If a fish is not perfectly fresh, perfectly cleaned, and thoroughly cooked, it is not eatable. It should be cleaned or drawn as soon as it comes from market, then put on the ice until the time of cooking. It should not be soaked, for it impairs the flavor, unless it is frozen, when it should be put into ice-cold water to thaw; or unless it is a salted fish, when it may be soaked overnight.

The greatest merit of a fish is freshness. The secret of the excellence of the fish at the Saratoga Lake House, where they have famous trout dinners, is that, as they are raised on the premises, they go almost immediately from the pond to the fish-kettle. One is to be pitied who has not tasted fish at the sea-shore, where fishermen come in just before dinner, with baskets filled with blue-fish, flounders, etc., fresh from the water.

A long, oval fish-kettle (page 52) is very convenient for frying or boiling fish. It has a strainer to fit, in which the fish is placed, enabling it to be taken from the kettle without breaking. A fish is sufficiently cooked when the meat separates easily from the bones. When the fish is quite done, it should be left no longer in the kettle; it will lose its flavor.

It makes a pleasant change to cook fish “au gratin.” It is a simple operation, but little attempted in America. I would recommend this mode of cooking for eels, or the Western white-fish.

A fish is most delicious fried in olive-oil. A friend told me he purchased olive-oil by the keg, for cooking purposes. It is, of course, expensive, and lard or beef drippings answer very well. I would recommend, also, frying fish by immersion.

If a fish is to be served whole, do not cut off the head and tail. It also presents a better appearance to stand the fish on its belly rather than lay it on its side.

To Boil Fish.

All fish but salmon (which is put into warm water to preserve its color) should be placed in salted cold water, with a little vinegar or lemon-juice in it, to boil. It should then boil very, very gently, or the outside will break before the inside is done. It requires a little experience to know exactly how long to boil a fish. It must never be underdone; yet it must be taken from the water as soon as it is thoroughly done, or it will become insipid, watery, and colorless. It will require about eight minutes to the pound for large, thick fish, and about five minutes to the pound for thin fish, after the water begins to simmer, using only enough water to cover it. When done, drain it well before the fire. The fresh-water, or any kind of fish which have no decided flavor, are much better boiled au court bouillon, or with onions and carrots (sliced), parsley, two or three cloves, pepper, salt, vinegar, or wine—any or all of these added to the water. The sea-fish, or such as have a flavor prononcÉ, can be boiled in simple salted and acidulated water.

If you have no fish-kettle, and wish to boil a fish, arrange it in a circle on a plate, with an old napkin around it: when it is done, it can be carefully lifted from the kettle by the cloth, so that it will not be broken. When cuts of fish are boiled, you allow the water to just come to a boil; then remove the kettle to the back of the range, so that it will only simmer.

Always serve a sauce with a boiled fish, such as drawn butter, egg, caper, pickle, shrimp, oyster, Hollandaise, or piquante sauce.

To Boil Au Court Bouillon.

Among professional cooks, a favorite way of boiling a fish is in water saturated with vegetables, called court bouillon; consequently, a fish cooked in this manner would be called, for instance, “Pike, au court bouillon.” It is rather a pity this way of cooking has a French name; however, if one is not unduly scared at that, one can see how simple it is.

Dubois’s Receipt.—Mince a carrot, an onion, and a small piece of celery; fry them in a little butter, in a stew-pan; add some parsley, some pepper-corns, and three or four cloves. Now pour on two quarts of hot water and a pint of vinegar. Let it boil a quarter of an hour; skim it, salt it, and use it for boiling the fish.

It is improved by using white or red wine instead of vinegar; only use then three parts of wine to one of water. These stocks are easily preserved, and may be used several times.

To boil the fish: Rub the fish with lemon-juice and salt, put it in a kettle, and cover it with court bouillon. Let it only simmer, not boil hard, until thoroughly done. Serve the fish on a napkin, surrounded with parsley. Serve a caper, pickle, or any kind of fish sauce, in a sauce-boat.

To Fry Fish.

By frying fish I mean that it is to be immersed in hot lard, beef drippings, or olive-oil. Let there be a little more fat than will cover the fish; otherwise it is liable to stick to the bottom and burn. Do not put in the fish until the fat is tested, and found to be quite hot. If the fat were not hot enough, the fish would absorb some of it, making it greasy and unwholesome. If it is hot enough, the fish will absorb nothing at all.

To prepare fish for frying, dredge them first with flour; then brush them with beaten egg, and roll them in fine or sifted bread, or cracker crumbs. When they are browned on one side, turn them over in the hot fat. When done, let them drain quite dry.

Cutlets of any large fish are particularly nice egged and bread-crumbed, fried, and served with tomato sauce or slices of lemon.

Fish Fried in Batter.

Cut almost any kind of fish in fillets or pieces one-fourth of an inch thick, and one or two inches square; only be careful to have them all of the same shape and size. Sprinkle them with pepper and salt, and roll each one in batter (No. 2, page 98). Fry them in boiling lard. Arrange them tastefully in a circle, one overlapping the other. Garnish with fresh or fried parsley. Potatoes À la Parisienne may be piled in the centre, and sauce Tartare (see page 128) served separately in a sauce-boat.

To Broil Fish.

The same rule applies to broiling fish as to every thing else. If the fish is small, it requires a clear, hot fire. If the fish is large, the fire must be moderate; otherwise the outside of the fish would be burned before the inside is cooked. Many rub the fish over with olive-oil; others split a large fish; still others broil it whole, and cut notches at equal distances across its sides. When you wish to turn the fish, separate carefully with a knife any part of it which sticks to the gridiron; then, holding a platter over the fish with one hand, turn the gridiron over with the other, leaving the fish on the platter: it will now be a more easy matter to turn it without breaking. As soon as the fish is done, sprinkle over pepper and salt, and spread butter all over it with a knife. Set it in the oven a moment, so that the butter may soak in the fish. This is the most common way of seasoning it. It is almost as easy to first sprinkle pepper and salt, then a few drops of lemon-juice, over the fish; then a table-spoonful of parsley, chopped fine; then some melted butter over all. Put it a moment in the oven to soak. They call this a maÎtre-d’hÔtel sauce. Quite simple, is it not? It is especially nice for a broiled shad.

To Bake Fish.

When cleaning the fish, do not cut off the head and tail. Stuff it. Two or three receipts are given for the stuffing. Sew it, or confine the stuffing by winding the cord several times around the fish. Lay several pieces of pork, cut in strings, across the top; sprinkle over water, pepper, salt, and bread-crumbs; put some hot water into the pan; bake in a hot oven, basting very often. When done (the top should be nicely browned), serve a sauce with it. The best fishes to bake are white-fish, blue-fish, shad, etc. If not basted very often, a baked fish will be very dry. For this reason, an ordinary cook should never bake a fish. I believe, however, they never cook them in any other way.

STUFFINGS FOR FISH.

Bread Stuffing.

Soak half a pound of bread-crumbs in water; when the bread is soft, press out all the water. Fry two table-spoonfuls of minced onion in some butter; add the bread, some chopped parsley, a table-spoonful of chopped suet, and pepper and salt. Let it cook a moment; take it off the fire, and add an egg.

Meat Stuffing.

This stuffing is best made with veal, and almost an equal quantity of bacon chopped fine. Put in a quarter of its volume of white softened bread-crumbs, pressed out well; add a little chopped onion, parsley, or mushrooms; season highly.

If the fish should be baked with wine, this dressing can be used, viz.:

Soak about three slices of bread. When the water is well pressed out, season it with salt, a little cayenne, a little mace, and moisten it with port-wine or sherry; add the juice and the grated rind of half a lemon.

To Bake a Fish with Wine (Mrs. Samuel Treat).

Stuff a fish with the following dressing. Soak some bread in water, squeeze it dry, and add an egg well beaten. Season it with pepper, salt, and a little parsley or thyme; grease the baking-pan (one just the right size for holding the fish) with butter; season the fish on top, and put it into the pan with about two cups of boiling water; baste it well, adding more boiling water when necessary. About twenty minutes before serving, pour over it a cup of sour wine, and a small piece of butter (Mrs. Treat adds also two or three table-spoonfuls of Worcestershire sauce mixed with the wine—of course, this may be left out if more convenient); put half a lemon, sliced, into the gravy; baste the fish again well. When it is thoroughly baked, remove it from the pan; garnish the top with the slices of lemon; finish the sauce in the baking-dish by adding a little butter rubbed to a paste in some flour; strain, skim, and serve it in a sauce-boat.

To Stew Fish, or Fish en Matelote.

Cut the fish transversely into pieces about an inch or an inch and a half long; sprinkle salt on them, and let them remain while you boil two or three onions (sliced) in a very little water; pour off this water when the onions are cooked, and add to them pepper, about a tea-cupful of hot water, and a tea-cupful of wine if it is claret or white wine, and two or three table-spoonfuls if it is sherry or port: now add the fish. When it begins to simmer, throw in some little balls of butter which have been rolled in flour. When the fish is thoroughly cooked, serve it very hot. This is a very good manner of cooking any fresh-water fish.

Fish is much better stewed with some wine. Of course, it is quite possible to stew fish without it, in which case add a little parsley.

To Cook Fish au Gratin.

This is a favorite manner with the French of cooking fish. The fish is served in the same dish in which it is cooked. It is called a gratin dish—generally an oval silver-plated platter, or it may be of block-tin. A fish au gratin is rather expensive, on account of the mushrooms; however, the French canned mushrooms (champignons) are almost as good as fresh ones, and are much cheaper.

Receipt.—First put into a saucepan butter size of an egg, then a handful of shallots, or one large onion minced fine; let it cook ten minutes, when mix in half a cupful of flour; then mince three-fourths of a cupful of mushrooms. Add a tea-cupful of hot water (or better, stock) to the saucepan, then a glass of white or red wine, salt, and pepper. After mixing them well, add the minced mushrooms and a little minced parsley. Skin the fish, cut off the head and tail, split it in two, laying bare the middle bone; slip the knife under the bone, removing it smoothly. Now cut the fish in pieces about an inch long. Moisten the gratin dish with butter, arrange the cuts of fish tastefully on it, pour over the sauce, then sprinkle the whole with bread-crumbs which have been dried and grated. Put little pieces of butter over all, and bake. The dish may be garnished with little diamonds of fried or toasted and buttered bread around the edge. Or,

This is a pretty dish au gratin: Put mashed potatoes (which must be still hot when arranged) in a circle on the outside of the gratin dish, then a row of the pieces of fish (which have been cooked as just described) around the middle of the dish, or just inside the potatoes. Put some mashed potatoes also in the middle of the dish. Garnish here and there with mushrooms. Pour the sauce just described and bread-crumbs over the fish, and bake five or ten minutes.

Fish À la CrÈme (Mrs. Audenreid).

Boil a fish weighing four pounds in salted water. When done, remove the skin, and flake it, leaving out the bones. Boil one quart of rich milk. Mix butter size of a small egg with three table-spoonfuls of flour, and stir it smoothly in the milk, adding also two or three sprigs of parsley and half an onion chopped fine, a little Cayenne pepper, and salt. Stir it over the fire until it has thickened.

Butter a gratin dish. Put in first a layer of fish, then of dressing, and continue in alternation until all the fish is used, with dressing on top. Sprinkle sifted bread-crumbs over the top. Bake half an hour. Garnish with parsley and slices of hard-boiled egg.

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As the rules for boiling, broiling, frying, cooking au gratin, and stewing are the same for nearly all kinds of fish, I will not repeat the receipts for each particular one. I will only suggest the best manner for cooking certain kinds, and will add certain receipts not under the general rule:

SALMON

is undoubtedly best boiled. The only exception to the rule of boiling fish is in the case of salmon, which must be put in hot instead of cold water, to preserve its color. A favorite way of boiling a whole salmon is in the form of a letter S, as in plate. It is done as follows: Thread a trussing-needle with some twine; tie the end of the string around the head, fastening it tight; then pass the needle through the centre part of the body, draw the string tight, and fasten it around the tail. The fish will assume the desired form.

For parties or evening companies, salmon boiled in this form (middle cuts are also used), served cold, with a Mayonnaise sauce poured over, is a favorite dish. It is then generally mounted in style, on an oval or square block pedestal, three or four inches high, made of bread (two or three days old), called a croustade, carved in any form with a sharp knife. It is then fried a light-brown in boiling lard. Oftener these croustades are made of wood, which are covered with white paper, and brushed over with a little half-set aspic jelly. The salmon is then decorated with squares of aspic jelly. A decoration of quartered hard-boiled eggs or of cold cauliflower-blossoms is very pretty, and is palatable also with the Mayonnaise sauce. The best sauces for a boiled salmon served hot are the sauce Hollandaise, lobster, shrimp, or oyster sauces—the sauce Hollandaise being the favorite.

If lobster sauce is used, the coral of the lobster is dried, and sprinkled over the fish, reserving some with which to color the sauce, as in receipt for lobster sauce (see page 122).

If shrimp sauce is used, some whole shrimps should be saved for decorating the dish.

In decorating salmon, as well as any other kind of fish, potatoes cut in little balls, and placed like little piles of cannon-balls around the dish, are pretty. The potatoes should be simply boiled in salted water. An alternate pile of button mushrooms are pretty, and good also. Parsley or any pretty leaves around a dish always give a fresh and tasteful appearance. Or,

An exceedingly pretty garnish for a large fish is one of smelts (in rings, see receipt, page 111) fried in boiling lard. In this case, add slices of lemon. Still another pretty garnish is of fried oysters or fried parsley, or both.

It is quite appropriate to serve a middle cut of salmon at a dinner: 1st, because it is the best cut; 2d, because it is easier and cheaper to serve; and, 3d, because one never cares to supply more than is necessary. This cut is better slowly boiled, also, in the acidulated salted water.

To Broil Salmon.

Take two slices of salmon cut from the middle of the fish, sprinkle over a little lemon-juice, Cayenne pepper, salt, and salad-oil. Let it then remain for half an hour. Rub the gridiron well with beef-suet or pork. As it is a nice matter to broil salmon without burning, it would be well to wrap it in buttered or oiled paper just before broiling. Serve a maÎtre-d’hÔtel, pickle, caper, anchovy, or a horse-radish sauce.

Salmon Cutlets.

Remove the skin and bone from some slices of salmon one-third of an inch thick; trim them into cutlet shape; sprinkle on pepper, salt, and flour, and dip them into beaten eggs mixed with a little chopped parsley or onion; then bread-crumb them. Fry them in boiling lard. This is the better way, or they may be fried or sautÉd in butter in a sautÉ pan. Arrange the pieces one over the other in a circle. Pour a pickle, or Tartare sauce, in the centre.

Slices of Salmon Boiled.

If a family is small, and it should not be advisable to buy a large middle cut of salmon, it would be preferable to buy, for instance, two slices. Boil them very slowly in acidulated salted water, or in the court bouillon with wine. Serve them with parsley between, and a napkin underneath. Serve a sauce Hollandaise in the sauce-boat.

Canned Salmon.

The California canned salmon is undoubtedly one of the greatest successes in canning. By keeping a few cans in the house, one is always ready in any emergency to produce a fine dish of salmon in a few minutes. It is particularly nice for a breakfast-dish, heated, seasoned with pepper and salt, placed on thin slices of buttered toast, with a cream dressing poured over all, i. e., milk thickened on the fire, by stirring it into a roux (see page 51) of butter and flour, and seasoned with pepper, salt, and a few pieces of fresh butter just before serving. For dinner it is excellent served with any of the fish sauces. Salmon is also nice served in shells, as for trout (see page 109).

SHAD.

This delicious fish is undoubtedly best broiled, with a maÎtre-d’hÔtel sauce; but it is good also cut in slices, and sautÉd.

TROUT.

If large, they may be broiled, boiled, or baked. If boiled or broiled, serve the sauce Hollandaise with them. Professional cooks generally boil it in the court bouillon. Smaller trout are better egged, rolled in salted corn-meal, and thrown into boiling lard.

The trout is a very nice fish for an au gratin, or stewed, called then en matelote.

Trout in Cases or in Shells (en Coquilles).

Parboil little trout; cut the fish into pieces about an inch long, or into dice; place them in paper cases (which have been buttered or oiled, and placed in the oven a few moments to harden the paper so as to enable it to hold the sauce). After partly filling the cases with the pieces of fish, pour over them some fine herb sauce (see page 128), and sprinkle over bread-crumbs; put them into the oven twenty minutes before dinner to bake.

If shells are used, little plated-silver ones (scallop shells) are preferable. In that case, it would be better to fry the fish (seasoned with pepper, salt, and a little lemon-juice) in a sautÉ pan; cut them in dice afterward, and put them in the shells; pour over a fine herb or a Bechamel sauce; strew the top with grated bread-crumbs; place them a few moments in the oven to brown the tops, and serve.

COD-FISH.

Fresh cod-fish is better boiled. The fish is so large that it is generally boiled in slices. After it is well salted, horse-radish and vinegar in the boiling water will improve the fish. Oyster-sauce is the favorite sauce for a boiled cod-fish. Capers might be mixed with the oyster-sauce. Some serve the fish with the sauce poured over it. Any of the fish sauces may be served with fresh cod-fish. These slices may also be broiled and served with a maÎtre-d’hÔtel sauce, or they may be egged and bread-crumbed, and fried in boiling lard.

Crimped Cod-fish (Rudmanii).

Soak two slices of cod-fish one inch thick for two hours in ice-water; put them into the stew-pan, and, pouring over enough salted boiling water to cover them, let them simmer for about ten minutes; place them neatly on a platter on a folded napkin, garnish with parsley, and pour into the two cavities a Tartare or a pickle sauce.

Salt Cod-fish.

Soak this in water overnight; parboil it, changing the water once or twice; separate the flakes. Serve them on thin slices of toast, with an egg sauce poured over. Or,

Mince it when boiled in very little water, which should be changed once; thicken it with butter and flour mixed; cook about two minutes, then break in several eggs. When the eggs are cooked and mixed with the fish, pour all on thin slices of buttered toast.

Cod-fish Balls.

Cut the cod-fish in pieces; soak them about an hour in lukewarm water, when the bones and skin may be easily removed; pull the fish then into fine shreds, and put it on the stove in some cold water. As soon as it begins to boil, change the water, and repeat this process a second time. It is not proper to boil it, as it renders it tough. As soon as the fish is ready, some potatoes must be cooked at the same time, i. e., boiled tender, and well-mashed while still hot, with a little butter added. Mix half as much cod-fish as potatoes while both are still hot. Form them into little balls or thick flat cakes. Fry them in a little hot butter in a sautÉ pan, or immerse them in boiling-hot lard. It makes all the difference in the flavor of the balls if the fish and potatoes are mixed while both are hot. Of course, they are better fried at once, but may be made the night before serving (at breakfast), if they are only properly mixed.

Fish Chowder.

Cut three pounds of any kind of fresh fish (cod-fish is especially good), one and a half pounds of potatoes, and one large onion (three ounces) into slices; also, half a pound of salt pork into half-inch squares or dice.

Put the pork and onions into a saucepan, and fry them a light brown; then add a cupful of claret; and when it boils take it from the fire.

Butter a large stew-pan, and put in first a layer of potatoes, then a layer of fish, then a sprinkle of onions and pork (strained from the claret), pepper and salt, and continue these alternations until it is all in, having the potatoes on top. Now pour the claret over the top, and barely cover the whole with boiling water. Cover closely, and let it simmer for fifteen minutes without disturbing it.

In the mean time, bring a pint of milk (or, better, cream) to a boil, take it from the fire, and cut into it three ounces of butter, and break in three ship-crackers. Arrange the slices of fish and potatoes in the shape of a dome in the centre of a hot platter. Place the softened crackers (skimmed from the milk) over the top, and pour over the milk. Serve very hot.

Small Pan-fish (Perch, Sun-fish, etc.).

They are generally preferred peppered, salted, then rolled in salted corn-meal, and fried either in a sautÉ pan with a little lard and some slices of pork, or in boiling lard. They make also a good stew en matelote, or a good au gratin. Their chief excellence consists in their being perfectly fresh, and served hot.

MACKEREL

should be broiled, and served À la maÎtre-d’hÔtel.

SMELTS

are good salted, peppered, and rolled in salted corn-meal or flour, and fried in boiling-hot lard, but better egged and bread-crumbed before frying. They should be served immediately, or they will lose their crispness and flavor. When served as a garnish for a large fish, they should be fried in the shape of rings. This is easily done by putting the tail of the fish into its mouth, and holding it with a pin. After it is fried, the pin is withdrawn, as the fried fish will hold its shape. Place these rings around the fish, with an additional garnish of parsley and lemon slices; or the rings may be served alone in a circle around the side of a platter, with a tomato or a Tartare sauce in the centre.

There can be no prettier manner of serving them alone than one often seen in Paris. They are fried in the usual manner; then a little silver or silver-plated skewer four inches long is drawn through two or three of the smelts, running it carefully through the eyes. One skewerful, with a slice of lemon on top, is served for each person at table. If the silver-plated skewers are too extravagant, little ones of polished wire will answer.

Fried Slices of Fish, with Tomato Sauce (Fish À l’Orlay).

Bone and skin the fish, and cut it into even slices; or if a flounder or any flat fish is used, begin at the tail, and, keeping the knife close to the bone, separate each side of the fish neatly from it; then cut each side in two, lengthwise, leaving the fish in four long pieces. Remove the skin carefully. After having sprinkled pepper and salt over them, roll each piece first in sifted cracker or bread crumbs, then in half a cupful of milk mixed with an egg, and then in the crumbs again. They are better fried in a sautÉ pan in a little hot butter; yet they may be sautÉd in a little hot lard, with some neat slices of pork, or fried in boiling lard.

Pour tomato sauce No. 2 (see page 125) on a hot platter, arrange the pieces of fish symmetrically on it, and serve immediately.

To Fry Eels.

Skin them, cut them into four-inch lengths, season them with salt and pepper, roll them in flour or salted corn-meal, and fry them in boiling lard. Some parboil eels and bull-heads, saying it removes a muddy taste. I do not think it is necessary. Fried eels are generally served with a tomato, a pickle, or a Tartare sauce.

Eels Stewed (London Cooking-school).

Put three-quarters of a cupful of butter into a stew-pan; when hot, add four small onions minced fine, which cook to a light-brown color; add then a table-spoonful of flour; when well mixed and cooked, add two cupfuls of stock, a wine-glassful of port-wine, and two bay leaves (the bay leaves may be omitted). Now put in the eels (two small ones or one large one), cut into pieces one inch long. Cover tightly.

They will be ready to send to the table in about fifteen minutes, served on a hot platter, with a circle around them of toasted or fried slices of bread (croÛtons), cut diamond-shaped.

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