sell them under the denominations of salted herrings and red herrings.
The process employed for the first-named is as follows:--
As soon as the herring is out of the sea, a sailor opens it, removes the
gills and the entrails, washes the fish in salt water, and puts it into
a brine thick enough for it to float. After fifteen or eighteen hours,
it is taken out of the brine and laid in a tub with a quantity of salt.
It remains in this tub until the port is reached. There the herrings are
placed in barrels, where they are artistically arranged one over
another, with fresh salt between each layer. Care is always taken to
employ fresh brine.
Red herrings are prepared by leaving the fish at least twenty-four hours
in the brine; and when they are taken out, little twigs are run through
the gills, and then they are suspended in a kind of chimney, made on
purpose, under which a small fire is made with wood, which produces a
good deal of smoke. The herrings remain in this state until they are
sufficiently dry, that is to say, about twenty-four hours.
In Sweden and Norway they are somewhat differently prepared. The
Icelanders and Greenlanders simply dry them in the air.[XXI-211]
ANCHOVY.
Sonnini thinks that garum was simply composed of anchovies cooked and
crushed in their brine, to which was added a little vinegar, and chopped
or pounded parsley.
The fishermen of the Mediterranean and the coasts of the ocean salt
almost all the anchovies they take. They cut off their heads, which are
thought to be bitter, take out the entrails, wash them in soft or salt
water, and stratify them in barrels with salt. The fishermen of
Provence think it is essential to the good preservation of anchovies
that the salt be red; and, consequently, they colour it with ochreous
earths. Moreover, these fishermen do not change the brine which is
formed in the barrels: they simply fill them up when any is lost by
evaporation or leakage.
The fishermen of the north only use bay salt, and they change the brine
three times, whence it results that their anchovies keep much longer;
but the greater acridness of those which have remained in the same brine
is esteemed a good quality by most consumers, and therefore they are
more sought after.
In sea ports, anchovies are eaten either fried or roasted. Salted
anchovies are to be preferred when they are new, firm, white outside,
vermilion coloured inside, and free from all putrid smell. After having
taken out the backbone, and washed them well, cooks commonly make use of
anchovies in salads, and to flavour sauces made with butter, cullis, &c.
In this case they are employed raw.
They are not unfrequently fried, after having been deprived of the salt,
and surrounded with an appropriate paste. Some persons toast slices of
bread, cover them with strips of anchovies, and serve them with a sauce
composed of oil, vinegar, whole pepper, parsley, scallions, and
eschalots, all in abundant quantities, and chopped very small.[XXI-212]
SHELL FISH.
The Emperor Caligula had made immense preparations to invade Great
Britain. He set off, and when he arrived in sight of that Albion he was
going to attack, he commanded his troops to form in close array along
the shore, the trumpets to sound the charge, and sat himself on the
quarter-deck of his galley, from whence he might have directed the
action. For a short time he contemplated his warlike cohorts, and having
thus gratified his pride, he ordered his troops to pick up the shells
which abounded on the strand, and returned to Rome, where he showed the
“_spolia opima_” the ocean had delivered up to him. Caligula expected to
receive the honours of a triumph; but the senate, having some sense of
modesty left, would not award them, and the implacable Cæsar, from that
moment, swore the ruin of the senators.[XXI-213]
The inhabitants of Greece and those of Italy thought a great deal of
shell fish, which was always served at the beginning of the repast, just
as they came from the sea: others cooked under the ashes, or fried. In
most cases they were seasoned with cummin and pepper.[XXI-214]
The purveyors of fish in Rome gave the preference to those taken in the
lake of Lucrinus.[XXI-215] The Greeks esteemed those from the promontory
of Polarea.[XXI-216]
The city of Baiæ, in Campania, celebrated for its charming position, and
the unreserved lax manners of its inhabitants, was not less renowned for
its culinary labours, and the nicety which presided over their joyful
banquets. Apicius has left us the recipe of a most exquisite stew,
_emphractum_, which the epicureans of Rome often went to degust among
their rivals, the Campanian gastronomists.
Cut up oysters, muscles, and sea-hedgehogs; let the pieces be rather
small; put them into a stewpan with pine almonds, fried and chopped,
some parsley, rue, pepper, coriander, and cummin; add, with proper care
and discretion, some cooked wine, garum, and oil; cover, and boil the
whole for a long time on a slow fire.[XXI-217]
We will point out the shell fish most in vogue in Italy, and for which
the seasoning was generally composed of a mixture of pepper, parsley,
dried mint, alisander, a great quantity of cummin, and a little of the
decoction of spikenard.[XXI-218]
OYSTER.
The pontiffs of pagan Rome, men of exquisite delicacy and matured taste,
caused oysters to be served at every repast.[XXI-219] This little piece
of epicurism was very expensive, and it was necessary for these grave
personages to carry the whole of the devotion which characterized them
in their love of good cheer to the highest degree, to dare eat of a dish
still uncommon a century before the Christian era. At this epoch a
_borriche_ (a sort of basket) of oysters was worth one hundred sesterces
(£9).[XXI-220] It is unnecessary to remark that the poor never tasted
them.
The Greeks and Romans, like ourselves, were remarkably fond of this
delicious shell fish, and eat them (French fashion) at the beginning of
a banquet.[XXI-221] For this reason Athenian epicures called oysters
“the gastronomic prelude to the supper.”[XXI-222] They were often served
raw,[XXI-223] and were then dexterously opened by a slave on the
table,[XXI-224] in presence of the guests, whose experienced eyes
greedily sought the light purple net which, according to them, surrounds
the fattest and best.[XXI-225]
The inhabitants of Italy preferred large oysters,[XXI-226] and exacted
that this dainty manna of the sea[XXI-227] should be always fresh and
abundant at their feasts.[XXI-228] This displayed wisdom on their part:
this delightful fish excites the appetite and facilitates
digestion.[XXI-229] To add to its delicate flavour, the “Roman club of
epicureans,” a useful association, which modern Europe envies antiquity,
caused to be sent from Spain, at a vast expense, that precious
garum,[XXI-230] the recipe of which seems to have been lost, and the
condiment itself forgotten by the whole of the Peninsula.
The magiric genius of Rome did not hesitate to demonstrate that oysters
do not form an exception to the law of perfectibility which governs all
beings, and that it is possible to render their flesh more succulent and
delicate by transporting them from their damp cradle into reservoirs
exposed to the mild influence of the sun.[XXI-231] Sergius Orata or,
perhaps, Fulvius Hirpinus, was the first who received this happy
inspiration. He caused to be constructed, near Pouzzole, a short time
before the civil war of Pompey, a fishpond, where be stowed oysters,
which he fattened with paste and cooked wine worked into the consistence
of honey[XXI-232]--_sapa et farre_. This worthy Roman enriched himself
by the sale of them,[XXI-233] and bequeathed a name to posterity--a
two-fold happiness for the gastronomist Fulvius, whose good fortune the
poet Homer did not partake.
Apicius esteemed highly oysters from the lake of Lucrinus, from Brindes,
and Abydos, and studied deeply the succulent qualities of this shell
fish. He knew how to preserve them fat, fresh, and alive, during long
and fatiguing journeys; and, thanks to a delicate attention on the part
of this immortal _bon vivant_, the great Trajan was enabled to regale
himself with oysters sent from Rome while carrying on a distant war
against the Parthians.[XXI-234] This present of the king of epicureans
to the master of the world was worthy of both the giver and receiver,
but it completed the ruin of the generous Apicius.
The Roman ladies shared their husbands’ taste, and eagerly partook of
oysters from the lake of Lucrinus, brought into fashion by Sergius
Orata, and when their fatigued stomachs struggled painfully with
gluttony, this delicacy soon obtained an easy triumph by disposing the
appetite to fresh exertions. The means of defence, however, were not
very formidable; sometimes a little warm and limpid water--oftener a
dazzling plume from the bird of Juno--hastened the struggle, and,
without effort, decided the victory.[XXI-235] This ingenious method was
very much relished by polyphagists, and the Emperor Vitellius
particularly honoured it.[XXI-236]
Cape Pelorus furnished the Greeks with highly prized oysters,[XXI-237]
which were eaten alone, fried, stewed, or nicely dressed with
marsh-mallows, dock-leaves, and with some kind of fish.[XXI-238]
The Romans at length became disgusted with those found on the coasts of
Italy, or in the Dardanelles; an instinct of greediness caused them to
prefer oysters from the Atlantic ocean, and especially from the shores
of Armorica, now called Britany.[XXI-239] Bordeaux supplied imperial
tables, and this high distinction is sufficient for its praise.[XXI-240]
It may not be useless to remark here, that no sooner had Ausonius
praised this fish in his lines than it was forgotten, and did not
re-appear till the 17th century on the tables of distinguished
personages. May our descendants be more just than our forefathers.
At Rome oysters were served with a seasoning of pepper and alisander,
mixed with the yolks of eggs, vinegar, garum, oil, wine, and a little
honey.[XXI-241]
They were preserved in a vase smeared with pitch, washed with vinegar,
and hermetically closed.[XXI-242]
“Oysters of a fine quality are generally of easy digestion, but not very
nourishing, particularly when eaten raw. They are sought for to open the
appetite, which is the case, owing to the nature of the water, agreeably
salted, contained in them. Some mention is made of persons who can eat
from fifteen to twenty dozen without being ill. It is not the same when
cooked; then they become hard, more tough, and, consequently,
indigestible. They are also eaten pickled with vinegar and sweet herbs.
In this state they are sent to countries distant from the sea, piled up
one upon the other, without the shell, in small barrels.”--DE
BLAINVILLE.
SEA-HEDGEHOG.
Under this denomination were classed all animals, more or less
orbicular, whose envelope bristles with calcareous points, on which
account they were compared to hedgehogs.
The Greeks thought them delicious when caught at the full moon,[XXI-243]
and prepared with vinegar, sweet cooked wine, parsley, and
mint.[XXI-244] Oxymel often replaced vinegar.[XXI-245]
The Romans also esteemed highly this dish, which was recommended to
sluggish appetites under the auspices of the faculty;[XXI-246] and
Apicius furnished the following recipe for the preparation of it:--
“Procure a new saucepan,” thus says the great master, “place in it a
little oil, garum, sweet wine, and pepper. When the mixture begins to
boil, stuff the sea hedgehogs, then submit them to the action of a slow
fire; add a large quantity of pepper, and serve.”[XXI-247]
MUSSEL.
The two great nations of antiquity have granted uncommon praise to
mussels, and partook of them at their most sumptuous feasts. At the
wedding repast of the graceful Hebe, Jupiter wished the inhabitants of
Olympus to exchange for this shell fish their celestial though
monotonous ambrosia.[XXI-248] Epicharmus, who records the fact, does not
inform us with what sauce the _chef de cuisine_ of the gods dressed the
flesh of those mussels. The reader must thus content himself with the
seasoning invented by simple mortals, and which appeared good to them.
It was composed of a suitable mixture of pepper, alisander, parsley,
mint, with a quantity of cummin seed, a little honey, vinegar, and
garum.[XXI-249] With this mixture they covered the boiled and widely
opened mussels, and the guests found it impossible to satiate themselves
with this dish, so much more digestible and nourishing than
oysters.[XXI-250]
SCALLOP.
The effeminate inhabitants of Tarentum, the abode of luxury, delighted
in good living, and boasted of possessing the finest scallops of
Campania, and of the whole empire.[XXI-251] The infallible authority of
this voluptuous city in matters of taste gave a surprising vogue to this
fish. Rome, and all the population of Italy, believed it was forced to
eat the scallops of Tarentum prepared with oysters, and at other times
with mussels.
It now remains to be mentioned that some kinds of _testacea_ appeared
worthy of the reputation they acquired among the ancients.
TORTOISE.
The Greeks and Latins speak with admiration of the enormous size of
certain tortoises in their time, the whole species of which were
comprised under the generic word _testudo_.[XXI-252] The Indian Sea
produced some so large, that the shell of one only amply served to roof
a comfortable and elegant cottage.[XXI-253] The inhabitants of the
shores of the Red Sea never troubled themselves with building sloops;
large shells of tortoises spared them the trouble, by supplying them
with charming little barks, which lightly floated on the water.[XXI-254]
And, lastly, in the Ganges, tortoise shells were found, capable of
containing no less than 20 _amphoræ_, or about 560 pints.[XXI-255]
The inhabitants of the Peloponnesus did the tortoise the signal honour
of representing its image on their money.[XXI-256] The blood cured
diseases of the eye,[XXI-257] and the flesh--in great request--was
thought excellent eating. It was cut into pieces of a middling size, and
placed in a saucepan with pepper, rue, and scallions, crushed in the
same mortar; over this was poured honey, garum, raisin wine, common
wine, and a small quantity of good oil. At the moment of ebullition, the
whole was thickened with flour.[XXI-258]
Sometimes the tortoise was boiled, and covered with a seasoning, for
which the following is the recipe:--
Mix pepper, alisander, parsley, mint, and wild marjoram, with the yolks
of eggs, honey, garum, wine, cooked wine, and oil; add mustard and
vinegar.[XXI-259]
SEA-CRAWFISH.
Apicius sought relief from his culinary studies at Minturnus, in
Campania, where that great master regaled himself with delicious
sea-crawfish, in order to keep up his gustatory powers. Genius reposes
amidst studious leisure. Being told that Africa produced some of these
_testacea_ of an immense size, immediately the worthy Roman tears
himself away from the sweet solitude he had created; he freights a
vessel, Æolus smiles on the undertaking, Neptune protects him, and he
arrives in sight of the African shore. Scarcely was he disembarked when
some fishermen brought him a few sea-crawfish; he examines, rejects
them, and demands finer ones to be brought. He is informed that it will
be impossible to procure any larger than those before him. At this
Apicius smiles disdainfully, and commanding the presence of his pilot,
orders him to steer back for Italy.[XXI-260] Decidedly magiric genius
never revealed itself by a more sublime action.
However, Pliny somewhere mentions certain magnificent sea-crawfish,
which he describes as being four cubits in length[XXI-261]--very large
ones, certainly.
Roman tables often presented to the sight of guests boiled sea-crawfish,
peppered and garnished with asparagus,[XXI-262] but they were generally
covered with a gravy composed of honey, vinegar, wine, garum, oil, and
cooked wine; to which were added scallions, chopped small, pepper,
alisander, carrots, cummin, and dates. Mustard was then mixed with the
whole.[XXI-263]
LOBSTER.
Antiquity rendered justice to the lobster, and the taste for it did not
change, being founded on truly estimable and sterling qualities. It was
opened lengthwise, and filled with a gravy, into the composition of
which entered both pepper and coriander. It was then slowly cooked on
the gridiron, and every now and then basted with the same kind of gravy,
with which the flesh became impregnated.[XXI-264]
RIVER CRAYFISH.
The Greeks were remarkably fond of this fish,[XXI-265] especially when
obtained from Alexandria.[XXI-266] They were not less esteemed in Rome,
where they eat them boiled with cummin, and seasoned with pepper,
alisander, parsley, dried mint, and a great quantity of cummin; the
whole carefully and well ground, and mixed with honey, vinegar, and
garum, to which was sometimes added some liquid perfume.[XXI-267]
“Crayfishes can be preserved several days, not too warm, in baskets with
some fresh grass, such as the nettle, or in a bucket with three-eighths
of an inch of water. If there were enough water in it to cover them,
they would die in a few moments, because their great consumption of air
does not allow them to live in water unless it is continually
renewed.”--BOSC.
CRAB.
Would you like to eat crab sausages? Boil some of these animals; reduce
them to a pulp; mix with this some spikenard, garum, pepper, and eggs;
give to this the ordinary shape of sausages, place them on the stove or
gridiron, and you will, by these means, obtain a delicate and tempting
dish.[XXI-268] Apicius assures us of the fact: Apicius was a
connoisseur!
A crab may also be served whole, boiled, and accompanied by a seasoning
of pepper, cummin, and rue, which the cook skilfully mixes with garum,
honey, oil, and vinegar.[XXI-269]
Is it preferred stuffed? Then fill it with a skilful mixture of cummin,
mint, rue, alisander, pine nuts, and pepper, the whole long soaked in
garum, honey, vinegar, and wine.[XXI-270]
FROGS.
The ancients thought nothing of frogs, which they left at liberty to
propagate. There was such a great number among the Abderites, that these
good people gave up to them their native soil, and left the place in
search of another spot.
At the present day, in some countries, frogs are sought for as a most
agreeable and wholesome food; in other parts--England in
particular--they are disdainfully shunned. But in France there is a
great consumption of them, especially in the spring. About a century
since, they were greatly in fashion at Paris; and it is stated that a
countryman from the province of Auvergne, named Simon, made a
considerable fortune by feeding and fattening them in one of the suburbs
of that city, which were sent to him from Auvergne.
“In Germany, the various parts of the frog are eaten, the skin and
intestine excepted; but in France they are satisfied with the hind legs,
which, by the size of their muscles, are themselves equivalent to all
the rest. They are dressed with wine as fish, with white or brown sauce;
fried, or roasted; when tender, and properly done, it is a most delicate
dish.”--BOSC.
* * * * *
Before the conclusion of this article, we may as well mention a
frightful fish which modern good taste has banished from our tables, but
which the ancients allowed to appear at theirs. It is the _Polypus_,
highly esteemed both in Greece and Italy, when caught at a certain
period, and its numerous immoderate legs stretched far over the edges of
the dish prepared to receive it.[XXI-271]
This monster was cut in pieces, and eaten with a sauce composed of
pepper, garum, and benzoin.[XXI-272]
It will be easily understood that ancient nations must have early
accustomed themselves to fishing, the origin of which, doubtless, goes
back to the first ages of civilization. The holy writings often mention
fishermen,[XXI-273] fish-hooks, and nets. Homer speaks of them,[XXI-274]
and the poet, Hesiod, who flourished thirty years before Homer,[XXI-275]
places on the shield of Hercules an attentive fisherman, ready to throw
his net over some fish pursued by a dolphin.[XXI-276]
The Egyptians also practised this occupation; of which the following
anecdote is a proof:--
Antony being in Egypt, the beauteous Cleopatra sought to amuse him by
inventing for his entertainment each day new kinds of pleasure; but the
Roman general, seized with a violent love of fishing, fled from the
society of his numerous courtiers, and, alone on the borders of the sea,
or an isolated lake, vainly waiting for the smallest gudgeon, he forgot
long hours of vain expectancy and useless patience. The queen undertook
his cure. She commanded a diver to plunge into the water, and there a
hook a fish to the line of Antony. He, seeing it agitated, joyfully
withdrew it from the water, and unhooked a _salted sardine_. Cleopatra
then exclaimed: “Leave to Egyptians the task of fishing; Romans should
take only kings, cities, and emperors.”[XXI-277]
The inhabitants of Italy fished exactly in the same manner we do at this
day;[XXI-278] but Roman luxury, always greedy of extravagant profusion,
invented those celebrated fish ponds which cost immense sums, both to
build and maintain;[XXI-279] and to which Lucullus, Hortensius, and
Philippus, whom Cicero surnamed the “Tritons of fish pools,”[XXI-280]
consecrated almost entirely their anxiety and fortunes.
This folly was carried to such a height that fish ponds were constructed
on the roofs of houses.[XXI-281] More reasonable persons contented
themselves with bringing river-water into their dining-rooms.[XXI-282]
The fish swam under the table, and it was only necessary to stoop and
pick them out the instant before eating them.[XXI-283]
These expensive habits could only suit the most opulent and least
numerous class of Romans. The honest citizen modestly provided himself
at the fish-market, and the part not eaten by him the first day was
submitted to a very simple process, which assured its preservation. For
this, it was only necessary to cover it with boiling vinegar as soon as
it had been fried.[XXI-284]
Fish was also well preserved by surrounding it with snow, and placing it
at the bottom of an ice-house.[XXI-285]
XXII.
THE COOK.
The author of a rare and very curious work,[XXII-1] which no one at
present has time to read, formed the charitable project of reconciling
medicine and gastronomy. This was a noble enterprize, worthy of a true
philanthropist, and which assuredly presented less difficulties than
people may think. In effect, what was the moot question? To agree, _de
forma_, without interfering with the substance; to examine whether
culinary preparations poison, as has been said, the food which nature
gives us, and unceasingly paralyze the salutary action of the dietetic,
which the faculty prescribe.
For many centuries cooking has been exposed to these odious reproaches,
the gravity of which we do not pretend to attenuate; and yet, ever
pursuing its brilliant career amidst revolutions and ruins, the magiric
art, endowed with eternal youth, embellishes each new era of
civilization, receives its most constant homage, and survives it when it
fades away. Let us speak plainly: mankind has thrown on cooks all the
faults of which they ought to accuse their own intemperance. It was no
doubt easier, than to avoid the fatal abuse of pleasure, and the evils
it brings with it; but there was the crying injustice, which we do not
hesitate to denounce; _there_ lay the obstacle it was necessary to
overcome, in order to bring about a peaceful understanding between the
disciples of Galen and the followers of Apicius.
_Gourmandise_ would never have rebelled against the kitchen if all
polyphagists had obtained from the good Ceres the gift she granted to
Pandarea--a celebrated eater, who could pass days and nights at table,
without experiencing the slightest indigestion.[XXII-2]