English and French cookery

Oyster Fricassee. — Fresh or tinned oysters are put in a china bowl, and placed over steam. For every ounce of butter heat 2 tablespoonfuls of milk or cream, according to size of dish. Add salt, mace, and cayenne to taste, and finally the liquor of the oysters. Beat to cream 2 or more yolks of eggs, add 2 spoonfuls of the oyster gravy (cold), and pour the prepared scalding, but not boiling, sauce to it ; add the heated oysters, and serve with toast sippets. Oyster Toast. — Chop roughly 12 oysters, and mix them well with 1 anchovy, washed and boned, a little cream or condensed milk, and KISH -COOKERY. thicken with a small piece of butter rolled in flour, season with a grain of cayenne ; boil up, and serve on hot buttered toast. Anchovy paste may be used instead of the anchovies. Scalloped Fish. — Take cold cod, hake, or turbot, flake it and season with salt and pepper, moisten with a little milk, and stir in a good-sized piece of butter. Put this mixture in small scallop-shell tins, and bake a light brown. Skate, Crimped. — Cut into slices, roll and tie round ; put into highly salted water, and boil till done. Drain well, remove the string, dish with melted butter, caper, or anchovy sauce poured over. Sole, Fried. — The skinning of soles is for the eye ; when the skin is merely cleaned and scraped the full flavour of the fish is retained. The sole for frying should weigh between 1 a pound and a pound. Put in a dish with a tablespoonful of vinegar an hour or so before cooking. Dry thoroughly and cover with breadcrumbs after coating with egg, adding a little salt and pepper. Place in the frying-pan dark side downward with plenty of fat at boiling-point. Fry for 4 minutes, moving the pan gently, then turn, and in 3 minutes remove by inserting the points of the fork close to the head, and hold up to let the fat drain off, and serve with or without melted butter or sauce. Sole, Fillets of. — Having dried the fillets, divide them into neat pieces 2 or 3 inches long ; dip them in the beaten yolk of egg, and then in seasoned breadcrumbs. Make a little butter hot in the frying-pan, put in the fillets and cook them slowly until brown on one side, then turn and finish on the other. Sole, Fried, Fillets of. — These may either be rolled in one piece or divided into several, as in the foregoing recipe. In either case egg and crumb them thoroughly, place them in the wire-basket as you do them, which you immerse in fat hot enough to crisp bread instantly. When done, put the fillets on paper to absorb any grease clinging to them, and serve as hot as possible. All kinds of flat fish can be filleted and cooked by these recipes, and will usually be found more economical than serving the fish whole. It is also economical to fillet the tail-end of cod, salmon, and turbot, and either fry or saute as may be preferred. Salmon Cutlets. — Dip slices of salmon into olive oil and season with cayenne pepper and salt ; wrap in oiled paper and fry in boiling fat for 10 minutes over a clear fire, dry on a gridiron and serve hot.