then set on as much clear water aswil conveniently boil it, season it with salt, wine-vinegar, five or six bay-leaves large mace, three or four whole cloves, and a faggot of sweet herbs bound up hard together: so soon as this preparative boils, put in the tench being clean wiped, do not scale it, being boil’d take it up and wash off all the loose scales, then strain the liquor through a jelly-bag, and put to it a piece of ising-glass being first washed and steeped for the purpose, boil it very cleanly, and run it through a jelly-bag; then having the fish taken out of the shells, lay them in a large clean dish, lay the lobsters in slices, and the craw fish and prawns whole, and run this jelly over them. You may make this jelly of divers colours, as you may see in the Section of Jellies, page 202.
Garnish the dish of Jellies with lemon-peels cut in branches, long slices as you fancy, barberries, and fine coloured flowers.
Or lard the lobsters with salt eel, or stick it with candied oranges, green citterns, or preserved barberries, and make the jelly sweet.
[ To stew Crabs.]
Being boil’d take the meat out of the bodies or barrels, and save the great claws, and the small legs whole to garnish the dish, strain the meat with some claret wine, grated bread, wine-vinegar, nutmeg, a little salt, and a piece of butter; stew them together an hour on a soft fire in a pipkin, and being stewed almost dry, put in some beaten butter with juyce of oranges beaten up thick; then dish the shells being washed and finely cleansed, the claws and little legs round about them, put the meat into the shells, and so serve them.
Sometimes you may use yolks of eggs strained with butter.
[ To stew Crabs otherways.]
Being boil’d take the meat out of the shells, and put it in a pipkin with some claret wine, and wine vinegar, minced tyme, pepper, grated bread, salt, the yolks of two or three hard eggs strained or minced very small, some sweet butter, capers, and some large mace; stew it finely, rub the shells with a clove or two of garlick, and dish them as is shown before.
[ Otherways.]
Take the meat out of the bodies, and put it in a pipkin with some cinamon, wine vinegar, butter, and beaten ginger, stew them and serve them as the former, dished with the legs about them.