To kill it, hang it up by the hind fins, cut off the head and let it bleed overnight into a bucket; then lay it on its back, cut off the fins, then the under shell, remove the entrails and gall; save the eggs and green fat, the white flesh, and the red meat, and the fins. The shell is then sawn into pieces and boiled with the head to make the stock for turtle soup; the green fat is served with the soups, the white and dark meat used for entrees and steaks, etc. The white meat may be used in all the ways given in the recipes for veal. The red meat in all the ways given for beef. The fins are generally stewed in any of the ways applicable to fowl.

Green Turtle Soup

Place in a large and deep sautoir half a pound of butter, three pounds of sliced raw ham, the meat from three shins of beef and three knuckles of veal, two old fowls, a dozen cloves, four blades of mace, a handful of parsley roots, a bouquet of parsley tied up with shallots, thyme, green onions and two bay leaves, a pint of Madeira wine and a gallon of good stock; boil this down sharply to a half glaze, then fill up with stock, adding the turtle head, fins, shell and the coarse meat, turnips, carrots, onions and a head of celery; simmer for six hours, then work in a rouz to the consistency of thin sauce, boil and skim till smooth and velvety, then strain off into another sautoir... Make a puree of herbs by boiling together in a quart of consomme, one-third of sweet basil, and the other two-thirds of herbs to be used are equal quantities of savory, thyme and marjoram, a good handful of parsley, a small bunch each of spring onions and shallots, and some mushroom trimmings; boil for one hour, then rub all through the tamis; add the puree to the soup with a pint of Madeira wine; some of the turtle eggs, some forcemeat balls made from the white turtle meat, the cooked green fat cut in pieces, and the juice of one lemon to each gallon of soup.

For CLEAR TURTLE SOUP, proceed and finish in the same way, but instead of adding a roux to the stock, let it cool and clarify it into a consomme. A good sherry wine may be used instead of Madeira.