The spirit of cookery

Codfish was estimated highly by the Greeks, and prepared with grated cheese, vinegar, salt and oil. After them, history is silent about cod until the Northern fisheries were or- ganized in the ninth century ; from this time for six hundred years the inhabitants of Europe mostly used cod taken by fishermen of many nations on the coast of Norway. The great development of cod fisheries, and the systematic curing and ti’ansporting of this fish, date from the first third of the sixteenth century. In 1533, Francis I., King of France, sent J. Verrazano, and afterwards Jacques Cartier, to explore the neighbourhood of Newfoundland; these mariners were followed by French fishermen, who, if they did not discover, at least established the knowledge of the prodigious number of fish living in the seas of that island. In the first three months of the year 1792, 210 vessels, of an aggregate capacity of 191,158 tons, left the ports of France to go to the various localities where codfish abounds ; and in the beginning of the present century more than 10,000 vessels of all nations were employed in this trade, and brought more than 40,000,000 of salted and dried cod to market. Since the great development which the fisheries on the Dogger Bank in the North Sea have taken, and with the extension of the rapid transport by sea and HISTOKV AND PREPADATIONS OF CODFISH 541 land, many more millions of fish, come to market, and a much greater number than formerly arrive in a living, fresh state. By the practice of traders to keep living, and mostly wounded, codfish in boxes in the harbours at Grimsby and other places, in a state of starvation, the flesh of the animals is greatly deteriorated, and becomes watery and flabby, or woolly. Yet the sooner cod is killed and eaten after having been taken the better it is in quality and taste. Cod generally comes into full season in October, when the weather is cold. From the end of January to the middle of March codfish are generally out of condition ; but, having shot their spawn, they resume a good condition during the end of March and the whole of April and May. The Dogger Bank cod are the most esteemed, as they generally cut in large fine flakes ; the North Country cod, which are caught off the Orkney Isles, are generally very stringy, or what is commonly called woolly, and sell at lower prices, but are caught in greater abundance than Dogger cod. The cod are all taken with hook, and brought in well-boats, or when kept, in boxes, killed in the evening, and brought to London or other places by night trains, expressly running for the transport of fish only. Codfish ought to be fresh and firm ; the uncoloured part of its skin ought to be white with yellow spots ; it ought to have its two-pointed chin-beard at the symphysis of the lower jaw. When cod is boiled there ought to be a layer of white curdled albumin between each two flakes or coherent groups of muscular fibres, which some call cream, others curd, others by other names ; when this is wanting the cod was poor, sick, e.g., from wounds, or starved, or kept in ice too long. Never buy the head of cod unless you have a special liking for and experience regarding it, for it is very dear compared to its food value. Some amateurs affect to believe that the head of the Dogger Bank cod has about it several tit-bits. 542 THE SPIRIT OF COO EERY