¼ their bulk of shallots and the same quantity of mushrooms, both
finely minced and lightly fried in butter; then add some chopped
parsley and sweet herbs; season with pepper and salt, and make the
mixture into a paste by working into it the yolks of 1 or 2 eggs, a
pat of butter, and a little milk. Stuff the fish with this, and truss
it with packthread. Butter a baking dish, dispose upon it an onion
and a carrot cut in slices, a few sprigs of parsley, 2 or 3 cloves,
and some whole pepper and salt to taste. Lay the fish on this, then
add a good ½ pint stock and a wineglass of white wine, cover the
fish with a sheet of buttered paper, and bake it ½-¾ hour, according
to the size. Baste it now and then during the process with its own
liquor. When done strain the liquor into a saucepan in which a piece
of butter has been mixed with a tablespoonful of flour, add a little
_suc colore_ to give the sauce a good colour, and as soon as it is
boiling hot pour over the fish and serve.
With Caper Sauce.--Place the fish trussed with packthread in a fish
kettle full of cold water, well salted; when the water comes near
boiling point draw the fish kettle aside, let simmer gently till the
fish is quite done, lift up to drain, then lay it on a dish; pour
plenty of brown caper sauce over.
_Haddock_ (Eglefin).--Boiled.--Tie the fish with a string in the
shape of an S, or with its tail in its mouth; lay it in plenty of
cold water, well salted. Place the fish kettle on the fire, and by
the time the water is on the point of boiling, the fish, unless it
be a very large one, should be quite done. Let it drain across the
kettle, and serve.
Broiled.--Split the fish open, wipe dry with a cloth, rub with salad
oil and flour it, then broil over a clear fire; meanwhile knead 1 oz.
butter with the juice of half a lemon, pepper and salt to taste, and
a little parsley blanched, squeezed dry, and very finely minced; put
this butter on a hot dish, the fish over, and serve.
Dried.--Warm the haddock before the fire, just long enough to make
the skin peel off easily. Cut it into pieces down the middle, and
2 or 3 times across. Put it into a closed saucepan with a lump of
butter and a small teaspoonful of water, stew gently for a few
minutes.
In Jelly.--See Trout in Jelly.
_Hake_ (Merlus).--See Cod. Roast: see Pike. Stewed: see Ling.
_Halibut_ (Flétan).--Of the halibut little need be said. It is a
large fish, endowed with firm and white, but rather coarse flesh.
It is perhaps best stewed or fried. Boiled halibut is very apt to be
woolly.
_Herrings_ (Harengs).--Fried.--Take care the fish is well cleaned,
without being split; 2-3 hours before cooking, lightly sprinkle with
salt and pepper; when ready to cook, wipe and flour the herrings.
Have ready in the frying pan as much fat, at the proper temperature,
as will cover the herrings. Cook quickly at first, then moderate the
heat slightly, and fry for 10-12 minutes, when they should be crisp
and brown. When done, lay them on a dish before the fire, in order
that all fat and fish-oil may drain from them. With this precaution,
fried herrings will be found more digestible than otherwise they
would be. When herrings are large, there is sometimes a redness near
the bone; this will be prevented by passing a knife, before cooking,
a little way down the backbone, near the head.
Rolled.--Choose herrings with soft roes. Having scraped and washed
them, cut off the heads, split open, take out the roes, and cleanse
the fish. Hold one in the left hand, and, with thumb and finger of
the right, press the backbone to loosen it, then lay flat on the
board, and draw out the bone; it will come out whole, leaving none
behind. Dissolve a little fresh butter, pass the inner side of the
fish through it, sprinkle pepper and salt lightly over, then roll it
up tightly, with the fin and tail outwards, roll it in flour, and
sprinkle a little pepper and salt, then put a little game skewer to
keep the herring in shape. Have ready a good quantity of boiling fat;
it is best to do the herrings in a wire basket, and fry them quickly
for 10 minutes. Take them up and set them on a plate before the fire,
in order that all the fat may drain from them. Pass the roes through
flour mixed with a sufficient quantity of pepper and salt, fry them
brown, and garnish the fish with them and crisp parsley. A difficulty
is often felt in introducing herrings at dinner, on account of the
number of small bones in them, but this is obviated by the above
method of dressing, as with care not one bone should be left in.
_John Dory_ (Dorée).--Stuffed.--Pick out all the flesh from a
whiting, pound it with an equal bulk of breadcrumbs soaked in milk,
a piece of butter, a small onion or a shallot, blanched, pepper,
salt, and grated nutmeg to taste; mix the whole very well, and work
it into a paste with the yolks of one or two eggs. Lift up the flesh
from the backbone of a good-sized John Dory, stuff it with the above
composition, and tie up with string; lay in a buttered tin with a
tablespoonful of minced shallots, a couple of bay leaves, some whole
pepper, and salt to taste; pour in enough stock and white wine in
equal parts to cover the fish, place a sheet of buttered paper over,
and put the tin in the oven for about ¾ hour, more or less, according
to the size of the fish. Remove the string, and serve with some of
the liquor strained and thickened with a little butter and flour.
With Caper Sauce.--Place the fish, trussed with packthread, in a fish
kettle full of cold water well salted; when the water comes near
boiling point, draw the fish kettle aside, let it simmer gently till
the fish is quite done, lift up to drain, then lay on a dish, pour
plenty of brown caper sauce over.
_Lamperns._--These great delicacies are in season from October to
April. Many persons confuse them with the lamprey, which is a totally
different fish, being larger than an eel, while the lampern is not
more than 8 in. long. They should be bought alive, killed by boiling
water, cleaned by stirring them briskly round in the bucket in which
they are killed, and after rinsing them in cold water, rubbed in a
cloth. They should then have the points of their mouths and the tips
of their tails cut off, taking care to remove as little as possible,
else the gravy is lost, and the nature of these fish is the same as a
snipe.
Stewed.--Have ready about 3 tablespoonfuls of good rich gravy, ¼ pint
claret or port, a blade of mace, 3 cloves, a teaspoonful of salt, ½
teaspoonful of pepper, a squeeze of lemon juice, a dessertspoonful of
Worcester sauce. This is sufficient for stewing 3 doz. lamperns. Stew
them very gently for about 1 hour, set them aside in the gravy till
the following day, when they may be rewarmed; the gravy thickened
with butter and arrowroot, a little more sauce added; serve very hot,
garnished with lemon and horseradish. They should always stand a
night in the gravy before being eaten, and will keep for a week. If
potted, they should be curled round in a small jar when stewed; about
9 or more fish make a small pot; the gravy requires setting with a
little isinglass, and when sent to table they should be turned out
and garnished with parsley. The flavour of the lampern is totally
unlike that of any other fish, and epicures in Worcestershire will
pay a high price for them when they are scarce. (E. B. W.)
_Lamprey_ (Lamproie). Baked.--Skin, draw, and split the back from
mouth to tail, remove the string in the back and truss it round;
parboil it in salted water with sweet herbs, season when cold with
nutmeg, pepper, and salt. Line a pie dish with paste, put butter at
the bottom, then the lamprey, 2 or 3 onions, cloves, currants, a
piece of butter; cover the pie, fill it up (through a hole in the
top) with clarified butter--or boiling claret, this will not keep so
long--and bake. Eels, lampreys, &c., may be baked in a glazed earthen
pot (without paste) rubbed inside well with butter, and--if to keep
long--they should be seasoned well with cloves, mace, pepper, and
salt.
_Ling._--Cut 1 lb. ling into slices, rub with flour, and fry a nice
brown. When done, fry a stick of celery and a very small onion. Add
½ pint stock with a dessertspoonful of flour, a sprig of parsley, a
piece of lemon peel, a blade of mace, salt, and peppercorns. When
it boils, put the fish back in the saucepan, and simmer very gently
until done, i.e. 15-20 minutes. Put the slices on a hot dish and
strain the gravy over. The sauce may be varied by adding the chopped
whites of a hard-boiled egg just before serving, and rubbing the yolk
over the dish through a sieve as a garnish. Conger requires longer
cooking; hake and most other white fish, which can be used for this
same recipe, not so long.
_Lobster_ (Homard).--During the early summer months lobsters are in
prime condition, and may be bought either alive or dead. As they are
very tenacious of life, and indeed will live on till their substance
is utterly wasted, it is clearly better to buy them alive, taking
care not to kill them till just before cooking. The heaviest are the
best; and if the tail strikes quick and strong, they are in good
condition, but if weak and light and frothing at the mouth, are
exhausted and worthless. In like manner, when buying a boiled lobster
put your finger and thumb on the body and pinch it; if it feels firm,
and the tail goes back with a strong spring, the lobster--if heavy
and of a good colour--is a desirable specimen.
À la St. Malo.--Take a lobster, cut in two lengthwise; take out all
the flesh, and scallop it, making the claws and coral into lobster
butter. Reduce some good gravy with a little double cream, and
add two spoonfuls of tomato sauce: stir all well together, with a
pinch of cayenne pepper. Roll the lobster scallops in the sauce,
and place them in the shell, on the top of a few minced truffles,
and cover with the thick sauce; mix a little butter and shallot
with breadcrumbs and finely-chopped parsley. Scatter this over the
lobster, and cook _au gratin_ for ¼ hour. (Mrs. C.)
À l’Enfant Prodigue.--Get a couple of lobsters, and cut them down the
back, leaving the shell of the heads intact; remove the non-edible
portions and break the claws. Put the whole into a stewpan with a
bottle of champagne (sweet champagne will do), 4 spoonfuls fine salad
oil, 3 cloves of garlic, a sprig of basil, and a lemon (sliced and
freed from peel and pips), salt, pepper, chervil, parsley, a few
mushrooms, and 2 lb. truffles (whole). When done, take out the sweet
herbs, cut off the heads of the lobsters, place them erect in the
middle of the dish, and dispose the other pieces around. Impale the
truffles on the antennæ of the lobsters, pour the sauce over, and
above all, serve Clos de Vougeôt, Chambertin, or Côte Rôtie with this
dish.
Au gratin.--Split the tail and body of the lobster, removing the
fish and taking care not to break the shells, mince up the fish and
put all into a stewpan with a little good stock, and pepper and
salt, mix it well, fill the shells with the mixture, cover them with
breadcrumbs, brush over with clarified butter, and brown with a
salamander.
Boiled.--A fine lobster simply boiled and served piping hot is a
capital dish. To produce this, tie up the lobster’s tail fast to the
body with a string, put on a saucepan or fish-kettle with sufficient
water; let it boil, put in the lobster with a handful of salt,
and boil for about ½ hour (a small one will not require more than
15-20 minutes), then take it out, wipe all the scum off, break the
claws, split it through the tail and back, and lay it in a hot dish,
“displayed” with a claw on each side. Melted butter is generally
served with this dish, and is much improved by the addition of
pounded spawn; but a hot _ravigote_ or _tartare_ sauce will be found
an improvement on the traditional accompaniment.
Broiled.--After being boiled as above, a lobster may be broiled in
this wise: Take the claws off and crack them, split the body and
tail in two, season well with pepper, salt, and cayenne, and broil.
Serve with plain butter or with a little heated ketchup, dashed with
Worcestershire sauce.
Roast.--There are 3 methods of roasting a lobster. One is to boil it
and put it in a dish before the fire, and baste it with butter till
it froths, and then “display” it in a hot dish, and serve. Another
plan is only to half boil the lobster, then butter its shell, and tie
it to the spit before a brisk fire. After a plentiful basting with
butter, it may be served with a hot _sauce tartare_. A more thorough
method than either of these is to tie a large uncooked lobster to a
long skewer, using plenty of packthread, and attaching it firmly,
for a reason to be presently stated. Tie the skewer to a spit, and
put the lobster down to a sharp fire; baste with champagne, butter,
pepper and salt. After a while the shell of the animal will become
tender, and will crumble between the fingers. When it comes away
from the body the operation of roasting is complete. Take down the
lobster, skim the fat from the gravy in the dripping-pan, add the
juice of a Seville orange, pepper, salt, and spice, and serve in a
lordly dish.
Buttered.--A buttered lobster should be first boiled and broken up.
Take out all the meat, cut it small, and put it into a stewpan with
plenty of butter, a little pepper, salt, and vinegar, and stir till
it is hot. If a handsome dish of 2 or 3 lobsters be desired, the
tails should be halved and broiled, and put round the dish with the
minced lobster in the middle.
Cream.--Take the flesh from 2 lobsters, cut up small, and then pound
in a mortar with the spawn until reduced to a smooth paste; then pass
through a fine sieve, add pepper, salt, and grated nutmeg, and mix
gradually sufficient double cream to make it of the consistency of
a thick purée. Just before serving, put into small paper cases and
serve cold with some of the spawn sprinkled over the top.
Croquettes.--Mince the flesh of a lobster to the size of small dice,
season with pepper, salt, spices, and as much cayenne as will rest on
the point of a trussing needle. Melt a piece of butter in a saucepan,
mix with it 1 tablespoonful flour, then the lobster, and some chopped
parsley; moisten with a little stock until the mixture looks like
minced veal; then stir into it off the fire 2 yolks of eggs, and put
by to get cold. When nearly so, shape into the form of corks, egg
them, and roll in baked breadcrumbs. After the lapse of an hour, egg
and breadcrumb them again, taking care to preserve the shape. After a
little time fry them a nice colour in hot lard.
Croustades.--Cut the crumb of a loaf of bread into slices 2 in.
thick, and then with a round paste cutter about 2 in. diameter, cut
out of each slice as many pieces as you can; with another paste
cutter, about 1½ in. diameter, make a mark on one side of each
cylinder of breadcrumb. When all are ready fry them a golden colour
in very hot lard; a deep frying-pan should be used, and plenty of
lard, so that the croustades fairly swim in the fat. When done lay
them in front of the fire to drain, and afterwards remove the cover
(marked with the smaller paste cutter), and with the handle of a
teaspoon scoop out all the inside of each croustade. Then fill them
with the following mixture:--Mince the flesh of a hen lobster to the
size of small dice, season with pepper, salt, and spice, and as much
cayenne as will rest on the point of a trussing needle. Pound some
of the spawn with 1 oz. butter, pass it through a hair sieve. Take
another ounce of butter, melt it in a saucepan with a teaspoonful of
flour, add a very small quantity of white stock and the flesh of the
lobster; when the mixture is thoroughly hot, put in a pinch of finely
minced parsley, the juice of half a lemon and the butter which was
pounded with the spawn.
Curry.--Lobster curry is made by frying sliced onions in butter till
they are done enough. The flesh of a boiled lobster is then added,
and the curry powder (made into a paste) is put in with a liberal
allowance of cream. 15-20 minutes will cook this dish, which should
be carefully stirred all the time. It may be served within a wall of
rice, or, better still, with the rice in a separate dish.
Cutlets.--Take out the meat of either a lobster or crab, mince it
up, and add 2 oz. butter, browned with 1 tablespoonful flour, and
seasoned with a little pepper, salt, and cayenne. Add about ½ pint
strong stock, stir the mixture over the fire until quite hot, and lay
it in separate tablespoonfuls on a large dish. When cold, form into
the shape of cutlets, brush over with yolk of egg (beaten), dip in
breadcrumbs, fry of a light-brown colour in clarified beef dripping,
and place round a dish, with a little fried parsley in the centre.
Kromeskies.--Mince finely a small quantity of the flesh of lobster,
toss it in butter on the fire, adding a pinch of flour, a little
white stock, salt, pepper, and spices to taste, and lastly the yolk
of an egg beaten up with a little lemon juice; but this should be
done off the fire. Spread the mixture on a dish to cool; divide it
into portions the size of a walnut; wrap each portion in a piece of
white wafer, previously wetted; then dip them in batter, and fry
a golden colour in hot lard. Serve piled up on a dish, with fried
parsley.
Omelet.--Slice a quantity of the flesh of a lobster, equal in bulk
to 2 eggs, season with pepper, salt, and nutmeg; mix on the fire
some butter and a little flour, moisten with a little stock, add the
lobster, and stir in, off the fire, the yolk of an egg beaten up with
the juice of half a lemon. Insert this ragout in the fold of a plain
omelet. Turn out on a dish, and serve.
Salad.--Boil 4 eggs hard; when quite cold carefully remove the
yolks, beat with a fork, with 2 teaspoonfuls mustard, 1 of salt,
1 of pepper, and a little cayenne; mix well together, add 4
dessertspoonfuls vinegar and 1 of lemon pickle. When quite smooth,
add the spawn of the fish and ½ pint cream. Cut up the boiled fish
in small pieces, and with an onion nicely minced, stir them into
the sauce. Place the lettuce, endive, cress, &c., upon the lobster,
garnish with beetroot and slices of whites of egg.
Sandwiches.--Take the flesh of a boiled lobster, cut the thick part
into thin slices, put on a plate, and sprinkle with salt, pepper, a
little oil and cayenne. Put any trimming of lobster and anchovies,
or sardines, into a mortar with 2 oz. fresh butter, salt, pepper,
and a little anchovy sauce, pound well together and pass through
a sieve. Cut slices of thin bread and butter, place the slices of
lobster carefully on them, and spread over each the above butter; put
on another piece of bread and butter, flatten each sandwich, and cut
into any shape you please. Serve either on a napkin with parsley, or
over small cress. Potted lobster can be used for this purpose with
greater advantage, and likewise a little cress, chopped, may be put
next the slices of lobster. (Jane Burtenshaw.)
Soufflé.--Take out the meat from a small lobster, break it into
pieces, and then pound it in a mortar with some of the spawn of a
hen lobster, and an equal quantity of butter; add pepper, salt, and
spices to taste, with as much cayenne as can be taken up on the
point of a trussing needle; slightly pound the rest of the lobster,
and put it into some very good veal stock, simmer gently until well
flavoured; then strain and add sufficient of this with a little
double cream and a dash of lemon juice, to make the mixture of the
consistency of thick lobster sauce, stir over the fire until well
mixed; then leave to get nearly cold; now add quickly the yolks of 3
or 4 eggs, according to quantity, and lastly the whites whipped to
a stiff froth; pour it at once into a soufflé tin, and bake in the
oven. Serve immediately.
Stewed.--For stew or _ragoût_, lobsters should be only half boiled,
and then transferred to the stewpan. To concoct a stew, proceed as
follows: Half boil a fine lobster, and take out the meat in as large
pieces as possible. Put it into a stewpan, with a little white stock,
2 glasses hock, sauterne, or very light sherry, a little beaten mace,
cayenne pepper and salt, a spoonful of ketchup, a dash of anchovy
sauce, and a little butter rolled in flour. Stew gently for 20
minutes, shaking now and then; squeeze in the juice of a lemon, and
serve on a hot dish.
_Mackerel_ (Maquereau).--In March superb mackerel may be obtained,
full of roe and in perfect condition, while throughout the year
they may be got in London in fair case for eating. Mackerel cannot
be cooked too soon after being caught. The flesh immediately begins
to deteriorate, and within a couple of days loses flavour--going in
hot weather rapidly “to the bad.” In buying this fish, therefore,
great attention must be paid to its condition and freshness. A
good mackerel should be of fair size (not the monster called horse
mackerel), plump, very thick and round in shape, full and deep from
the shoulder downwards. The eye should be full and bright, the skin
glossy, and the body stiff. The bars on the back should also be
observed, as these are straighter in the male than in the female
fish, the former of which is justly preferred, on account of the
richer quality of the flesh and the exquisite texture and flavour of
the roe.
Baked.--Wash and clean 3 or 4 mackerel, divide them down the back
and once across, making 4 pieces of each fish. Arrange these pieces
compactly in a pie dish in layers, with 3 or 4 bay leaves, 6 shallots
sliced, a dessertspoonful of peppercorns, half that quantity of
pimento berries, 8 cloves, and a little white pepper. Make a sauce
with ½ pint good stock, 1 wineglass each of claret and vinegar, 1
tablespoonful mushroom ketchup, and the same of anchovy and Harvey
sauce, with a tablespoonful of Worcester sauce and soy. Bake in a
moderate oven with a cover on the dish until the fish is quite done;
take from the sauce, and place on the dish you intend serving it on;
strain the sauce, and pour over the fish. Serve cold, garnished with
sprigs of parsley or fennel. Fish cooked in this way will keep good
for 2-3 days, if left in the sauce and covered over.
Boiled.--For boiling, mackerel should be carefully cleaned, from the
gills, well washed in vinegar and water, and allowed to dry before
being put into the fish kettle, when a handful of salt should be
put into sufficient water to cover the fish which should be allowed
to boil gently for 15-20 minutes. As the critical moment approaches
the fish should be carefully watched, as when the eye starts and
the tail splits it is done, and must be taken up immediately, or it
will break. Serve on a napkin with fennel sauce (in boats) made as
follows: Pick and wash a bunch of fennel, tie it up and “blanch” it,
i.e. throw it into boiling water and let it remain for a few minutes,
drain and chop it finely and add it to some melted butter, make it
quite hot, and serve. When fennel is unattainable parsley may be
used--albeit a feeble substitute--instead. Another good sauce for
boiled mackerel is made thus: throw a large piece of butter rolled in
flour into a stewpan, add chopped and blanched parsley and mushrooms,
a little chopped shallot and a _soupçon_ of garlic, moisten with a
cupful of stock or broth, add salt and a little grated nutmeg, and
just before serving stir in a little mustard, amalgamate thoroughly,
and serve in a boat.
Broiled.--When the fish are split open, wipe carefully with a dry
cloth, sprinkle lightly with pepper and salt, and hang up in a cool
place with plenty of air until next morning. Take care to keep the
fish open when you hang them up. When ready to cook the mackerel,
dissolve ½ oz. butter or bacon fat for each fish, and pass them
through it on both sides. Lay them on a gridiron over a very slow
fire, turn frequently, basting now and then with a little butter.
When the fish is last turned, sprinkle finely-chopped parsley on
the inner side, and then serve very hot. They must be very slowly
cooked; they will take at least 20 minutes. If put over a fierce fire
mackerel is rendered hard and indigestible, and the fish itself is
unjustly blamed, but if the above recipe is followed a most delicious
dish will be produced.
Devilled.--Split the mackerel down the back, and remove the bone.
Divide the fish into 4 fillets, trim neatly, and season well with
made mustard, black pepper, salt, and a little lemon juice; let
remain for a short time, 1 hour if possible, then dip in oil or
melted butter, and broil over a clear fire; serve with fried parsley
and cut lemon, or with a grill sauce, viz. gravy flavoured with
French mustard, mushroom ketchup (or any flavouring preferred), a few
chopped capers, and with a thickening of butter, flour, and a dash of
lemon juice.