Buy a two-pound fish. If the gills are red, eyes
full, body firm and stiff, the fish is good. Scale it,
cut off the head, and split the fish nearly down to
the tail. Make a dressing of bread crumbs, a little
butter, pepper, and salt slightly moistened with
water; stuff the fish with this, then bind it together
with fine cotton cord or tape, three inches apart ;
lay the fish on a wire gridiron in a dripping-pan,
and pour around it a little melted butter and water;
with a spoon dip this up and pour over the fish
frequently. Bake i hour. Serve with the gravy,
of the fish or drawn butter.
FRIED FISH.
When the fish is properly cleansed, instead of
putting it into a small quantity of fat or grease,
wipe dry, then rub with plenty of salt and pepper,
let it lay on an hour or two before using; roll in
corn-meal or flour ; have ready fat sufficient for it
to swim in✪ Fried Fish, the fat must be boiling hot ; put the
fish in whole or cut in pieces. It will come out
nicely browned, and not filled with fat as in the
ordinary way of frying.
244 DOMESTIC GUIDE.
NO. 2.
The artistic mode of frying fish is what is called
the wet process, which is simply boiling it in fat.
Butter should never be used as the color is never
good. Lard is considered by some the best frying
medium, but Careme, the French cook, gives the
preference to beef fat, not however the drippings
from the roast, but lard made by melting beef
suet. We recommend as best and most economical
the drippings from the joints while roasting poured
into boiling water, and removed in a cake when
cold ; the great point is to have the fat at a proper
temperature, before the article to be fried is put in.
The skilful cook can see the blue smoke rising just
at the boiling point, and then she knows it is time
to put in her fish, but for those who are acquiring
experience, it is safer to throw in a bit of bread,
and if it takes a fine color in a minute or so then
the fat is hot enough and the fish may be put in.
This is the cardinal point of successful frying, as
otherwise the fish will be flabby and greasy, in-
stead of crisp and appetizing. Another point to be
attended to is, that the fat be deep enough in the
pan to cover the fish, which should be put in a
wire basket that will fit easily into the pan of fat,
and then no turning is required. When done strain
it into boiling water; when cold take it off in .v
cake and put it by to fry fish again.
STEWED CODFISH.
First be sure to pick the meat off from the
COOKING DIVISION. 245
bones, then let it stand in water for 1 5 minutes,
and then take out of the water and boil in milk.
To make the quantity you may need beat 3 eggs
and put into a pint of milk a piece of butter half
the size of an egg, and thicken this with a table-
spoonful of flo✪ Stewed Codfishur stirred up with a very little water.
As soon as it boils it is done.
CODFISH BALLS.
Cut up the fish in fine bits enough to make 2
even pints, remove every bone, pour cold water
over it to rinse it, and soak in cold water i ^
hours✪ Codfish Balls, and then draw the water off. Put it cook-
ing with sufficient boiling water to cover it.
Page 80 · 4 recipe records on this page
Presented as published in 1882. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
Buy a two-pound fish. If the gills are red, eyes full, body firm and stiff, the fish is good. Scale it, cut off the head, and split the fish nearly down to the tail. Make a dressing of bread crumbs, a little butter, pepper, and salt slightly moistened with water; stuff the fish with this, then bind it together with fine cotton cord or tape, three inches apart ; lay the fish on a wire gridiron in a dripping-pan, and pour around it a little melted butter and water; with a spoon dip this up and pour over the fish frequently. Bake 1 hour. Serve with the gravy, of the fish or drawn butter.
FRIED FISH.
When the fish is properly cleansed, instead of putting it into a small quantity of fat or grease, wipe dry, then rub with plenty of salt and pepper, let it lay on an hour or two before using; roll in corn-meal or flour ; have ready fat sufficient for it to swim in, the fat must be boiling hot ; put the fish in whole or cut in pieces. It will come out nicely browned, and not filled with fat as in the ordinary way of frying.
NO. 2.
The artistic mode of frying fish is what is called the wet process, which is simply boiling it in fat. Butter should never be used as the color is never good. Lard is considered by some the best frying medium, but Careme, the French cook, gives the preference to beef fat, not however the drippings from the roast, but lard made by melting beef suet. We recommend as best and most economical the drippings from the joints while roasting poured into boiling water, and removed in a cake when cold ; the great point is to have the fat at a proper temperature, before the article to be fried is put in. The skilful cook can see the blue smoke rising just at the boiling point, and then she knows it is time to put in her fish, but for those who are acquiring experience, it is safer to throw in a bit of bread, and if it takes a fine color in a minute or so then the fat is hot enough and the fish may be put in. This is the cardinal point of successful frying, as otherwise the fish will be flabby and greasy, instead of crisp and appetizing. Another point to be attended to is, that the fat be deep enough in the pan to cover the fish, which should be put in a wire basket that will fit easily into the pan of fat, and then no turning is required. When done strain it into boiling water; when cold take it off in a cake and put it by to fry fish again.
STEWED CODFISH. First be sure to pick the meat off from the
bones, then let it stand in water for 1 5 minutes, and then take out of the water and boil in milk. To make the quantity you may need beat 3 eggs and put into a pint of milk a piece of butter half the size of an egg, and thicken this with a tablespoonful of flour stirred up with a very little water. As soon as it boils it is done.
CODFISH BALLS.
Cut up the fish in fine bits enough to make 2 even pints, remove every bone, pour cold water over it to rinse it, and soak in cold water i ^ hours, and then draw the water off. Put it cooking with sufficient boiling water to cover it.
Records on this page
Fried FishStewed CodfishCodfish BallsCodfish Balls