Some old recipes are probably left well in the past. I came across these instructions in my little ‘Cookery To-Day and To-Morrow’ by Nell Heaton, first published in 1944 during the war. The fact that there was rationing in place accounts for many of the unusual recipes, and ingredients you wouldn’t normally expect. Instructions for saving, storing and preserving food also appear frequently.
I can’t imagine ever doing either of these, but it’s very interesting to imagine people having to do so:
Methods of preserving eggs
- Waterglass – The prepared solution is bought at the chemist’s or grocer’s and should be mixed in the proportions as stated on the packet, and placed in a bucket or large crock. A cloth should be put over the top to keep out the dust and help to prevent evaporation. The eggs should be new laid so that the pores will be sealed and the bacteria and air will not pass through the shells.
- With Wax and Oils – This wax is a commercial preparation which is rubbed over the shell of teh eggs. The eggs are then stored in boxes.
Some country folk have been known to preserve eggs by rubbing them or dipping them in melted butter. There is also a liquid preparation into which the eggs are dipped so they become evenly coated in a few seconds and cann then be stored without difficulty,
Of course these days, eggs are very commonly and cheaply available (for controversial reasons!) and most people have refrigerators to store their eggs. Waterglass, by the way, is a solution of sodium or potassium silicate which solidifies on exposure to air, used for preserving eggs and hardening artificial stone
Lois Elsden 