Take as much white-wine and water as will cover it, of each a like quantity, and a pint of vinegar, put to this liquor half an ounce of large mace, two lemon-peels, a quarter of an ounce of whole cloves, three slic’t nutmegs, four races of ginger slic’t, some six great onions slic’t, a bundle of six or seven sprigs or tops of rosemary, as much of time, winter-savory, and sweet marjoram bound up hard in a faggot, put into the liquor also a good handful of salt, and when it boils, put in the fish being cleansed and trussed, and boil it up quick.
Being boiled, make the sauce with some of the broth
where the pike was boiled, and put it in a dish with two or three anchoves being cleansed and minced, a little white wine, some grated nutmeg, and some fine grated manchet, stew it on a chafing dish, and beat it up thick with some sweet butter, and the yolk of an egg or two dissolved with some vinegar, give it a warm, and put to it three or four slices of lemon.
Then dish the pike, drain the liquor from it upon a chafing-dish of coals, pour on the sauce, and garnish the fish with slic’t lemons, and the spices, herbs, and boil’d onions, run it over with beaten butter, and lay on some barberries or grapes.
Sometimes for change you may put some horse-raddish scraped, or the juyce of it.
[ To boil a Pike in White Broth. ]
Cut your pike in three pieces, then boil it in water, salt, and sweet herbs, put in the fish when the liquor boils; then take the yolks of six eggs, beat them with a little sack, sugar, melted butter, and some of the pike broth then put it on some embers to keep warm, stir it sometimes lest it curdle; then take up your pike, put the head and tail together in a clean dish, cleave the other piece in two, and take out the back-bone, put the one piece on one side, and the other piece on the other side, but blanch all, pour the broth on it, and garnish the fish with sippets, strow on fine ginger or sugar, wipe the edge of the dish round, and serve it.
[ To Boil a Pike in the French Fashion, a-la-Sauces d’Almaigne, or in the German Fashion. ]
Take a pike, draw him, dress the rivet, and cut him in three pieces, boil him in as much wine as water, & some
lemon-peel, with the liquor boils put in the fish with a good handful of salt, and boil him up quick.