Chapter M: E. James: ‘How to Decorate our Ceilings, Walls, and Floors.’ (15)

Collared, to be eaten cold.--Prepare some large eels as for broiling, divide down the back and take out the bone, strew inside with powdered herbs (thyme, parsley, &c.) and spices (nutmeg, cloves, ginger, pepper), and salt; roll up the eels, tie in a cloth, bound close with packthread, and boil in water and vinegar, with salt, till quite tender--the liquor must boil before putting in the eels. When done, take them out of the liquor, which must be allowed to get cold, then put them back and let remain 5-6 days. Serve either in collars or in round slices, with vinegar. If to keep for a long time, no herbs ought to be put in, only the salt and spices; and the pickle they are kept in must be boiled every fortnight, vinegar and water being added as it wastes.

Fricassée.--Scour some moderate sized eels, cut off the heads, draw, &c., and cut them into pieces; put them into a frying pan with as much white wine and water as will cover them; add spice, cloves, mace, nutmeg, pepper, sweet herbs, and salt; boil well; when tender, dish them with 2 pounded anchovies, the yolks of eggs, and butter, added to the liquor and poured over.

Fried.--Wash clean, &c., cut them into pieces 3-4 in. long; put into some boiling water, with salt and fennel, and let them partly boil; drain the water well off, flour, and then fry till brown and crisp, first on one side and then on the other.

Galantine.--Split a good-sized conger, and take out the bone. Chop and mix a tablespoonful of parsley, the same quantity of sweet herbs, the thin rind of a lemon with a seasoning of salt, cayenne or pepper, and a little ground mace. A few mushrooms are an improvement. Sprinkle this on the inside of the fish, and roll up, beginning at the head end; wrap in a cloth to keep it in shape, and simmer in equal parts vinegar and water until tender. Let remain in the stock till both are cold, then take out of the cloth, and serve cold, garnished with parsley, and if possible glazed. It is also very good cut in slices, and set in a mould of clear jelly with hard-boiled eggs.

Matelote.--Take 2 or more eels, cut them up into pieces 2 in. long. Put ½ pint stock and the same quantity of claret into a saucepan with a sliced onion, a pod of garlic, some whole pepper, salt, cloves, thyme, bay leaf, and parsley, all according to taste, lay the eels in this, and let boil gently till done. Strain the sauce, and add to it a liqueur glass of brandy. Melt a good sized piece of butter in a saucepan, stir in 1 tablespoonful flour, then add the sauce; let boil, and pour over the fish which you serve with sippets of bread fried in butter round it.

Pie.--Skin, prepare, and cut up the eel, season the pieces with spices (cloves, mace, nutmeg, and pepper, well powdered) and salt; line a pie dish with paste, and lay in the pieces with some currants (well cleaned) and butter; cover over with paste, make a hole in the top, pour in 6-8 spoonfuls of white wine, and bake in the oven.

Roast.--Wash a large eel in salt and water, partly pull back the skin as far as to the vent, draw and clean but do not wash again; notch 2 or 3 times with a knife, and stuff with sweet herbs, an anchovy cut very small, and some grated nutmeg. Cut off the head, put the skin back and tie it, to keep in all the moisture, fasten to a spit and roast slowly, basting (till the skin breaks) with salt and water, then with butter. Sauce, melted butter, with the stuffing from the fish.

Stewed.--1 middle-sized onion sliced, 1 dessertspoonful chopped parsley, a small quantity of chopped lemon peel, 1 teaspoonful chopped capers. Fry in a stewpan in a little butter, stir a few minutes, add ½ pint good brown stock, with a little caper or tarragon vinegar in it, and pepper and salt to taste; then add 1½ lb. middle-sized eels, not skinned, but cut into pieces rather less than 3 in. long. Put in the heads, but take them away before sending the dish to table. Cook gently ½ hour, then thicken with flour and butter, and boil gently a few minutes to cook the flour. The sauce should adhere to each piece of eel the thickness of good cream. Serve in a hot covered dish, and send at once to table. (S. R.)

_Flounder_ (Carrelet).--The flounder may be cooked in any of the ways prescribed for other flat fish, and is capital when fried. Still, the highest expression of the flounder is found in the dish with which he is specially identified--water souchet.

Water souchet.--To prepare this dish properly, a good fish stock should be made of the heads, fins, and other trimmings of flounders, or of any fish that may be handy. This may be prepared while the flounders are crimping, an operation which should not be overlooked if the fish are of tolerable size. Throw the trimmings into a stewpan, with pepper and salt and sufficient water; add 6 parsley roots cut up small, and a handful of green parsley; bring this to the boil, let it simmer for 1-2 hours, and strain. Put some of this liquor with a few finely shred and blanched parsley roots into a saucepan, throw in a handful of salt, and boil for 5 minutes; then put in the fish and boil for 5 minutes, when add a large handful of green parsley, nicely washed and picked, and boil for 5 minutes longer. Take up the fish very carefully, strain the parsley and roots in a sieve, put them on the fish, and add enough of the liquor to cover them well. Garnish with lemon, and eat with brown bread and butter, cut very thin.

_Grayling_ (Ombre).--Stewed: see Carp, Trout.

_Gudgeon_ (Goujon).--Gudgeon requires a world of scraping and cleaning, but are well worth the preliminary pains, as they only need to be treated like whitebait, i.e. floured and fried in boiling lard, to be quite successful. They may or may not be garnished with fried parsley, and should be eaten with lemon, cayenne, and salt, and very thin slices of brown bread and butter.

_Gurnet_ (Rouget, grondin). Baked.--Take some fine breadcrumbs, add ¼ their bulk of shallots and the same quantity of mushrooms, both finely minced and lightly fried in butter; then add some chopped parsley and sweet herbs; season with pepper and salt, and make the mixture into a paste by working into it the yolks of 1 or 2 eggs, a pat of butter, and a little milk. Stuff the fish with this, and truss it with packthread. Butter a baking dish, dispose upon it an onion and a carrot cut in slices, a few sprigs of parsley, 2 or 3 cloves, and some whole pepper and salt to taste. Lay the fish on this, then add a good ½ pint stock and a wineglass of white wine, cover the fish with a sheet of buttered paper, and bake it ½-¾ hour, according to the size. Baste it now and then during the process with its own liquor. When done strain the liquor into a saucepan in which a piece of butter has been mixed with a tablespoonful of flour, add a little _suc colore_ to give the sauce a good colour, and as soon as it is boiling hot pour over the fish and serve.

With Caper Sauce.--Place the fish trussed with packthread in a fish kettle full of cold water, well salted; when the water comes near boiling point draw the fish kettle aside, let simmer gently till the fish is quite done, lift up to drain, then lay it on a dish; pour plenty of brown caper sauce over.

_Haddock_ (Eglefin).--Boiled.--Tie the fish with a string in the shape of an S, or with its tail in its mouth; lay it in plenty of cold water, well salted. Place the fish kettle on the fire, and by the time the water is on the point of boiling, the fish, unless it be a very large one, should be quite done. Let it drain across the kettle, and serve.

Broiled.--Split the fish open, wipe dry with a cloth, rub with salad oil and flour it, then broil over a clear fire; meanwhile knead 1 oz. butter with the juice of half a lemon, pepper and salt to taste, and a little parsley blanched, squeezed dry, and very finely minced; put this butter on a hot dish, the fish over, and serve.

Dried.--Warm the haddock before the fire, just long enough to make the skin peel off easily. Cut it into pieces down the middle, and 2 or 3 times across. Put it into a closed saucepan with a lump of butter and a small teaspoonful of water, stew gently for a few minutes.

In Jelly.--See Trout in Jelly.

_Hake_ (Merlus).--See Cod. Roast: see Pike. Stewed: see Ling.

_Halibut_ (Flétan).--Of the halibut little need be said. It is a large fish, endowed with firm and white, but rather coarse flesh. It is perhaps best stewed or fried. Boiled halibut is very apt to be woolly.

_Herrings_ (Harengs).--Fried.--Take care the fish is well cleaned, without being split; 2-3 hours before cooking, lightly sprinkle with salt and pepper; when ready to cook, wipe and flour the herrings. Have ready in the frying pan as much fat, at the proper temperature, as will cover the herrings. Cook quickly at first, then moderate the heat slightly, and fry for 10-12 minutes, when they should be crisp and brown. When done, lay them on a dish before the fire, in order that all fat and fish-oil may drain from them. With this precaution, fried herrings will be found more digestible than otherwise they would be. When herrings are large, there is sometimes a redness near the bone; this will be prevented by passing a knife, before cooking, a little way down the backbone, near the head.

Rolled.--Choose herrings with soft roes. Having scraped and washed them, cut off the heads, split open, take out the roes, and cleanse the fish. Hold one in the left hand, and, with thumb and finger of the right, press the backbone to loosen it, then lay flat on the board, and draw out the bone; it will come out whole, leaving none behind. Dissolve a little fresh butter, pass the inner side of the fish through it, sprinkle pepper and salt lightly over, then roll it up tightly, with the fin and tail outwards, roll it in flour, and sprinkle a little pepper and salt, then put a little game skewer to keep the herring in shape. Have ready a good quantity of boiling fat; it is best to do the herrings in a wire basket, and fry them quickly for 10 minutes. Take them up and set them on a plate before the fire, in order that all the fat may drain from them. Pass the roes through flour mixed with a sufficient quantity of pepper and salt, fry them brown, and garnish the fish with them and crisp parsley. A difficulty is often felt in introducing herrings at dinner, on account of the number of small bones in them, but this is obviated by the above method of dressing, as with care not one bone should be left in.

_John Dory_ (Dorée).--Stuffed.--Pick out all the flesh from a whiting, pound it with an equal bulk of breadcrumbs soaked in milk, a piece of butter, a small onion or a shallot, blanched, pepper, salt, and grated nutmeg to taste; mix the whole very well, and work it into a paste with the yolks of one or two eggs. Lift up the flesh from the backbone of a good-sized John Dory, stuff it with the above composition, and tie up with string; lay in a buttered tin with a tablespoonful of minced shallots, a couple of bay leaves, some whole pepper, and salt to taste; pour in enough stock and white wine in equal parts to cover the fish, place a sheet of buttered paper over, and put the tin in the oven for about ¾ hour, more or less, according to the size of the fish. Remove the string, and serve with some of the liquor strained and thickened with a little butter and flour.

With Caper Sauce.--Place the fish, trussed with packthread, in a fish kettle full of cold water well salted; when the water comes near boiling point, draw the fish kettle aside, let it simmer gently till the fish is quite done, lift up to drain, then lay on a dish, pour plenty of brown caper sauce over.

_Lamperns._--These great delicacies are in season from October to April. Many persons confuse them with the lamprey, which is a totally different fish, being larger than an eel, while the lampern is not more than 8 in. long. They should be bought alive, killed by boiling water, cleaned by stirring them briskly round in the bucket in which they are killed, and after rinsing them in cold water, rubbed in a cloth. They should then have the points of their mouths and the tips of their tails cut off, taking care to remove as little as possible, else the gravy is lost, and the nature of these fish is the same as a snipe.

Stewed.--Have ready about 3 tablespoonfuls of good rich gravy, ¼ pint claret or port, a blade of mace, 3 cloves, a teaspoonful of salt, ½ teaspoonful of pepper, a squeeze of lemon juice, a dessertspoonful of Worcester sauce. This is sufficient for stewing 3 doz. lamperns. Stew them very gently for about 1 hour, set them aside in the gravy till the following day, when they may be rewarmed; the gravy thickened with butter and arrowroot, a little more sauce added; serve very hot, garnished with lemon and horseradish. They should always stand a night in the gravy before being eaten, and will keep for a week. If potted, they should be curled round in a small jar when stewed; about 9 or more fish make a small pot; the gravy requires setting with a little isinglass, and when sent to table they should be turned out and garnished with parsley. The flavour of the lampern is totally unlike that of any other fish, and epicures in Worcestershire will pay a high price for them when they are scarce. (E. B. W.)

_Lamprey_ (Lamproie). Baked.--Skin, draw, and split the back from mouth to tail, remove the string in the back and truss it round; parboil it in salted water with sweet herbs, season when cold with nutmeg, pepper, and salt. Line a pie dish with paste, put butter at the bottom, then the lamprey, 2 or 3 onions, cloves, currants, a piece of butter; cover the pie, fill it up (through a hole in the top) with clarified butter--or boiling claret, this will not keep so long--and bake. Eels, lampreys, &c., may be baked in a glazed earthen pot (without paste) rubbed inside well with butter, and--if to keep long--they should be seasoned well with cloves, mace, pepper, and salt.

_Ling._--Cut 1 lb. ling into slices, rub with flour, and fry a nice brown. When done, fry a stick of celery and a very small onion. Add ½ pint stock with a dessertspoonful of flour, a sprig of parsley, a piece of lemon peel, a blade of mace, salt, and peppercorns. When it boils, put the fish back in the saucepan, and simmer very gently until done, i.e. 15-20 minutes. Put the slices on a hot dish and strain the gravy over. The sauce may be varied by adding the chopped whites of a hard-boiled egg just before serving, and rubbing the yolk over the dish through a sieve as a garnish. Conger requires longer cooking; hake and most other white fish, which can be used for this same recipe, not so long.

_Lobster_ (Homard).--During the early summer months lobsters are in prime condition, and may be bought either alive or dead. As they are very tenacious of life, and indeed will live on till their substance is utterly wasted, it is clearly better to buy them alive, taking care not to kill them till just before cooking. The heaviest are the best; and if the tail strikes quick and strong, they are in good condition, but if weak and light and frothing at the mouth, are exhausted and worthless. In like manner, when buying a boiled lobster put your finger and thumb on the body and pinch it; if it feels firm, and the tail goes back with a strong spring, the lobster--if heavy and of a good colour--is a desirable specimen.

À la St. Malo.--Take a lobster, cut in two lengthwise; take out all the flesh, and scallop it, making the claws and coral into lobster butter. Reduce some good gravy with a little double cream, and add two spoonfuls of tomato sauce: stir all well together, with a pinch of cayenne pepper. Roll the lobster scallops in the sauce, and place them in the shell, on the top of a few minced truffles, and cover with the thick sauce; mix a little butter and shallot with breadcrumbs and finely-chopped parsley. Scatter this over the lobster, and cook _au gratin_ for ¼ hour. (Mrs. C.)

À l’Enfant Prodigue.--Get a couple of lobsters, and cut them down the back, leaving the shell of the heads intact; remove the non-edible portions and break the claws. Put the whole into a stewpan with a bottle of champagne (sweet champagne will do), 4 spoonfuls fine salad oil, 3 cloves of garlic, a sprig of basil, and a lemon (sliced and freed from peel and pips), salt, pepper, chervil, parsley, a few mushrooms, and 2 lb. truffles (whole). When done, take out the sweet herbs, cut off the heads of the lobsters, place them erect in the middle of the dish, and dispose the other pieces around. Impale the truffles on the antennæ of the lobsters, pour the sauce over, and above all, serve Clos de Vougeôt, Chambertin, or Côte Rôtie with this dish.

Au gratin.--Split the tail and body of the lobster, removing the fish and taking care not to break the shells, mince up the fish and put all into a stewpan with a little good stock, and pepper and salt, mix it well, fill the shells with the mixture, cover them with breadcrumbs, brush over with clarified butter, and brown with a salamander.

Boiled.--A fine lobster simply boiled and served piping hot is a capital dish. To produce this, tie up the lobster’s tail fast to the body with a string, put on a saucepan or fish-kettle with sufficient water; let it boil, put in the lobster with a handful of salt, and boil for about ½ hour (a small one will not require more than 15-20 minutes), then take it out, wipe all the scum off, break the claws, split it through the tail and back, and lay it in a hot dish, “displayed” with a claw on each side. Melted butter is generally served with this dish, and is much improved by the addition of pounded spawn; but a hot _ravigote_ or _tartare_ sauce will be found an improvement on the traditional accompaniment.

Broiled.--After being boiled as above, a lobster may be broiled in this wise: Take the claws off and crack them, split the body and tail in two, season well with pepper, salt, and cayenne, and broil. Serve with plain butter or with a little heated ketchup, dashed with Worcestershire sauce.

Roast.--There are 3 methods of roasting a lobster. One is to boil it and put it in a dish before the fire, and baste it with butter till it froths, and then “display” it in a hot dish, and serve. Another plan is only to half boil the lobster, then butter its shell, and tie it to the spit before a brisk fire. After a plentiful basting with butter, it may be served with a hot _sauce tartare_. A more thorough method than either of these is to tie a large uncooked lobster to a long skewer, using plenty of packthread, and attaching it firmly, for a reason to be presently stated. Tie the skewer to a spit, and put the lobster down to a sharp fire; baste with champagne, butter, pepper and salt. After a while the shell of the animal will become tender, and will crumble between the fingers. When it comes away from the body the operation of roasting is complete. Take down the lobster, skim the fat from the gravy in the dripping-pan, add the juice of a Seville orange, pepper, salt, and spice, and serve in a lordly dish.

Buttered.--A buttered lobster should be first boiled and broken up. Take out all the meat, cut it small, and put it into a stewpan with plenty of butter, a little pepper, salt, and vinegar, and stir till it is hot. If a handsome dish of 2 or 3 lobsters be desired, the tails should be halved and broiled, and put round the dish with the minced lobster in the middle.

Cream.--Take the flesh from 2 lobsters, cut up small, and then pound in a mortar with the spawn until reduced to a smooth paste; then pass through a fine sieve, add pepper, salt, and grated nutmeg, and mix gradually sufficient double cream to make it of the consistency of a thick purée. Just before serving, put into small paper cases and serve cold with some of the spawn sprinkled over the top.

Croquettes.--Mince the flesh of a lobster to the size of small dice, season with pepper, salt, spices, and as much cayenne as will rest on the point of a trussing needle. Melt a piece of butter in a saucepan, mix with it 1 tablespoonful flour, then the lobster, and some chopped parsley; moisten with a little stock until the mixture looks like minced veal; then stir into it off the fire 2 yolks of eggs, and put by to get cold. When nearly so, shape into the form of corks, egg them, and roll in baked breadcrumbs. After the lapse of an hour, egg and breadcrumb them again, taking care to preserve the shape. After a little time fry them a nice colour in hot lard.

Croustades.--Cut the crumb of a loaf of bread into slices 2 in. thick, and then with a round paste cutter about 2 in. diameter, cut out of each slice as many pieces as you can; with another paste cutter, about 1½ in. diameter, make a mark on one side of each cylinder of breadcrumb. When all are ready fry them a golden colour in very hot lard; a deep frying-pan should be used, and plenty of lard, so that the croustades fairly swim in the fat. When done lay them in front of the fire to drain, and afterwards remove the cover (marked with the smaller paste cutter), and with the handle of a teaspoon scoop out all the inside of each croustade. Then fill them with the following mixture:--Mince the flesh of a hen lobster to the size of small dice, season with pepper, salt, and spice, and as much cayenne as will rest on the point of a trussing needle. Pound some of the spawn with 1 oz. butter, pass it through a hair sieve. Take another ounce of butter, melt it in a saucepan with a teaspoonful of flour, add a very small quantity of white stock and the flesh of the lobster; when the mixture is thoroughly hot, put in a pinch of finely minced parsley, the juice of half a lemon and the butter which was pounded with the spawn.

Curry.--Lobster curry is made by frying sliced onions in butter till they are done enough. The flesh of a boiled lobster is then added, and the curry powder (made into a paste) is put in with a liberal allowance of cream. 15-20 minutes will cook this dish, which should be carefully stirred all the time. It may be served within a wall of rice, or, better still, with the rice in a separate dish.

Cutlets.--Take out the meat of either a lobster or crab, mince it up, and add 2 oz. butter, browned with 1 tablespoonful flour, and seasoned with a little pepper, salt, and cayenne. Add about ½ pint strong stock, stir the mixture over the fire until quite hot, and lay it in separate tablespoonfuls on a large dish. When cold, form into the shape of cutlets, brush over with yolk of egg (beaten), dip in breadcrumbs, fry of a light-brown colour in clarified beef dripping, and place round a dish, with a little fried parsley in the centre.

Kromeskies.--Mince finely a small quantity of the flesh of lobster, toss it in butter on the fire, adding a pinch of flour, a little white stock, salt, pepper, and spices to taste, and lastly the yolk of an egg beaten up with a little lemon juice; but this should be done off the fire. Spread the mixture on a dish to cool; divide it into portions the size of a walnut; wrap each portion in a piece of white wafer, previously wetted; then dip them in batter, and fry a golden colour in hot lard. Serve piled up on a dish, with fried parsley.

Omelet.--Slice a quantity of the flesh of a lobster, equal in bulk to 2 eggs, season with pepper, salt, and nutmeg; mix on the fire some butter and a little flour, moisten with a little stock, add the lobster, and stir in, off the fire, the yolk of an egg beaten up with the juice of half a lemon. Insert this ragout in the fold of a plain omelet. Turn out on a dish, and serve.

Salad.--Boil 4 eggs hard; when quite cold carefully remove the yolks, beat with a fork, with 2 teaspoonfuls mustard, 1 of salt, 1 of pepper, and a little cayenne; mix well together, add 4 dessertspoonfuls vinegar and 1 of lemon pickle. When quite smooth, add the spawn of the fish and ½ pint cream. Cut up the boiled fish in small pieces, and with an onion nicely minced, stir them into the sauce. Place the lettuce, endive, cress, &c., upon the lobster, garnish with beetroot and slices of whites of egg.

Sandwiches.--Take the flesh of a boiled lobster, cut the thick part into thin slices, put on a plate, and sprinkle with salt, pepper, a little oil and cayenne. Put any trimming of lobster and anchovies, or sardines, into a mortar with 2 oz. fresh butter, salt, pepper, and a little anchovy sauce, pound well together and pass through a sieve. Cut slices of thin bread and butter, place the slices of lobster carefully on them, and spread over each the above butter; put on another piece of bread and butter, flatten each sandwich, and cut into any shape you please. Serve either on a napkin with parsley, or over small cress. Potted lobster can be used for this purpose with greater advantage, and likewise a little cress, chopped, may be put next the slices of lobster. (Jane Burtenshaw.)

Soufflé.--Take out the meat from a small lobster, break it into pieces, and then pound it in a mortar with some of the spawn of a hen lobster, and an equal quantity of butter; add pepper, salt, and spices to taste, with as much cayenne as can be taken up on the point of a trussing needle; slightly pound the rest of the lobster, and put it into some very good veal stock, simmer gently until well flavoured; then strain and add sufficient of this with a little double cream and a dash of lemon juice, to make the mixture of the consistency of thick lobster sauce, stir over the fire until well mixed; then leave to get nearly cold; now add quickly the yolks of 3 or 4 eggs, according to quantity, and lastly the whites whipped to a stiff froth; pour it at once into a soufflé tin, and bake in the oven. Serve immediately.

Stewed.--For stew or _ragoût_, lobsters should be only half boiled, and then transferred to the stewpan. To concoct a stew, proceed as follows: Half boil a fine lobster, and take out the meat in as large pieces as possible. Put it into a stewpan, with a little white stock, 2 glasses hock, sauterne, or very light sherry, a little beaten mace, cayenne pepper and salt, a spoonful of ketchup, a dash of anchovy sauce, and a little butter rolled in flour. Stew gently for 20 minutes, shaking now and then; squeeze in the juice of a lemon, and serve on a hot dish.

_Mackerel_ (Maquereau).--In March superb mackerel may be obtained, full of roe and in perfect condition, while throughout the year they may be got in London in fair case for eating. Mackerel cannot be cooked too soon after being caught. The flesh immediately begins to deteriorate, and within a couple of days loses flavour--going in hot weather rapidly “to the bad.” In buying this fish, therefore, great attention must be paid to its condition and freshness. A good mackerel should be of fair size (not the monster called horse mackerel), plump, very thick and round in shape, full and deep from the shoulder downwards. The eye should be full and bright, the skin glossy, and the body stiff. The bars on the back should also be observed, as these are straighter in the male than in the female fish, the former of which is justly preferred, on account of the richer quality of the flesh and the exquisite texture and flavour of the roe.

Baked.--Wash and clean 3 or 4 mackerel, divide them down the back and once across, making 4 pieces of each fish. Arrange these pieces compactly in a pie dish in layers, with 3 or 4 bay leaves, 6 shallots sliced, a dessertspoonful of peppercorns, half that quantity of pimento berries, 8 cloves, and a little white pepper. Make a sauce with ½ pint good stock, 1 wineglass each of claret and vinegar, 1 tablespoonful mushroom ketchup, and the same of anchovy and Harvey sauce, with a tablespoonful of Worcester sauce and soy. Bake in a moderate oven with a cover on the dish until the fish is quite done; take from the sauce, and place on the dish you intend serving it on; strain the sauce, and pour over the fish. Serve cold, garnished with sprigs of parsley or fennel. Fish cooked in this way will keep good for 2-3 days, if left in the sauce and covered over.

Boiled.--For boiling, mackerel should be carefully cleaned, from the gills, well washed in vinegar and water, and allowed to dry before being put into the fish kettle, when a handful of salt should be put into sufficient water to cover the fish which should be allowed to boil gently for 15-20 minutes. As the critical moment approaches the fish should be carefully watched, as when the eye starts and the tail splits it is done, and must be taken up immediately, or it will break. Serve on a napkin with fennel sauce (in boats) made as follows: Pick and wash a bunch of fennel, tie it up and “blanch” it, i.e. throw it into boiling water and let it remain for a few minutes, drain and chop it finely and add it to some melted butter, make it quite hot, and serve. When fennel is unattainable parsley may be used--albeit a feeble substitute--instead. Another good sauce for boiled mackerel is made thus: throw a large piece of butter rolled in flour into a stewpan, add chopped and blanched parsley and mushrooms, a little chopped shallot and a _soupçon_ of garlic, moisten with a cupful of stock or broth, add salt and a little grated nutmeg, and just before serving stir in a little mustard, amalgamate thoroughly, and serve in a boat.

Broiled.--When the fish are split open, wipe carefully with a dry cloth, sprinkle lightly with pepper and salt, and hang up in a cool place with plenty of air until next morning. Take care to keep the fish open when you hang them up. When ready to cook the mackerel, dissolve ½ oz. butter or bacon fat for each fish, and pass them through it on both sides. Lay them on a gridiron over a very slow fire, turn frequently, basting now and then with a little butter. When the fish is last turned, sprinkle finely-chopped parsley on the inner side, and then serve very hot. They must be very slowly cooked; they will take at least 20 minutes. If put over a fierce fire mackerel is rendered hard and indigestible, and the fish itself is unjustly blamed, but if the above recipe is followed a most delicious dish will be produced.

Devilled.--Split the mackerel down the back, and remove the bone. Divide the fish into 4 fillets, trim neatly, and season well with made mustard, black pepper, salt, and a little lemon juice; let remain for a short time, 1 hour if possible, then dip in oil or melted butter, and broil over a clear fire; serve with fried parsley and cut lemon, or with a grill sauce, viz. gravy flavoured with French mustard, mushroom ketchup (or any flavouring preferred), a few chopped capers, and with a thickening of butter, flour, and a dash of lemon juice.

Fillets.--Split 2 mackerel, remove the bone, cut off the heads and tails, and trim the 4 halves into 12 fillets; remove the skin from each; sprinkle with pepper and salt, and set to cook with plenty of butter in a sauté pan, or in a tin in the oven. Put all the bones and trimmings of the fish to boil for 1 hour in a saucepan, with 1 onion, 1 carrot, some parsley, sweet herbs, pepper, salt, and cloves to taste, and a little water; then strain it. Fry in oil 3-4 shallots finely minced, and as many mushrooms, until they are a light brown; then add 3 tablespoonfuls wine vinegar, mix well, and let it reduce by one-third. Add the above liquor and a little chopped parsley, and dish the fillets with this sauce.

Fricassée.--2 mackerel, 1 tablespoonful parsley, juice and rind of one lemon, yolks 2-3 eggs, ¼ pint cream, 2 oz. butter, 1 tablespoonful flour. Clean the mackerel and with a sharp knife just cut through the skin round the head, strip the skin off from the head to the tail, then run the knife down the back close to the bone, on the outside, turn the fish over, and proceed as before, keeping the knife close to the bone; strip the fillet off each side of the bone, cut across in an oblong shape, lay on a dish, sprinkle with a little sauce. Next put the bones of the fish into a stewpan, with the stalks of the parsley, the rind of the lemon pared very thin, and a little water, let them stew about ½ hour; when done strain the liquor from the bones into the basin, rinse the stewpan, and arrange in it the fillets in one layer; pour over them the liquor from the bones, and let them simmer 10-15 minutes very slowly. About 5 minutes before the fish is done add to it a tablespoonful finely-chopped parsley, a little salt, white pepper, the flour and butter previously mixed on a plate, and the cream; shake the stewpan round to mix the butter and flour, let the sauce just boil, add the beaten yolks of 2-3 fresh eggs, and the lemon juice; but be sure not to let it boil after the eggs are put in, or the sauce will curdle. The roes of the fish should be fried, and laid on top of the fricassée; and a wall of mashed potatoes or rice might be put round the dish if liked.

Grilled.--Split 2 mackerel down the back, and remove the bone. Mix some olive oil in a dish with pepper and salt, lay the mackerel in this, and turn them over so that they are well oiled on both sides. Place them in a double gridiron, and grill them for about 10 minutes in front of a clear, but not too fierce, fire, turning them frequently during the process. Serve back downwards, with a large piece of _maître d’hôtel_ butter on each fish.

Roes.--Blanch some soft roes of mackerel for about 5 minutes in salted water, with a dash of vinegar in it; drain them on a cloth; fry a minced shallot in butter, add some mushrooms finely chopped, a pinch of flour, a little stock, some minced parsley, pepper and salt, and the juice of half a lemon; stir the sauce well. Oil some paper cases; put a little of the sauce in each, then as many slices of roe as it will hold, and fill up with more sauce. Put the cases in a moderate oven, and serve as soon as the contents are hot.

_Mullet_ [_Grey_] (Mulet). Boiled.--Choose a good-sized fish, lay it in the fish kettle with plenty of well-salted cold water; when the water boils draw the kettle aside, lift up the fish, and let it drain, covered up over the water until the time of serving.

Broiled.--See Carp.

In Jelly.--Take a grey mullet, about 5 lb., scale and wash well; put it in a fish-kettle, with sufficient water to just cover it; add the juice of 12 lemons, 6 sweet and 3 bitter oranges, some allspice, and 2 onions, with a few cloves stuck in them. Let the fish boil gently in this liquor till done. Put in a deep dish when cooked; then put 1 oz. isinglass or Nelson’s gelatine, previously soaked in cold water, in the water the fish was cooked in, and let it simmer till dissolved; then strain over the fish till not quite covered, and let it remain till next day, when the jelly ought to be firm, but not so stiff as calves’-foot jelly. (E. G.)

Stewed.--Take a grey mullet (3-4 lb.), scale and wash well; sprinkle with salt and let it rest. Put a teacupful of olive oil in a frying pan with 4 or 5 onions; put it on the fire, and fry rather brown; lay the half on the bottom of a deep baking dish, place the fish over, then a good layer of chopped parsley, a layer of tomatoes in slices (or American tinned ones will do) and the remainder of the onions, and another layer of parsley; pour over the oil left in the frying pan ½ teacup French vinegar, 1 teacupful water, with some salt in it and 2 tablespoonfuls conserve de tomates. Bake in the oven for about 1 hour in a moderate heat; lay the fish in the centre of the dish and the vegetables round. This must have no gravy left. Best eaten cold. See Carp.

_Mullet_ [_Red_] (Rouget).--This “woodcock of the sea” must never be drawn or cleaned, as, like its land namesake, it is a very clean feeder. As its own flavour is its greatest attraction, it is better to cook it in a manner that does justice to that flavour, without overpowering it. Lay 3-4 red mullet in a deep dish in vinegar, and some whole pepper, and let them do themselves, and be served in the juices that they throw out; or plain boil them, and mix their insides with plain melted butter, without rejecting any part.

Baked.--Cut 1 carrot and 2 onions into thin slices; add thyme, parsley, and marjoram, with pepper and salt to taste, and 3 tablespoonfuls salad oil; mix these well together, cover each mullet with the mixture, and roll up in a piece of white paper, previously oiled; bake them in a moderate oven ½ hour, then carefully open the paper, place the fish neatly on a dish, ready to be served, and keep it warm. Melt a small piece of butter, add a large pinch of flour, half a tumblerful of good stock, and the vegetables, &c., the fish were cooked in. Let the sauce boil 5 minutes, add salt if wanted; strain, skim, pour it over the fish, and serve.

Broiled.--Wipe each fish quite dry, and lay it on a sheet of note paper well oiled with salad oil; sprinkle pepper, salt, and a little minced parsley on the fish, and a little lemon juice; fold up the paper neatly, and broil them on a gridiron; take them out of the paper, and lay carefully on a dish; pour the following sauce over and serve: Fry in a little salad oil a couple of shallots very finely minced, then add a wineglassful of sherry, 6 mushrooms finely minced, and as much Spanish sauce as may be required. Lastly, put in a little finely chopped parsley, and a little lemon juice. Let the sauce gently simmer for ¼ hour, and, having skimmed off the fat, pour it over the fish.

Stewed.--Make a paste in a basin with breadcrumbs soaked in milk and squeezed dry, butter, minced parsley, pepper, salt, and spices to taste; add a yolk of egg to it, and when it is worked quite smooth, stuff the mullets with it, and put them to cook in the oven in a tin, with plenty of olive oil, and pepper and salt to taste. Fry some shallots in oil till they are a good colour, stir in a little flour and as much well-flavoured stock as you want sauce; add spices, pepper and salt to taste; then strain it and add a quantity of Spanish olives previously stoned and parboiled. Let them simmer in the sauce for a short time; then serve with the mullets.

Stuffed.--Remove the gills of the mullets, make an incision from the throat half-way down the belly of the fish, and do not remove any of the inside but the small gut, which will come away in pulling out the gills. Take some fine breadcrumbs, add to them a fourth of their bulk of shallots, and the same quantity of mushrooms, both minced as finely as possible, and lightly fried in butter. Then add some parsley and sweet herbs finely chopped, season with pepper and salt, and make the mixture into a paste by working a pat of butter or more into it, and the yolk of one egg; stuff the mullets with this, pack them up securely in buttered paper, and grill them on a clear fire, or bake them in a buttered tin.

_Mussels_ (Moules).--Mussels have an evil reputation, and in this country are regarded with especial suspicion, while in France they are eaten by everybody, when in season--that is, during the six winter months. They maybe eaten raw if great care is taken in bearding them. This operation, which is optional in the case of the oyster, is indispensable to the wholesomeness of the mussel. It is, however, more general and perhaps safer to eat mussels stewed.

Stewed.--Take 3-6 doz. mussels, put them in a pail of water, and wash well with a birch broom; then put into a pail of spring water and salt for 2 hours; wash out, put into a saucepan without water, and cover close; stew gently till they open, and strain the liquor from them through a sieve; pick them out of the shells, beard carefully and put into a stewpan. Put in about half the liquor carefully drained from the settlings, with a gill of sherry or sauterne, a little grated nutmeg, and a large piece of butter rolled in flour. Stew gently, and keep stirring till the mixture is thick and smooth, and serve on a hot dish with toasted sippets.

_Oysters_ (Huîtres). Raw.--Put 4-6 oysters before each guest on a plate, with a lemon quartered, and with the upper shell replaced over each oyster. Serve thin slices of brown bread and butter and cayenne with them.

Angels on Horseback.--Take 12 or more large-sized oysters from their shells, removing the beards; cover each with a very thin slice of fat of bacon, dipping each slice into hot water and well drying it with a cloth before rolling it round the oyster; then place them on a fine skewer and suspend them before the fire until the bacon is nicely cooked. A slice of soft buttered toast should be under them while cooking, and on it they should be sent up very hot to table.

Broiled.--Many invalids who object to native oysters in the shell can eat them with relish when cooked in this way. Drain the oysters from their liquor and dry them in a napkin. Heat and well butter a gridiron, season well, lay them on, and brown both sides. Serve on a very hot dish, with melted butter.

Cream.--Open 1 doz. oysters carefully and save the liquor; take ½ pint milk, add to it a piece of butter the size of a walnut, thicken with flour, and simmer 10 minutes. Add the oysters with their liquor, and seasoning to taste. Have some nicely browned slices of toast, take up the oysters carefully, lay them on the toast, pour the mixture over, and serve.

Croustades.--Parboil a quantity of oysters in their own liquor, remove the beards, cut each oyster into 4-6 pieces. Melt a piece of butter in a saucepan, add to it a pinch of flour, the liquid of the oysters, a little cream, salt, pepper, nutmeg, the least bit of cayenne, and some finely minced parsley. Put in the oysters and toss them in this sauce just long enough to make them quite hot. Stir into them, off the fire, the yolk of an egg beaten up with the juice of half a lemon, and strained. Fill some bread croustades, warm them in the oven, and serve.

Cutlets.--For these the large stewing oysters are the best. Take about ½ lb. veal, and an equal quantity of oysters. First chop them finely, and then pound them together in a mortar, adding a little finely chopped veal suet, and 3 tablespoonfuls breadcrumbs which have been soaked in the liquor from the oysters when opened. Season with a little salt, white pepper, and a very little piece of mace well pounded; to this add the beaten yolks of 2 eggs. Mix this thoroughly; then pound it a little more, and make it up in the form of small cutlets. Fry them in butter, after having dipped them in the usual way in egg and breadcrumbs. Drain well and send to table very hot. Serve on a napkin, and garnish with little sprigs of parsley.

Devilled (à la diable).--Parboil some oysters in their own liquor, take off the beards and hard parts, cut up the remainder into small pieces, season well with cayenne and salt, and add a little lemon juice. Take the liquor in which the oysters were boiled and add to it a thickening of butter and flour, put in the minced oysters, and stir over the fire until quite cooked, then add, off the fire, the yolks of 1 or 2 eggs, beaten up with a little cream. Spread out the mixture to get cold, then divide it into small portions, roll up each portion into the thinnest possible wafer of parboiled bacon. Just before frying dip each roll into some frying batter, put them into the frying basket, and fry in hot lard or butter. Serve garnished with fried parsley.

Fricassée.--Take a tablespoonful of cream and the beaten yolk of an egg. Mix them well together, then drain the liquor from 12 oysters, thicken it with butter and flour, add the egg and cream, season to taste, and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring all the time. Lay in the oysters, let them warm through, then pour up over slices of buttered toast.

Fried.--The oysters must be first boiled in their own liquor, and drain. Then put them into a frying pan, with butter in the proportion of 2 oz. to 3 doz. oysters, about a tablespoonful of ketchup, a little chopped parsley, and grated lemon peel, and fry them for a few minutes. Serve very hot, with toast separate. (Mrs. B.)

Fritters.--Have ready a batter made as follows: Dissolve 1 oz. butter in 2 oz. water or oyster liquor, and stir to this 1½ oz. sifted flour; mix well over the fire. Take it off and mix in, one after the other, 3 eggs and a little salt. Beard and scald the oysters, dip each into the butter, fry lightly, and serve.

Kromeskies.--Put 1 doz. oysters (tinned will do), with their liquor, into a saucepan, bring them to the boil, take them out and beard them, cut into pieces about the size of half a pea; return the beards to the saucepan, boil in their liquor to extract the flavour, put them back for 5 minutes to simmer. Make a panada of 1 oz. butter, 1 oz. flour, ¼ gill oyster liquor (add milk if short), pepper, salt, cayenne, and a few grates of nutmeg; put into a saucepan. When it thickens add the yolk of an egg, a teaspoonful of lemon juice, a teaspoonful of anchovy sauce; do not let it boil. Put the pieces of oyster in the panada to get thoroughly warmed through, turn out on a plate to cool. Then shape into cakes, inclose in very thin bacon, dip into frying batter, then drop into boiling fat, and fry. These can be warmed up in the oven. Batter for kromeskies: 4 oz. flour, 2 dessertspoonfuls salad oil, a pinch of salt, 1 gill tepid water, whites of 2 eggs beaten to a stiff froth; put the flour into a basin, make a well in the centre, then add salad oil, begin to stir very slowly, when it thickens add the water. After all the water is added let the mixture stand for 1 hour. Beat the whites of the eggs into a very stiff froth (it ought to be stiff enough to be able to cut it with a knife), stir into the batter very lightly. The best bacon for kromeskies is a block off the back, nearly all fat; parboil it for 20 minutes, let it get cold, cut into slices 2½ in. wide, 3 in. long, then wrap round the oyster shapes.

Olives.--Chop finely 1 lb. inside loin of mutton, with ½ lb. beef suet free from skin, and 1 pint oysters, scalded and bearded. Mix well, and season with pepper, salt, and mace, and a squeeze of lemon juice. When quite smooth, press all into a glazed pot. It will keep several days. For use, roll it into balls or cakes, and fry lightly.

Patties.--Make first a rich puff paste with ½ lb. Vienna flour and ½ lb. butter. Press all the moisture out of the butter with a clean cloth, then rub half of it very lightly into the flour, mix with sufficient cold water to form a paste, roll, and put on the remainder of the butter, fold in three, and roll out; repeat this, then fill the patty-pans, and bake quickly. Beard and drain 1 doz. oysters, add a few drops of lemon juice to the liquor, and thicken with flour, butter, and the yolk of an egg. Cut the oysters into dice, stir them into the mixture with a few drops of anchovy sauce; warm up, and fill the cases.

Pie.--Line the sides and edges of a buttered pie dish with puff paste. Take some large, fresh oysters, lay them in a stewpan, and stir to them pepper, salt, and mace to taste, a very little butter rolled in flour, and the liquor. When well mixed over the fire, pour it all into the pie dish, strew it thickly with breadcrumbs and chopped hard-boiled egg, cover the dish with paste, and bake in a quick oven.

Rissolettes.--Boil as many oysters as you may require in their own liquor, taking care that they are not too much done; a very few minutes will be enough. Take off the beards, return them to the liquor, taking them out of it again with a perforated ladle. The liquor must stand a short time to allow the sand to settle; pour it carefully into another basin through a fine strainer, that there may be no chance of any grit. Make a thickening of butter and flour, moistening it with the liquor. When the sauce is very thick, add a spoonful or two of cream and the same of good white stock; cut the oysters into dice and mix them with the sauce, which must be sufficiently thick to hold them together in a sort of paste. Season with a little salt and a very little cayenne pepper. If the flavour of mushrooms be liked, 2 or 3 may be cut into dice and fried in butter, dusted over with flour, and then mixed with the oysters. Make up into rissolettes, using puff paste rolled thin, and cutting them into small three-corner-shaped turnovers, putting about a teaspoonful of the oyster mixture into each. Brush over lightly with yolk of egg, bake in a quick oven, and serve piled up on a napkin in a dish garnished with parsley.