Salt fish must always be well soaked in plenty of cold water the whole of the night before it is required for the following day's dinner. The salt fish must be put on to boil in plenty of cold water, without any salt, and when thoroughly done, should be well-drained free from any water, and placed on a dish with plenty of well-boiled parsnips. Some sauce may be poured over the fish, which is to be made as follows: viz.—Mix two ounces of butter with three ounces of flour, pepper and salt, a small glassful of vinegar, and a good half-pint of water. Stir this on the fire till it boils. A few hard-boiled eggs, chopped up and mixed in this sauce, would render the dish more acceptable.
[No. 123. Baked Fish.]
Wash and wipe the fish, and lay it, heads and tails, in a baking-dish, the bottom of which has been spread all over with a little butter or dripping, add a little vinegar and water, and, when procurable, some mushroom ketchup. Season with chopped onions and parsley, shake plenty of raspings of bread all over the top of the fish, and bake it in your oven, or send it to the baker's.
[No. 124. Baked Cod's Head.]
First, make some stuffing with one pound of bruised crumb of bread, mixed with six ounces of chopped suet, two eggs, chopped parsley, onions and thyme, and seasoned with pepper and salt. Put this stuffing inside the cod's head, and place it in a baking-dish with two ounces of butter, a gill of vinegar, and a pint and a half of water. Spread a little of the butter all over the cod's head, and then a thick coating of bread-raspings all over it; bake it for an hour in the oven. A few oysters would be an improvement.
[No. 125. Bouillabaisse Soup.]
Put the following ingredients into a saucepan to boil on the fire:—four onions and six tomatoes, or red love-apples, cut in thin slices, some thyme and winter savory, a little salad-oil, a wine-glassful of vinegar, pepper and salt, and a pint of water to each person. When the soup has boiled fifteen minutes, throw in your fish, cut in pieces or slices, and, as soon as the fish is done, eat the soup with some crusts of bread or toast in it. All kinds of fish suit this purpose.
[No. 126. To Boil Fish.]
Put the fish on in sufficient water to cover it, add a small handful of salt, and, providing that the fish is not larger than mackerel, soles, or whiting, it will be cooked by the time that the water boils. Yet it is always best to try whether it requires to boil a little longer, as underdone fish is unwholesome. Boiled fish requires some kind of sauce. Try the following, viz:—