Fish cannot be too fresh for any purpose of the kitchen. The Dutch are as nice about this point in the present day as the Romans, according to Seneca, were in the past ; the most fastidious would not eat fish unless it were cooked upon the same day that it was taken, that it might taste of the sea, as they expressed it. We can fully confirm that fish loses much of its original taste by being kept even on ice. So strong is this taste of fresh fish, that persons not accustomed to it, or not acquainted with the fact, have been known to object to it, and urban fishmongers have assured Kitchiner that very fresh fish now and then put them in THE SPIRIT OF COOKERY 516 danger of losing their credit. Housekeepers and cooks should therefore, whenever they have an opportunity, acquire a knowledge of the taste and appearance of fresh fish, such as it is a few hours after it has been caught and brought to the market by the fishermen at the sea coast. Baking may advantageously be applied to several kinds of fish, particularly when they are well stuffed with a rich forcemeat containing plenty of fat, butter, or suet , the out- side of the fish must also be well painted, or basted, with butter or oil, and a fish which is naturally tasteless should be supported with some vinegar and herbs and spices put in its inside, and protected from being scorched by an oiled paper placed over it. The process of baking thus becomes assimilated to that of braising. Kitchiner w^as in the habit of baking small codfish, haddock, mackerel, with a dust of flour and some butter put over them ; eels, when large and stuffed ; herrings and sprats in a brown pan, with vinegar and a little spice, and tied over with a paper. We have found stuffed and baked gurnet and haddock, each with a brown sauce, very useful and tasty preparations. But as regards mackerel, we have found no form superior, or even equal, to the broiled ; it comes nearest to broiled -when it is stuffed, spiced, dipped in oil or liquid butter, enveloped in oiled paper, and baked. Caip is directed to be egged and crumbed, larger fish to be sliced before being baked. Tice broiling of fish on the gridiron should be preceded by wiping it dry, dredging it with flour, dipping it in olive oil, or covering it with egg and crumb, or chopped herbs, or dipping it in oil or butter only. Some kinds of fish can be eaten in the broiled form only — e.g., sprats; the heat dis- sipates or changes a kind of oil contained in them, which spoils, according to our experiments, any other form of pre- paration. Bor similar reasons other kinds of fish have to be soaked in so-called marinades, and are thereby made more tender and better flavoured ; others, again, have to be /•'A’)7.V6', S'l'EiyiXG, AXD COLLAR IXG OF SEA FISH 517 crimped in boiling water, and then broiled. A mackerel should be split for broiling ; slices of salmon or red mullet, and several others, should be grilled in paper envelopes.

AI-modernized reading of the original text

Fish cannot be too fresh for any purpose of the kitchen. The Dutch are as nice about this point in the present day as the Romans, according to Seneca, were in the past ; the most fastidious would not eat fish unless it were cooked upon the same day that it was taken, that it might taste of the sea, as they expressed it. We can fully confirm that fish loses much of its original taste by being kept even on ice. So strong is this taste of fresh fish, that persons not accustomed to it, or not acquainted with the fact, have been known to object to it, and urban fishmongers have assured Kitchiner that very fresh fish now and then put them in danger of losing their credit. Housekeepers and cooks should therefore, whenever they have an opportunity, acquire a knowledge of the taste and appearance of fresh fish, such as it is a few hours after it has been caught and brought to the market by the fishermen at the sea coast. Baking may advantageously be applied to several kinds of fish, particularly when they are well stuffed with a rich forcemeat containing plenty of fat, butter, or suet , the outside of the fish must also be well painted, or basted, with butter or oil, and a fish which is naturally tasteless should be supported with some vinegar and herbs and spices put in its inside, and protected from being scorched by an oiled paper placed over it. The process of baking thus becomes assimilated to that of braising. Kitchiner was in the habit of baking small codfish, haddock, mackerel, with a dust of flour and some butter put over them ; eels, when large and stuffed ; herrings and sprats in a brown pan, with vinegar and a little spice, and tied over with a paper. We have found stuffed and baked gurnet and haddock, each with a brown sauce, very useful and tasty preparations. But as regards mackerel, we have found no form superior, or even equal, to the broiled ; it comes nearest to broiled -when it is stuffed, spiced, dipped in oil or liquid butter, enveloped in oiled paper, and baked. Caip is directed to be egged and crumbed, larger fish to be sliced before being baked. The broiling of fish on the gridiron should be preceded by wiping it dry, dredging it with flour, dipping it in olive oil, or covering it with egg and crumb, or chopped herbs, or dipping it in oil or butter only. Some kinds of fish can be eaten in the broiled form only — e.g., sprats; the heat dissipates or changes a kind of oil contained in them, which spoils, according to our experiments, any other form of preparation. For similar reasons other kinds of fish have to be soaked in so-called marinades, and are thereby made more tender and better flavoured ; others, again, have to be /•'A’)7.V6', S'l'EiyiXG, AXD COLLAR IXG OF SEA FISH 517 crimped in boiling water, and then broiled. A mackerel should be split for broiling ; slices of salmon or red mullet, and several others, should be grilled in paper envelopes.

The spirit of cookery