74. Directions For Broiling, Boiling And Frying Fish

Fish for boiling or broiling are the best the day after they are caught. They should be cleaned when first caught, washed in cold water, and half a tea cup of salt sprinkled on the inside of them. If they are to be broiled, sprinkle pepper on the inside of them - keep them in a cool place. When fish is broiled, the bars of the gridiron should be rubbed over with a little butter, and the inside of the fish put towards the fire, and not turned till the fish is nearly cooked through - then butter the skin side, and turn it over - fish should be broiled slowly. When fresh fish is to be boiled, it should either be laid on a fish strainer, or sewed up in a cloth - if not, it is very difficult to take it out of the pot without breaking. Put the fish into cold water, with the back bone down. To eight or ten pounds of fish, put half of a small tea cup of salt. Boil the fish until you can draw out one of the fins easily - most kinds of fish will boil sufficiently in the course of twenty or thirty minutes, some kinds will boil in less time. Some cooks do not put their fish into the water till it boils, but it is not a good plan, as the outside gets cooked too much, and breaks to pieces before the inside is sufficiently done. Fish for frying, after being cleaned and washed, should be put into a cloth to have it absorb the moisture. They should be dried perfectly, and a little flour rubbed over them. No salt should be put on them, if you wish to have them brown well. For five or six pounds of fish, fry three or four slices of salt pork - when brown, take them up, and if they do not make fat sufficient to fry the fish in, add a little lard. When the fish are fried enough, take them up, and for good plain gravy, mix two or three tea spoonsful of flour with a little water, and stir it into the fat the fish was fried in - put in a little butter, pepper, and salt, if you wish to have the gravy rich - add spices, catsup and wine - turn the gravy over the fish. Boiled fish should be served up with drawn butter, or liver sauce, (see directions for making each, Nos. 41 and 51.) Fish, when put on the platter, should not be laid over each other if it can be avoided, as the steam from the under ones makes those on the top so moist, that they will break to pieces when served out.

Great care and punctuality is necessary in cooking fish. If not done sufficiently, or if done too much, they are not good. They should be eaten as soon as cooked. For a garnish to the fish, use parsely, a lemon, or eggs boiled hard, and cut in slices.

75. Chowder

Fry three or four slices of pork till brown - cut each of your fish into five or six slices, flour, and put a layer of them in your pork fat, sprinkle on pepper and a little salt - add cloves, mace, and sliced onions if you like - lay on several bits of your fried pork, and crackers previously soaked soft in cold water. This process repeat till you get in all the fish, then turn on water enough to just cover them - put on a heated bake pan lid. When the fish have stewed about twenty minutes, take them up, and mix a couple of tea spoonsful of flour with a little water, and stir it into the gravy, also, a little butter and pepper. Half a pint of white wine, spices, and catsup, will improve it. Bass and cod make the best chowder - black fish and clams make tolerably good ones. The hard part of the clams should be cut off, and thrown away.

76. Stuffed And Baked Fish

Soak bread in cold water till soft - drain off the water, mash the bread fine, mix it with a table spoonful of melted butter, a little pepper and salt - a couple of raw eggs makes the dressing cut smoother - add spices if you like. Fill the fish with the dressing, sew it up, put a tea cup of water in your bake pan, and a small piece of butter - lay in the fish, bake it from forty to fifty minutes. Fresh cod, bass, and shad, are suitable fish for baking.