Knowing what to cook wasn't helpful to the Victorian housewife if she didn't know how to cook! By the 1880's and 1890's, Victorian family magazines were becoming aware that not all of their readers were able to employ cooks - and so were in need of detailed cooking instructions. Keep in mind, as you read these, that cooking in a Victorian kitchen took place over a wood or coal stove or, occasionally, even on an open hearth. Oven temperatures were measured in terms of moderate to very hot - no mechanism existed for giving precise temperatures. Measurements were often provided in terms of a comparison (e.g., a "thumb-sized" ball of butter) or even in terms of cost ("5 pence worth"). The practice of using precise measures (and measuring utensils) was not common until the turn of the century.

The Right Way of Roasting (Peterson's, 1866)

The Uses and Abuses of a Frying Pan, by A.G. Payne (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1875)

Our Village Cooking Class, by Letitia McClintock (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1878)

An example of a woman's efforts to 'do good' by giving classes to her less informed village neighbors.

How We Made Bread at Home (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1879)

Bread and Bread-Making, by Ruth Lamb (Girl's Own Paper, 1880)

On Making One's Own Cheese, by Lucy Brackenbury (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1880)

Our Cookery Class, by Phillis Browne (Girl's Own Paper, 1880)

A series covering a variety of methods of cooking meats, including roasting, boiling and simmering, baking, gravy preparation, frying, broiling on a gridiron, and preparing cold meats.

Soups, and How to Make Them, by Phillis Browne (Girl's Own Paper, 1881)

Making Bread at Home, by Catherine Owen (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1882)

For those who imagined that, in Victorian days, everyone made bread at home, guess again... By 1882, home-made bread was "rarely used" in the city!

On the Making of Patties, by A.G. Payne (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1883)

The Art of Garnishing, by Lizzie Heritage (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1884)

"I must endeavour to show how to hide ugliness by means of garnishing, as well as improve what is already in itself pretty." Who knew how vitally important it is not to mix blue and green on the table?

The Art of Soup-Making, by Lizzie Heritage (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1884)

Larding and Boning, by Phillis Browne (Girl's Own Paper, 1884)

Larding is "the process of inserting strips of bacon, called lardons, into lean meat by means of a larding needle." It is described as a rather advanced technique!

Sauces for Fish, Flesh and Fowl, by Lizzie Heritage (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1885)

Egging and Breadcrumbing, by Phillis Browne (Girl's Own Paper, 1886)

Fancy Pastry, and How to Make it, by Phillis Browne (Girl's Own Paper, 1886)

Includes such treats as fruit tarts, tartlets, pastry fingers, turnovers, and more.

Explanation of French and Other Terms Used in Modern Cookery (Girl's Own Paper, 1887)

The Principles of Pastry-Making (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1888)

How to Make Soup, by Laura Lathrop (Ingalls' Home Magazine, 1889)

Cheese and Butter Schools for Girls, by Fanny Green (Girl's Own Paper, 1891)

This article provides a great deal of information on how cheese and butter are made.

Tinned Novelties (Girl's Own Paper, 1891)

Fancy Butter and How to Make It, by A Certified Butter-Maker (Girl's Own Paper, 1892)

Methods of shaping and moulding butter.

Patties and How to Make Them (Girl's Own Paper, 1893)

Patties consist of ground meat -- such as lobster, prawns, shrimp, oysters -- in a pastry shell, and serve as an "entrèe" between courses.

Cream Cheese and How to Make It, by a Certified Cheesemaker (Girl's Own Paper, 1894)

Grilling and Devilling, by Dora de Blaquière (Girl's Own Paper, 1899)

If you have leftover ham, try making a "Cambridge devil!"

New Dried Fruits, by Dora de Blaquière (Girl's Own Paper, 1899)

In 1899, dried apricots, apples, plums, etc. were "very modern and recent gifts to a grateful world" -- and this article explains how to cook with them.

Cake Decorating, by Lina Orman Cooper (Girl's Own Paper, 1900)

Frauds in Cookery, by Eve (Girl's Own Paper, 1900)

How to conceal "substitutions" in a recipe.

My Dairy and the Work Therein, by Lina Orman Cooper (Girl's Own Paper, 1900)

How to make butter, with a lovely look at the tools required.

Tinned Foods (Girl's Own Paper, 1901)

Advice and safety tips on using tinned meats and other foods.

The Art of Making Bread (Girl's Own Paper, 1902)

A Few Nice Moulds and How to Make Them, by E.J. Jones (Girl's Own Paper, 1902)

Mould with cherries, milk jelly, apple jelly, chocolate cream, custard-cheese mould, beef mould and chicken mould.