CHAPTER IV
Fish, Fresh and Dried
Fresh fish, in the first place, must be absolutely fresh. They will have little odor, the eyes will be full and clear, and the flesh firm. They are usually delivered from the market cleaned and scaled, but they should be washed with cold water, and sprinkled with salt if not used immediately.
SMELTS, TROUT AND PERCH
Smelts, trout, perch and other small fish, are fried whole, while the larger kinds are cut in pieces called fillets. After washing, drying and seasoning with pepper and salt, each piece should be dipped in finely rolled, dried bread or corn meal, and laid on the bread-board. When all through, beginning with the first, dip each one in well-beaten, seasoned egg, and then in the crumbs again, taking pains to have them covered completely. Lay back on the board to dry before cooking. Heat a half cupful of lard in a skillet until smoking hot, then put in the fish and fry on one side until brown. Turn carefully to avoid breaking, and brown on the other side, but do not turn more than once, and watch to keep from burning. Many cooks use flour or rolled crackers for covering the fish, but the bread crumbs do not hold as much grease, and the fish always seem to fry better than when dipped in anything else. When cooked a deep, rich brown, lift out on to brown paper to drain, and then slip on to a hot platter and send to the table at once, garnished with slices of lemon, parsley or water cress.
HALIBUT
A halibut steak is fine when, after washing thoroughly, it is put in a dripping pan, seasoned with salt and pepper, covered with boiling water and cooked in the oven until done,—from twenty minutes to half an hour. While it is cooking, our little maid can prepare her favorite white sauce, only now she must add a cupful of strained tomatoes and season with red pepper. When the fish is ready, she must serve it on a hot platter, covered with the hot sauce. A steak of this kind usually weighs about two pounds, and is ample for four or five people.
WHITE, WEAK AND BLUE FISH