Taste from the past – Recipes from 1903 – I’m not sure I’d like beef tea

FROM: THE PERFECT WOMAN 1903 by K. T. Boland

“The majority of mankind believe animal food to be a necessary constituent of the diet. We therefore give a few formulas for the best preparation of meats for the sick. Every particle of fat, skin and membrane must be removed.

BEEF TEA – Take a pound of lean beef, cut it fine, put it in a bottle corked tightly, and put the bottle into a kettle of warm water; the water should be allowed to boil for a considerable time; the bottle should then be removed, and the contents poured out. The tea may be salted a little, and a teaspoonful given each time.

Another way of preparing it is as follows:

Take a thick steak, broil slightly on a gridiron until the juices have started, and then squeeze thoroughly with a lemon squeezer. The juice thus extracted will be highly nutritious.

BROILED BEEF PULP – Scrape raw beef to a pulp, make into small cakes and broil as steak, Season with salt and a little cayenne pepper.

MUTTON BROTH – To make it quickly for an invalid, chop one pound of lean, juicy mutton very fine. Pour over it one pint of cold water, let it stand until the water is red, then heat slowly, simmering ten minutes. Strain, season, and add two tablespoonfuls of soft boiled rice, or thicken slightly with rice flour wet with cold water. Serve warm.”