The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1881-11-02
Bouillabaisse.
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The "Ballad of Bouillabaisse" will be reaH
and applauded, L take it,as long as good English
letters endure and are Appreciated but, in
strictly culinary sense, the smoking dish OF
which Mr.. Thackeray partook was not bouilla-
baisse. It was more of the nature Of ina
telote," which may be compounded Of carp,
roach, dace, eels and craw6sh, stewed with
fine herbs and red wine, and garnished with
mushrooms. The greatest drawback to the
''matelote'' is that it is apt to be Ebony" In
a genuine ssbouillabaisse" there should be no
fresh-water fish; and it is worthy of rem ark
that many years after Mr.. Thackeray had inn
mortalized the restaurant in the Rue Neuve
des Petits Champs, he admitted that the very
best "bouillabaisse" he had ever tasted had
been at a French Creole tavern at New Or
leans, on the road to Lake Ponchartrain. And
the reason why the Louisiana "bouillabaisse"
was necessarily and largely superior to the
Paris preparation, and in all respects equal to
the Marseilles one, will DO at once obvl-
GUS when it is remembered, first, that the Gre
ole cookery of New Orleans is fully on par
with that of Provence, and next that the Gulf
of Mexico yields equally with the Cult oil
Lyons a surprising variety OF hsh
important in size, firm in flesh and
delicious in flavor. To come to the
technics of bouillabaisse it is nee
essary to point out that the highest authority
as to the proper confection of this dish is the
famous Proveneal "chef'' Durand, the author
Of ssIe CuisiDser du Midi OF du Nord. M. Du-
rand's observations on the vital question of
garlic NAV be quoted with advantage here,
since the crank and guilty bulD plays most
important part iu the compoundlng OF Doullla-
baisse Writing during the restoration, Du-
remarks: 81 have illuminated the kitchen for
more than seventy years; and have always
maintained that it is practicable to suppress
the employment of garlic in the preparation OF
sea-tish / have never used IL without
hayins in the first iEstance as
certained whether garlic was in the slightest
degree offensive to the pc rsons who were ABOUT
10 partake of my production, nor can give
too strong an expression OF my sentlmehts OIL
indignation toward those COOKS VINO cnop .neiI
garlic without having subjected the esculent
to thorough preliminary scraplng. Garnc is
full of orumouS PARTICLES and 1t Is sufnclent
forone of these granules to get between the
teeth to produce the direst complications, abb
CREATIONS and deprivation OF TASTE"
The weighty Durand only admits two kinds
Of bouillabaisse, or Bouil-Abaisse, that "a Ia
Marseillaise" and that a la Nimoise.
Touching the Marseillaise one, the following
is a recipe: In the bottom Of the stewpan q
small quantity of chopped onion should be
passed for a moment over the fire. Then your
assortment of sea-fish must be cut IN Slices
notably your Loup, your Moraine, your Wnl,,
inc. Your "Racasses and your 'langouste"
or cray-fsh but of that last only the tail OF him
The slices Of fish are then placed in the stew
pan together with some well chopped parsley
and garlic slice Of . lemon, .eds Save of0 bsen en.
nrassed. the whole seasoned with salt, pepper,
and q little powdered saffron. The whole mass
d then TO be ''arrose" or sprinkled, and that
literally, with good olive oil, and it is then to
he thoroughly Swetted" with glass of dry
white wine and some fish bouillon zoutche, or
broth made from fishes heads and trim