Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1877-03-01
Cooking Fish.

The following hints on this subject are
taken from all article by the culinary cor
respondent of the London horticultural
Gazette: ..
Fish should be washed as little as pos
sible, and white fish, after being cleaned,
and wiped with a damp cloth, should
have the stomach stuffed with salt for an
hour or two before cooking. Fish should
be put on in cold water so that the inner
part may be sufficiently done, and also it
is less liable to break This rule holds
good, except for very small fish, or for
salmon boiled in slices, when boiling
water should be used. The time will de-
pend on the kind and size of the fish, but
it may be easily known when it is really
by drawing up the fshplate and trying
II 1t will separate from the bone. Here,
as in other things, practice is better than
all the directions that can be given, as so
much depends on the strength of the fire
| and the size of the fish. A little salt and
vinegar should always be put into the
water, and some prefer their fish boiled
In what is called a court 6ouiElon, and this
, is how it is done: Lay the fish in the
| fish kettle with enough cold water to
| cover it, add a glass of wine or vinegar,
some sliced carrot and onions, pepper,
salt and laurel leaf, a bunch of parsley,
a FACET OF sweet herbs, or some of the
same powdered and tied up in a muslin
bag. These seasonings impart fine fla
vor to most boiled fish, excepting salmon,
and for fresh-water fish it is considered
very useful for getting rid Of the muddy
taste they often have.
Frying fish may be fairly well done by
just putting sufficient fat in the pan to
prevent 1t sticking, and cooking it till of
a tine brown color; but the artistic mode
OF trying fish is what is called the wet
process, which may be simply described
as boiling it in fat. There are different
opinions as to what kind of fat answers
best, but all agree that butter should
never be used, as the expense is great, and
the color never SO good. Lard is consid-
cred by many to be the best frying me-
dunn; but Careme, the great French cook,
gives the preference to beef fat-not,
however, the dripping from the roast, but
lard made by melting beef suet instead of
the fat of the pig. What we recommend
to families as best and most economical
IS Clarified dripping, that is, the fat from
the joints while roasting, poured into
boiling water, and removed in cake
when cold. But whatever the medium,
the great point is to have the fat at a
proper temperature before the article to
be fried is put in. The skillful cook can
see the blue smoke rising just at the boil
ing point, and then she knows it is time
to put In her fish but for those who are
only acquiring experience. it is safer TO
throw in bit of bread, and if it takes a
fine color in minute or so, then the fat
IS hot enough, and the fish may be put in.
fhls is the cardinal point of successful
frVJrr A. Dril -, II III
depends on the surprise" that is, on the
fat being hot enough, otherwise the fish
will be fiabby and greasy instead of crisp
and appetizing. Another point to be at
tended to is that the fat be deep enough in
the pan to cover the fish, which should be
putin a wire basket that will fit easily into
the pan of fat, and then no turning is re-
CURED. The same fat will do again and
again for twenty times, if necessary; all
that is needed is to strain it into boiling
water; when cold take it off in a cake,
wipe off the water on the under side, and
put it byfor use, of course only to fry fish
again.