Virginia Cookery-book

To Boil Rockflsh.— Sauce for Rockflsh.— To Boil a Shad.— To Bake a Shad.— To Fry a Shad.— To Broil a Shad.— Court Bouillon, Louisiana Mode. — To Broil Trout, and Sauce for it. — To Pry- Trout. — Fresh Herrings.— To Boil Herrings plain. — Boiled Herrings, with Mustard Sauce. — To Fry Perch. — To Broil Perch. — Perch, with Caper Sauce. — To Boil Salmon. — To Broil Salmon, with White Sauce. — Salmon Pie. — Lobster Pie. — Turbot 4 la CrSme. — To Dress Bass or Sheep's-head. — Baked Blackfish. — To Broil Carp.— To Broil Carp au Court Bouillon.— Stewed Lobster. — Baked Bass. The binding together of distant parts of the earth through the facilities of modem travel shows its advantages in no way more strikingly than in the improved bills of fare attainable in almost every region on the globe. For instance, while nowhere are richer supplies of fish and oysters than are to be found in that section of Virginia bordering upon the Chesapeake Bay and Atlantic Ocean, in the inland counties, before railways were built, these articles of food were so rare as to be almost unknown save by report. Nowadays, although people still repair to the sea- side in order to enjoy them in perfection, there are few sections of the State where, in the winter and early spring, the monotony of every-day diet may not be relieved by recourse to these dainties of the deep. In Norfolk and Richmond sheep's-head and hog-fish take the place of the blue-fish and bass of the New York and Boston markets, while during March and April rockfish, shad, and herring are transported daily in immense quantities hundreds of miles inland in various directions. Stale fish are both unpalatable and unwholesome; therefore the house-keeper should guard against their purchase. The distinguishing marks of what is fresh are found in the fulness and brightness of the eye, redness of the gills, stiffness of the body, and lack of strong, unpleasant odor. It is recommended to use just as little water in preparing fish for cookery as is consistent with cleanliness. Another sign of freshness in a fish is found in the facility with which the scales may be removed, for when it has been long out of the water they adhere much more firmly than when just caught. When not in the hands of the cook let fish always be kept in the coolest part of your cellar, unless you have ice, upon which it is best to keep them lying. Rockfish are always boiled, and are among the most highly esteemed of the piscine tribe, because the large size and comparative fewness of their bones make them so much less troublesome and dangerous than others in the eating. Shad may be cooked in a much greater variety of ways, but is most commonly seen either fried or baked. Corned shad are very highly esteemed, as a breakfast dish more especially, and are put up at home. If cooks are not particularly directed to serve up the roe with the fish they are apt, ignorantly, to throw it away, thus rejecting what most persons regard as the best part of the feast. Gold and silver perch are among the daintiest of the fresh- water fish of Virginia, although there, as elsewhere, mountain trout are in great request, and abundantly found, too, in the more sequestered streams of the western and south-western sections of the State. To Boil Rockfish. Rockfish are almost universally boiled and dressed with egg sauce. A large rockfish furnishes a magnificent dish, but the small ones are inferior. Scrape off the scales, take out the gills, and wash nicely; put in a pot with cold water enough to cover, and half a table-spoonful of salt, and let it boil slowly, keeping the pot covered all the while; skim well, and, when done, drain the water from it, and lay upon a dish, garnished with sliced hard-boiled eggs. Sauce foe Rockfish.