Fresh-water fish are in many parts of the country very abundant, and are too often neglected as an article of food. The probable reason of this is, first, cooks do not like the trouble of cleaning the fish, and, secondly, suffer from the common error of vulgar minds that what costs nothing is consequently good for nothing.

In many parts of the country, fresh-water fish are caught for sport, and then thrown away.

A very nice way of cooking nearly every kind of fresh-water fish is to stew them in a little Bordeaux wine, either red or white, with a little onion, or, better still, garlic, some thyme, bay-leaf, parsley, and sometimes a little carrot, cut up. Stew the fish till done, basting it in the liquor, and turning it. Then take out the fish, bringing the sauce to the boil. Strain it, leaving in the cut-up carrot, skim it, thicken with butter and flour, or arrowroot (see Nos. 12 and 13), make hot, and pour over the fish. Season first with pepper and salt. A little soy may be added.

The sauce can be thickened, also, with corn-flour (see No. 13), or white or brown roux. (See No. 12).