TO FRY WHITINGS.
[In full season from Michaelmas to beginning of February.]
Clean, skin, and dry them thoroughly in a cloth, fasten their tails to their mouths, brush slightly beaten eggs equally over them, and cover them with the finest bread-crumbs, mixed with a little flour; fry them a clear golden brown in plenty of boiling lard, drain and dry them well, dish them on a hot napkin, and serve them with good melted butter, and the sauce cruets, or with well made shrimp or anchovy sauce. A small half-teaspoonful of salt should be beaten up with the eggs used in preparing the whitings: two will be sufficient for half a dozen fish.
5 to 8 minutes, according to their size.
FILLETS OF WHITINGS.
Empty and wash thoroughly, but do not skin the fish. Take off the flesh on both sides close to the bones, passing the knife from the tail to the head; divide each side in two, trim the fillets into good shape, and fold them in a cloth, that the moisture may be well absorbed from them; dip them into, or draw them through, some beaten egg, then dip them into fine crumbs mixed with a small portion of flour, and fry them a fine light brown in lard or clarified butter; drain them well, press them in white blotting-paper, dish them one over the other in a circle, and send the usual sauce to table with them. The fillets may also be broiled after being dipped into eggs seasoned with salt and pepper, then into crumbs of bread, next into clarified butter, and a second time into the bread-crumbs (or, to shorten the process, a portion of clarified butter may be mixed with the eggs at first), and served with good melted butter, or thickened veal gravy seasoned with cayenne, lemon-juice, and chopped parsley.
Five minutes will fry the fillets, even when very large rather more time will be required to broil them.
TO BOIL WHITINGS.
(French Receipt)
Having scraped, cleansed, and wiped them, lay them on a fish-plate, and put them into water at the point of boiling; throw in a handful of salt, two bay leaves, and plenty of parsley well washed and tied together; let the fish just simmer from five to ten minutes, and watch them closely that they may not be overdone. Serve parsley and butter with them, and use in making it the liquor in which the whitings have been boiled.