FISH SALADS.
Ever, and justly, fish have taken high rank in the list of salad ingredients. No wonder, when we consider that nothing excels in delicacy of flavor many a variety of fish; and, while fish are not necessarily expensive in any locality, in many sections of the country their cost is merely nominal. Then, too, salad-making appeals largely to one"s artistic nature, and the products of sea and fresh water are constantly furnishing opportunities for studies in many and varied shades of color.
The lobster"s vivid red, the brilliant tints of the salmon and red snapper, the delicate pink of shrimps, the dull white of scallops and halibut, and the bluish gray of mackerel and bluefish, each, in its season, may be made to contrast most effectively with fresh green herbs and yellow dressings.
Oysters, scallops and little-neck clams are frequently served in salads without cooking. These should be carefully washed, then drained and set aside in a marinade for an hour. When cooked, they should be heated to the boiling-point in their own liquor, then drained and cut in halves.
The adductor muscle of the oyster--the white, b.u.t.ton-shaped part that connects the animal with its sh.e.l.l--is often discarded. Other fish than sh.e.l.lfish, when used in salads, are boiled, broiled or baked; they present the best appearance, however, when boiled. Thudichum recommends sea water, whenever it is available, for boiling fish; lacking this, hot water, salted (an ounce of salt to a quart of water), and acidulated pleasantly with lemon juice or vinegar, is the proper medium of cooking.
The addition of a slice or two of onion and carrot, a sprig of parsley, a stalk of celery, with aromatic herbs or spices, provided they be not used so freely as to overpower the delicate savor of the fish, is thought to improve the dish.
The quant.i.ty of water should be adjusted to the size of the fish; in no case should it be larger than will suffice to produce the desired result. At the moment the fish is immersed in the water the temperature should be at the boiling-point, and thereafter the vessel should be permitted to simmer during the process of cooking.
The fish may be cooked whole, or cut into small pieces, similar in shape and size. In the latter case a wire basket is of service, as, by this means, the fish may be easily removed from the water and drained. If the fish is to be served whole, remove the skin and fins, and, when thoroughly cold, mask with jelly mayonnaise or with a fancy b.u.t.ter.
After chilling again, the mask may be decorated with capers, olives, eggs, etc. If the fish is to be used in flakes, the flakes will separate more easily while the fish is still hot. In marinating fish, let the proportions of oil and acid vary with the kind of fish; _i.e._, according to the oily nature of the flesh.
RECIPES.
=Brook-Trout Salad.=
Dress the trout without removing the heads; boil as previously indicated. Remove the backbone without destroying the shape of the fish.
Serve, thoroughly chilled, on crisp lettuce leaves dressed with claret or French dressing. Prepare the latter with tarragon vinegar.
=Brook Trout Moulded in Aspic.=
Pour a little chicken aspic into a pickle or other dish of suitable shape and size for a single fish; when nearly set, lay a trout, prepared as above, upon the aspic, add a few spoonfuls of aspic, let it harden so that the fish may become fixed in place, then add aspic to cover. Slices of cuc.u.mber pickles, capers, or other ornaments, may be used. When the aspic is thoroughly set and chilled, remove from the mould and serve on two lettuce leaves, with any dressing desired.
=Halibut Salad.=
Flake the fish and marinate with French dressing (three tablespoonfuls of oil, one tablespoonful of lemon juice or vinegar, a dash of salt and pepper, for each pint of fish); drain, and add half as much boiled potato, cut in small cubes and dressed with French dressing. Serve on a bed of lettuce leaves. Garnish with sardine dressing. Shredded lettuce or peas may be used in place of the potato.
=Halibut-and-Cuc.u.mber Salad.=
INGREDIENTS.
1 pound of cooked halibut.
2 tablespoonfuls of oil.
1 tablespoonful of lemon juice.
A few drops of onion juice.
Salt and pepper.
2 pimentos.
Lettuce.
Cuc.u.mbers.
French dressing.
_Method._--Flake one pound of cooked halibut while hot, and marinate with the oil, lemon juice, onion juice, salt and pepper. When cold drain and mix with the pimentos, shredded, after cutting from the same a few star-shaped or other fanciful figures. Arrange heart leaves of lettuce in an upright position in the centre of a serving-dish, the fish and pimentos around the lettuce, and, around these, one large or two small cuc.u.mbers, cut in small cubes and mixed with French dressing. With salmon use capers instead of pimentos. Use enough dressing to moisten the cuc.u.mbers thoroughly.
=Halibut Salad.=
Steam a thick slice of chicken halibut, until the flesh separates easily from the bone. Remove the skin and bones without disturbing the shape of the fish. Marinate, while hot, with three tablespoonfuls of oil, one tablespoonful of vinegar or lemon juice, and salt and pepper. When cold put the fish on a serving-dish, and, using endive or Boston Market lettuce, put the ends of the leaves beneath the fish, so that the tops of the leaves will fall over upon the fish. Garnish the top with stars of mayonnaise. Between the leaves dispose sliced pim-olas and fans cut from small gherkins. Serve mayonnaise with the salad.
=Fillets of Halibut in Aspic, with Cuc.u.mber-and-Radish Salad.=
INGREDIENTS.
2 slices of halibut, cut half an inch or less in thickness.
1 lobster (a pound and a half).
3 tablespoonfuls of b.u.t.ter.
1/4 a cup of flour.
1/4 a cup of cream.
1/4 a cup of stock.
A dash of paprica.
1 tablespoonful of lemon juice.
1 teaspoonful of chopped parsley.
1/4 a tablespoonful of salt.
1 quart of aspic.
Olives.
A bunch of radishes.
2 cuc.u.mbers.
French dressing.
_Method._--Remove the skin and bone from the halibut, thus securing eight fillets. Season with salt, pepper, onion and lemon juice. Chop the lobster meat fine; melt the b.u.t.ter, cook in it the flour and seasonings, add the cream and lobster stock, and, when cooked, stir in the chopped lobster. When cool spread upon one side of the fillets, roll up the fillets and fasten with wooden toothpicks that have been dipped in melted b.u.t.ter. Bake on a fish-sheet about fifteen minutes, basting with b.u.t.ter melted in hot water.
Set a plain border-mould in ice water; decorate the bottom and sides with pim-olas or gherkins cut in slices and dipped in half-set aspic; cover the decoration on the bottom with aspic, and, when set and the decorations on the side are "fixed" in place, arrange on the aspic the cold fillets of fish and fill the mould with more aspic. When cold turn from the mould and fill the centre with diced cuc.u.mbers and sliced radishes dressed with French dressing. Pa.s.s mayonnaise or French dressing in a separate dish. Surround the aspic with shredded lettuce if desired.
=Fillets of Halibut in Aspic with Cole-Slaw.=
Use a generous half-pint of oysters in the place of the lobster, parboiling and draining before chopping, and fill in the centre of the aspic with coleslaw.
[Ill.u.s.tration: Miroton of Fish and Potato Salad.]
[Ill.u.s.tration: Cowslip and Cream Cheese Salad.
(See page 49)]
=Miroton of Fish and Potato.=
Marinate one pint of cold cooked fish--salmon, cod, haddock, halibut, etc.--with three or four tablespoonfuls of oil, half a teaspoonful of salt, a dash of pepper and two tablespoonfuls of lemon juice. Marinate, separately, one pint of cold potatoes, cooked in their skins and cut in cubes, with the same quant.i.ty of dressing, adding also one teaspoonful of onion juice. Let stand in a cool place one hour or more. Have ready six hard-boiled eggs; cut a thin slice from the round end of each egg, that it may stand upright, then cut in quarters lengthwise. Dip into a little aspic jelly or melted gelatine and arrange the quarters in the form of a circle, with the yolks outside. Toss together the fish, potato and three tablespoonfuls of capers, and fill in the centre of the circle. Dust with fine-chopped parsley or beets; add a tuft of lettuce at the top and a few heart leaves of lettuce above the crown of eggs.