314. INGREDIENTS.--1/4 lb. of salt to each gallon of water.
_Mode_.--Cleanse and skin the skate, lay it in a fish-kettle, with sufficient water to cover it, salted in the above proportion. Let it simmer very gently till done; then dish it on a hot napkin, and serve with shrimp, lobster, or caper sauce.
_Time_.--According to size, from 1/2 to 1 hour. _Average cost_, 4d. per lb.
_Seasonable_ from August to April.
CRIMPED SKATE.
315. INGREDIENTS.--1/8 lb. of salt to each gallon of water.
_Mode_.--Clean, skin, and cut the fish into slices, which roll and tie round with string. Have ready some water highly salted, put in the fish, and boil till it is done. Drain well, remove the string, dish on a hot napkin, and serve with the same sauces as above. Skate should never be eaten out of season, as it is liable to produce diarrhoea and other diseases. It may be dished without a napkin, and the sauce poured over.
_Time_.--About 20 minutes. _Average cost_, 4d. per lb.
_Seasonable_ from August to April.
TO CHOOSE SKATE.--This fish should be chosen for its firmness, breadth, and thickness, and should have a creamy appearance. When crimped, it should not be kept longer than a day or two, as all kinds of crimped fish soon become sour.
[Ill.u.s.tration: THORNBACK SKATE.]
THE SKATE.--This is one of the ray tribe, and is extremely abundant and cheap in the fishing towns of England. The flesh is white, thick, and nourishing; but, we suppose, from its being so plentiful, it is esteemed less than it ought to be on account of its nutritive properties, and the ease with which it is digested. It is much improved by crimping; in which state it is usually sold in London. The THORNBACK differs from the true skate by having large spines in its back, of which the other is dest.i.tute. It is taken in great abundance during the spring and summer months, but its flesh is not so good as it is in November. It is, in regard to quality, inferior to that of the true skate.
SKATE WITH CAPER SAUCE (a la Francaise)
316. INGREDIENTS.--2 or 3 slices of skate, 1/2 pint of vinegar, 2 oz. of salt, 1/2 teaspoonful of pepper, 1 sliced onion, a small bunch of parsley, 2 bay-leaves, 2 or 3 sprigs of thyme, sufficient water to cover the fish.
_Mode_.--Put in a fish-kettle all the above ingredients, and simmer the skate in them till tender. When it is done, skin it neatly, and pour over it some of the liquor in which it has been boiling. Drain it, put it on a hot dish, pour over it caper sauce, and send some of the latter to table in a tureen.
_Time_.--1/2 hour. _Average cost_, 4d. per lb.
_Seasonable_ from August to April.
_Note_.--Skate may also be served with onion sauce, or parsley and b.u.t.ter.
SMALL SKATE FRIED.
317. INGREDIENTS.--Skate, sufficient vinegar to cover them, salt and pepper to taste, 1 sliced onion, a small bunch of parsley, the juice of 1/2 lemon, hot dripping.
_Mode_.--Cleanse the skate, lay them in a dish, with sufficient vinegar to cover them; add the salt, pepper, onion, parsley, and lemon-juice, and let the fish remain in this pickle for 1-1/2 hour. Then drain them well, flour them, and fry of a nice brown, in hot dripping. They may be served either with or without sauce. Skate is not good if dressed too fresh, unless it is crimped; it should, therefore, be kept for a day, but not long enough to produce a disagreeable smell.
_Time_.--10 minutes. _Average cost_, 4d. per lb.
_Seasonable_ from August to April.
OTHER SPECIES OF SKATE.--Besides the true skate, there are several other species found in our seas. These are known as the _white_ skate, the long-nosed skate, and the Homelyn ray, which are of inferior quality, though often crimped, and sold for true skate.
TO BAKE SMELTS.
318. INGREDIENTS.--12 smelts, bread crumbs, 1/4 lb. of fresh b.u.t.ter, 2 blades of pounded mace; salt and cayenne to taste.
_Mode_.--Wash, and dry the fish thoroughly in a cloth, and arrange them nicely in a flat baking-dish. Cover them with fine bread crumbs, and place little pieces of b.u.t.ter all over them. Season and bake for 15 minutes. Just before serving, add a squeeze of lemon-juice, and garnish with fried parsley and cut lemon.
_Time_.--1/4 hour. _Average cost_, 2s. per dozen.
_Seasonable_ from October to May.
_Sufficient_ for 6 persons.
TO CHOOSE SMELTS.--When good, this fish is of a fine silvery appearance, and when alive, their backs are of a dark brown shade, which, after death, fades to a light fawn. They ought to have a refreshing fragrance, resembling that of a cuc.u.mber.
THE ODOUR OF THE SMELT.--This peculiarity in the smelt has been compared, by some, to the fragrance of a cuc.u.mber, and by others, to that of a violet. It is a very elegant fish, and formerly abounded in the Thames. The _Atharine_, or sand smelt, is sometimes sold for the true one; but it is an inferior fish, being drier in the quality of its flesh. On the south coast of England, where the true smelt is rare, it is plentiful.
TO FRY SMELTS.
319. INGREDIENTS.--Egg and bread crumbs, a little flour; boiling lard.
_Mode_.--Smelts should be very fresh, and not washed more than is necessary to clean them. Dry them in a cloth, lightly flour, dip them in egg, and sprinkle over with very fine bread crumbs, and put them into boiling lard. Fry of a nice pale brown, and be careful not to take off the light roughness of the crumbs, or their beauty will be spoiled. Dry them before the fire on a drainer, and servo with plain melted b.u.t.ter.
This fish is often used as a garnishing.
_Time_.--5 minutes.
_Average cost_, 2s. per dozen.
_Seasonable_ from October to May.
[Ill.u.s.tration: THE SMELT.]
THE SMELT.--This is a delicate little fish, and is in high esteem. Mr. Yarrell a.s.serts that the true smelt is entirety confined to the western and eastern coasts of Britain. It very rarely ventures far from the sh.o.r.e, and is plentiful in November, December, and January.
BAKED SOLES.
320. INGREDIENTS.--2 soles, 1/4 lb. of b.u.t.ter, egg, and bread crumbs, minced parsley, 1 gla.s.s of sherry, lemon-juice; cayenne and salt to taste.
_Mode_.--Clean, skin, and well wash the fish, and dry them thoroughly in a cloth. Brush them over with egg, sprinkle with bread crumbs mixed with a little minced parsley, lay them in a large flat baking-dish, white side uppermost; or if it will not hold the two soles, they may each be laid on a dish by itself; but they must not be put one on the top of the other. Melt the b.u.t.ter, and pour it over the whole, and bake for 20 minutes. Take a portion of the gravy that flows from the fish, add the wine, lemon-juice, and seasoning, give it one boil, skim, pour it _under_ the fish, and serve.
_Time_.--20 minutes. _Average cost_, 1s. to 2s. per pair.
_Seasonable_ at any time.
_Sufficient_ for 4 or 5 persons.
TO CHOOSE SOLES.--This fish should be both thick and firm. If the skin is difficult to be taken off, and the flesh looks grey, it is good.
[Ill.u.s.tration: THE SOLE.]
THE SOLE.--This ranks next to the turbot in point of excellence among our flat fish. It is abundant on the British coasts, but those of the western sh.o.r.es are much superior in size to those taken on the northern. The finest are caught in Torbay, and frequently weigh 8 or 10 lbs. per pair. Its flesh being firm, white, and delicate, is greatly esteemed.