Seafood cookery in North Carolina

From the librarian's dossier · AI-generated, grounded in the scanned text

This is a 1960 seafood cookbook issued by the North Carolina Department of Conservation and Development, a state agency rather than a private author or commercial publisher. It gathers recipes and preparation guidance for the fish and shellfish central to North Carolina's coastal economy, including fish, shrimp, oysters, clams, crabs, and scallops. The book opens with practical instruction on how fish is sold and cut (whole, drawn, dressed, steaks, fillets) before moving into recipes organized by cooking method, such as baking, frying, broiling, and planking. It also includes an extensive sauce repertory, chowder and stew listings, appetizers, and a section on stuffings for poultry and seafood. As a state-sponsored publication, it reflects mid-century efforts to promote regional seafood consumption and support the fishing industry through practical home cooking guidance. Modern readers will find both simple, everyday preparations and more elaborate dishes with French-derived names, alongside distinctly regional Southern coastal fare. The acknowledgments reveal a collaborative production involving newspapers, a federal fisheries agency, and state agricultural contributors, underscoring its identity as a public information document rather than a personal culinary work. Readers today will appreciate it as a historical snapshot of regional seafood cookery and government-sponsored food education at mid-century.

The book is organized primarily by seafood type and cooking method rather than by meal course. It begins with guidance on fish marketing and cuts, then proceeds through baking, frying, and planking recipes for fish; recipes for shrimp, oysters, clams, and crabs follow, along with a dedicated scallop section covering gratins, kabobs, croquettes, and bisque. A large sauce section follows, offering both classic and regional variations, then appetizers, an index of soups and chowders, and finally a short section on stuffings for poultry and seafood along with acknowledgments. The final section functions as a table of contents for the stuffing chapter and includes credits to contributors.