How To Cook Skate

Skate, With Caper Sauce

Stew the skate in a marinade, that is to say, in a vessel with water, vinegar, salt, pepper, a sliced onion, parsley, green onions, bay-leaves, and thyme. When it is done, pick it neatly, and remove it into another clean vessel; pour over it some of the liquor in which it has been boiling, then drain it and send it up to table, either entire or in pieces, with caper sauce; or in hearts, masked with the same sauce.

Skate Au Beurre Noir

Fry some parsley very green. Dish the skate according to your fancy. For an entree you must either cut it into the shape of kites, or rounds. Put the fried parsley in the middle of the dish, and the beurre noir under the fish.

Skate Plain Boiled

Take off the skin. Boil it in salt and water, and send it up on a clean cloth with shrimp sauce, or any other sauce in a boat.

Small Skates Fried

When the skates are very small, pickle them in vinegar, salt, pepper, a sliced onion, some parsley, and lemon-juice, for about an hour. Next drain them and dip them into an omelette, and then into flour. Next fry them in hot dripping, and send them up either with or without sauce. This fish is very seldom used for entrees in England ; when it is boiled with marinade, the skin must remain while boiling, otherwise the colour of the marinade will dye the fish : take off the skin after it is done, and dress it in the dish immediately.

How To Cook Miroton Of Flounders A L'Italienne

Cut each flounder in two, and take out all the small bones. Butter a dish d'entree, and dish the flounders en miroton; dust them over with salt, pepper, grated nutmeg, chopped mushrooms, parsley, green onions, and raspings of bread: to which add a little butter. Then bake them.

When they, are done, drain the butter, and send them up with an Italienne or caper sauce; add a little essence of anchovies, and lemon-juice. This fish, as well as plaice, is seldom used for entrees in England. When you give them as fish, they are to be dressed the same as soles, either fried or boiled.

Plaice

See Flounders. Plaice can only be fried, or made en miroton as above.

How To Cook Lobster

Lobsters are boiled in the same manner as craw-fish, but they would have a better savour, if sea-water could be had to boil them in. Several ragouts are made of lobsters. Pies for entrees; salades for entremets; fish sauce, and minces in the shell, Sec. You must pay attention to the proper time required for boiling a lobster; if you boil it too long, the flesh becomes thready and disagreeable; and if not done enough, the spawn is not red through: this must be obviated by great attention.

Small Timbals Of Lobster, Au Veloute

Cut according to their size, the white flesh of one or two lobsters into small dice; put them into a sauce similar to that of pates of fillets of soles, and serve them up quite hot. This is an entree. The spawn will serve for fish sauce, or for any other use; as quenelles, or salads, etc. etc.

Scollops Of Lobster In The Shell

This is an entremet. Take one or two lobsters, according to the size of the dish, or the number of people you have to dinner. Cut the lobster in two without breaking the shell. Clean the inside of the shell, cut the meat of the lobsters into small dice, and preserve the kind of farce that is inside. Then take one or two spoonfuls of veloute, a small lump of butter, a little salt and Cayenne pepper, and keep stirring the whole over the fire. When it is quite hot, throw the meat and the kind of farce that you found in the lobster, into the sauce ; and lay the whole in the shells. Level with your knife, and strew over crumbs of bread twice, and keep basting with a little clarified butter. Give it a colour with the salamander, and keep the scollops very hot. Never let it colour in the Oven, as it would taste too strong.

Lobster Sauce

See No. 54, page 23.

Salad Of Lobster

See Salad of Fillets of Soles and mayonaise; the sauce is to be found among the other sauces. The shape you give to the salad depends on the form of the dish you use. Jelly of meat is not properly used for salads of fish, unless it is as an ornament. Roots and vegetables are more appropriate; and the salad sauce only, or the butter of Montpelier. Lobster may be dressed also without any sauce: merely break the shell, and give an agreeable shape to the dish, by putting the body in the middle, the tail cut in two on each side, and the claws at the ends; the flesh of this fish is very firm, and can be used in cookery for petits pates of all kinds.