Cassell's dictionary of cookery

Eels, Fricasseed. — Cut up four pounds of skinned eels into pieces of four inches in length, put them into a stewpan with equal quantities of sherry wine and water, enough to cover them ; add twenty oysters, a bunch of herbs, an onion stuck with five or six cloves, some parsley, pepper, salt, and cayenne. When the eels have stewed one hour remove them to a dish, strain the gravy, and put it back into the stewpan with a quarter of a pint of cream and some butter — about an ounce — rolled in flour. Thicken this gravy, and pour it over the fish. Serve with horse-radish as a garnish. Probable cost, 6d. to Is. per pound. Sufficient for eight or ten persons. Eels, Fried. — After the eel has been skinned and cleansed, cut it into neat pieces of four inches long, and when quite dry, season them with salt and pepper, and dip each piece into the beaten yolk of egg, cover it with bread-crumbs, and fry to a nice brown in butter or lard. If the eels are small they are usually curled round instead of being cut into pieces. Garnish with fried parsley, and serve on a napkin. Fry for about twenty minutes. Probable cost, 6d. to Is. per pound. Eels, Mayonnaise of.— Skin and empty an eel of about two pounds and a half weight, and cut it into lengths of two inches and a half. Throw the pieces into salt and water, and, when thoroughly cleansed, drain and dry them. Place them in neat layers, with spice between each layer, in a potting-dish. Poui' a mixture of vinegar and water, with a little dissolved isinglass in it over the contents of the pot, and stew or bake in a moderate oven till tender. When sent to table, fill a dish with the pieces of eel, and pour over them as much Mayonnaise sauce as wiU cover them ; decorate according to taste, and surround the dish with lumps of jelly taken from the potting-dish. Time, about one hour to pot. EEL ( 194 ) EGG Eels, Potted. — Cooked in this manner they are said to he richer and better when unskinned. CSioose young eels, and cleanse them as follows : — Hold the head of the fish in your left hand, grasp it firmly between the thumb and finger ; in the other "hand have ready a cloth with a good quantity of coarse salt; draw the eel through, pressing it tightly as it passes through the salt, then soak in salt and water one hour. When thoroughly cleansed, cut them into pieces about two inches long, put them into a brown earthem pot with a cover, season with salt, pepper, and allspice. Pour vinegar and water on them, and bake in a slow oven till tender. The pickled eels that are sent from the northern countries of Europe to the south are not skinned. Eels Roasted in the Ashes.— River fish caught in the neighbourhood of farms are roasted expeditiously on the hearth of a wood fire. When skinned and cleaned, they are rolled into a spiral form, dusted with pepper and salt, and enclosed in a double buttered paper. A hot part of the hearth is then swept clean, and the papered fish laid upon it. Hot ashes are next shovelled over till every part is covered, and when the oels are sufiiciently done, the outside paper is removed, and they are thus sent to table accompanied by plain melted butter or any sauce at hand. Time, about half an houi-, or according to the heat of the ashes.