Having cleaned your fish, cut into pieces of a convenient size to go
into the fish-kettle, and boil in salted water as for the table. Drain
it very dry, wipe it with a clean cloth, and set it aside in a cool
place until next morning.
Make pickle enough to cover it in the following proportions: 2 quarts
vinegar, a dozen blades of mace, dozen white peppers, dozen cloves, two
teaspoonfuls made mustard, three tablespoonfuls white sugar, and a
pint of the water in which the fish was boiled. Let them boil up once
hard, that you may skim the pickle. Should the spices come away with
the scum in large quantities, pick them out and return to the kettle.
Set the liquor away in an earthenware jar, closely covered, to keep
in the flavor. Next morning hang it over a brisk fire in a bell-metal
kettle (covered), and heat to boiling. Meanwhile, prepare the salmon
by cutting into pieces an inch and a half long and half an inch wide.
Cut cleanly and regularly with a sharp knife. When they are all ready,
and the liquor is on the boil, drop them carefully into the kettle. Let
the pickle boil up once to make sure the salmon is heated through. Have
ready some air-tight glass jars, such as you use for canning fruit and
tomatoes. Take the salmon from the kettle, while it is still on the
stove or range, with a wire-egg-beater, taking care you do not break
the pieces. Drop them rapidly into the jar, packing closely as you go
on; fill with the boiling pickle until it overflows, screw on the top,
and set away in a dark, cool place. Proceed in the same way with each
can until all are full. Salmon thus put up will keep good for _years_,
as I can testify from experience, and will well repay the trouble of
preparation. You can vary the seasoning to your taste, adding a shallot
or two minced very fine, some celery and small pods of cayenne pepper,
which always _look_ well in vinegar.
Be sure that the contents of the kettle are boiling when transferred
to the cans, that they are not allowed time to cool in the transit,
that the elastic on the can is properly adjusted, and the top screwed
down tightly, and success is certain. I would call the attention of
those who are fond of the potted spiced salmon, sold at a high price in
grocery stores, to this receipt for making the same luxury at home. It
costs less by one-half, is as good, and is always on hand.