The Book of Household Management
Chapter 37 : SALMON CUTLETS.306. Cut the slices 1 inch thick, and season them with pepper and salt;

SALMON CUTLETS.

306. Cut the slices 1 inch thick, and season them with pepper and salt; b.u.t.ter a sheet of white paper, lay each slice on a separate piece, with their ends twisted; broil gently over a clear fire, and serve with anchovy or caper sauce. When higher seasoning is required, add a few chopped herbs and a little spice.

_Time_.--5 to 10 minutes.

SALMON A LA GENEVESE.

307. INGREDIENTS.--2 slices of salmon, 2 chopped shalots, a little parsley, a small bunch of herbs, 2 bay-leaves, 2 carrots, pounded mace, pepper and salt to taste, 4 tablespoonfuls of Madeira, 1/2 pint of white stock (No. 107), thickening of b.u.t.ter and flour, 1 teaspoonful of essence of anchovies, the juice of 1 lemon, cayenne and salt to taste.

_Mode_.--Rub the bottom of a stewpan over with b.u.t.ter, and put in the shalots, herbs, bay-leaves, carrots, mace, and seasoning; stir them for 10 minutes over a clear fire, and add the Madeira or sherry; simmer gently for 1/2 hour, and strain through a sieve over the fish, which stew in this gravy. As soon as the fish is sufficiently cooked, take away all the liquor, except a little to keep the salmon moist, and put it into another stewpan; add the stock, thicken with b.u.t.ter and flour, and put in the anchovies, lemon-juice, cayenne, and salt; lay the salmon on a hot dish, pour over it part of the sauce, and serve the remainder in a tureen.

_Time_.--1-1/4 hour. _Average cost_ for this quant.i.ty, 3s. 6d.

_Sufficient_ for 4 or 5 persons.

PICKLED SALMON.

308. INGREDIENTS.--Salmon, 1/2 oz. of whole pepper, 1/2 oz. of whole allspice, 1 teaspoonful of salt, 2 bay-leaves, equal quant.i.ties of vinegar and the liquor in which the fish was boiled.

_Mode_.--After the fish comes from table, lay it in a nice dish with a cover to it, as it should be excluded from the air, and take away the bone; boil the liquor and vinegar with the other ingredients for 10 minutes, and let it stand to get cold; pour it over the salmon, and in 12 hours this will be fit for the table.

_Time_.--10 minutes.

TO CURE SALMON.--This process consists in splitting the fish, rubbing it with salt, and then putting it into pickle in tubs provided for the purpose. Here it is kept for about six weeks, when it is taken out, pressed and packed in casks, with layers of salt.

POTTED SALMON.

309. INGREDIENTS.--Salmon; pounded mace, cloves, and pepper to taste; 3 bay-leaves, 1/4 lb. b.u.t.ter.

_Mode_.--Skin the salmon, and clean it thoroughly by wiping with a cloth (water would spoil it); cut it into square pieces, which rub with salt; let them remain till thoroughly drained, then lay them in a dish with the other ingredients, and bake. When quite done, drain them from the gravy, press into pots for use, and, when cold, pour over it clarified b.u.t.ter.

_Time_.--1/2 hour.

AN AVERSION IN THE SALMON.--The salmon is said to have an aversion to anything red; hence, fishermen engaged in catching it do not wear jackets or caps of that colour. Pontoppidan also says, that it has an abhorrence of carrion, and if any happens to be thrown into the places it haunts, it immediately forsakes them. The remedy adopted for this in Norway, is to throw into the polluted water a lighted torch. As food, salmon, when in perfection, is one of the most delicious and nutritive of our fish.

BAKED SEA-BREAM.

310. INGREDIENTS.--1 bream. Seasoning to taste of salt, pepper, and cayenne; 1/4 lb. of b.u.t.ter.

_Mode_.--Well wash the bream, but do not remove the scales, and wipe away all moisture with a nice dry cloth. Season it inside and out with salt, pepper, and cayenne, and lay it in a baking-dish. Place the b.u.t.ter, in small pieces, upon the fish, and bake for rather more than 1/2 an hour. To stuff this fish before baking, will be found a great improvement.

_Time_.--Rather more than 1/2 an hour.

_Seasonable_ in summer.

[Ill.u.s.tration: THE SEA-BREAM.]

_Note_.--This fish may be broiled over a nice clear fire, and served with a good brown gravy or white sauce, or it may be stewed in wine.

THE SEA-BREAM.--This is an abundant fish in Cornwall, and it is frequently found in the fish-market of Hastings during the summer months, but it is not in much esteem.

MR. YARRELL'S RECIPE.

"When thoroughly cleansed, the fish should be wiped dry, but none of the scales should be taken off. In this state it should be broiled, turning it often, and if the skin cracks, flour it a little to keep the outer case entire. When on table, the whole skin and scales turn off without difficulty, and the muscle beneath, saturated in its own natural juices, which the outside covering has retained, will be of good flavour."

TO DRESS SHAD.

311. INGREDIENTS.--1 shad, oil, pepper, and salt.

_Mode_.--Scale, empty and wash the fish carefully, and make two or three incisions across the back. Season it with pepper and salt, and let it remain in oil for 1/2 hour. Broil it on both sides over a clear fire, and serve with caper sauce. This fish is much esteemed by the French, and by them is considered excellent.

_Time_.--Nearly 1 hour.

_Average cost_.--Seldom bought.

_Seasonable_ from April to June.

[Ill.u.s.tration: THE SHAD.]

THE SHAD.--This is a salt-water fish, but is held in little esteem. It enters our rivers to sp.a.w.n in May, and great numbers of them are taken opposite the Isle of Dogs, in the Thames.

POTTED SHRIMPS.

312. INGREDIENTS.--1 pint of sh.e.l.led shrimps, 1/4 lb. of fresh b.u.t.ter, 1 blade of pounded mace, cayenne to taste; when liked, a little nutmeg.

_Mode_.--Have ready a pint of picked shrimps, and put them, with the other ingredients, into a stewpan; let them heat gradually in the b.u.t.ter, but do not let it boil. Pour into small pots, and when cold, cover with melted b.u.t.ter, and carefully exclude the air.

_Time_.--1/4 hour to soak in the b.u.t.ter.

_Average cost_ for this quant.i.ty, 1s. 3d.

b.u.t.tERED PRAWNS OR SHRIMPS.

313. INGREDIENTS.--1 pint of picked prawns or shrimps, 3/4 pint of stock No. 104, thickening of b.u.t.ter and flour; salt, cayenne, and nutmeg to taste.

_Mode_.--Pick the prawns or shrimps, and put them in a stewpan with the stock; add a thickening of b.u.t.ter and flour; season, and simmer gently for 3 minutes. Serve on a dish garnished with fried bread or toasted sippets. Cream sauce may be subst.i.tuted for the gravy.

_Time_.--3 minutes.

_Average cost_ for this quant.i.ty, 1s. 4d.

[Ill.u.s.tration: THE SHRIMP.]

THE SHRIMP.--This sh.e.l.l-fish is smaller than the prawn, and is greatly relished in London as a delicacy. It inhabits most of the sandy sh.o.r.es of Europe, and the Isle of Wight is especially famous for them.

BOILED SKATE.