours is sufficient time to cook it.
• You had better put the win in the stew and not mix it with the eggs, for fear you may not mix it in right and that there may be no mistake.
• With the above directions you have a perfect stew.
• ½ cup of sweet cream is an improvement, if you like it: also the allspice.