The accomplisht cook: or, The art & mystery of cookery · Robert May

SECTION XVI.

Chapter 17 of 25 · 6 min read

or,

The fourth Section for dressing of FISH.

Shewing the exactest ways of dressing Turbut, Plaice, Flounders, and Lampry.

To boil Turbut to eat hot.

Draw and wash them clean, then boil them in white wine and water, as much of the one as of the other with some large mace, a few cloves, salt, slic't ginger, a bundle of time and rosemary fast bound up; when the pan boils put in the fish, scum it as it boils, and being half boil'd, put in some lemon-peel; being through boiled, serve it in this broth, with the spices, herbs, and slic't lemon on it; or dish it on sippets with the foresaid garnish, and serve it with beaten butter.

Turbut otherways calvered.

Draw the turbut, wash it clean, and boil it in half wine and half water, salt, and vinegar; when the pan boils put in the fish, with some slic't onions, large mace, a clove or two, some slic't ginger, whole pepper, and a bundle of sweet herbs, as time, rosemary, and a bay-leaf or two; scotch the fish on the white side very thick overthwart only one way, before you put it a boiling; being half boiled, put in some lemon or orange peel; and being through boil'd, serve it with the spices, herbs, some of the liquor, onions, and slic't lemon.

Or serve it with beaten butter, slic't lemon, herbs, spices, onions and barberries. Thus also you may dress holyburt.

To boil Turbut or Holyburt otherways.

Boil it in fair water and salt, being drawn and washed clean, when the pan boils put in the fish and scum it; being well boil'd dish it, and pour on it some stew'd oysters and slic't lemon; run it over with beaten butter beat up thick with juyce of oranges, pour it over all, then cut sippets, and stick it with fryed bread.

Otherways.

Serve them with beaten butter, vinegar, and barberries, and sippets about the dish.

To souce Turbut or Holyburt otherways.

Take and draw the fish, wash it clean from the blood and slime, and when the pan boils put in the fish in fair water and salt, boil it very leisurely, scum it, and season it pretty savory of the salt, boil it well with no more water then will cover it. If you intend to keep it long, boil it in as much water as white-wine, some wine vinegar, slic't ginger, large mace, two or three cloves, and some lemon-peel; being boil'd and cold, put in a slic't lemon or two, take up the fish, and keep it in an earthen pan close covered, boil these fishes in no more liquor than will cover them, boil them on a soft fire simering.

To stew Turbut or Holyburt.

Take it and cut it in slices, then fry it, and being half fryed put it in a stew-pan or deep dish, then put to it some claret, grated nutmeg, three or four slices of an orange, a little wine-vinegar, and sweet butter, stew it well, dish it, and run it over with beaten butter, slic't lemon or orange, and orange or lemon-peel.

To fry Turburt or Hollyburt.

Cut the fish into thin slices, hack it with the knife, and it will be ribbid, then fry it almost brown with butter, take it up, draining all the butter from it, then the pan being clean, put it in again with claret, slic't ginger, nutmeg, anchove, salt, and saffron beat, fry it till it be half consumed, then put in a piece of butter, shaking it well together with a minced lemon, and rub the dish with a clove of garlick.

To hash turbut, make a farc't meat of it, to rost or broil it, use in all points as you do sturgeon, and marinate it as you do carp.

The best way to calver Flounders.

Take them alive, draw and scotch them very thick on the white side, then have a pan of white-wine and wine vinegar over the fire with all manner of spices, as large mace, salt, cloves, slic't ginger, some great onions slic't, the tops of rosemary, time, sweet marjoram, pick'd parsley, and winter savory, when the pan boils put in the flounders, and no more liquor than will cover them; cover the pan close, and boil them up quick, serve them hot or cold with slic't lemon, the spices and herbs on them and lemon peel.

Broil flounders as you do bace and mullet, souce them as pike, marinate, and dress them in stoffado as carp, and bake them as oysters.

To boil Plaice hot to butter.

Draw them, and wash them clean, then boil them in fair water and salt, when the pan boils put them in being very new, boil them up quick with a lemon-peel; dish them upon fine sippets round about them, slic't lemon on them, the peel and some barberries, beat up some butter very thick with some juyce of lemon and nutmeg grated, and run it over them hot.

Otherways.

Boil them in white-wine vinegar, large mace, a clove or two, and slic't ginger; being boil'd serve them in beaten butter, with the juyce of sorrel, strained bread, slic't lemon, barberries, grapes, or gooseberries.

To stew Plaice.

Take and draw them, wash them clean, and put them in a dish, stew-pan or pipkin, with some claret or white wine, butter, some sweet herbs, nutmeg, pepper, an onion and salt; being finely stewed, serve them with beaten butter on carved sippets, and slic't lemon.

Otherways.

Draw, wash, and scotch them, then fry them not too much; being fried, put them in a dish or stew-pan, put to them some claret wine, grated nutmeg, wine vinegar, butter, pepper, and salt, stew them together with some slices of orange.

To bake a Lampry.

Draw it, and split the back on the inside from the mouth to the end of the tail, take out the string in the back, flay her and truss her round, parboil it and season it with nutmeg, pepper, and salt, put some butter in the bottom of the pie, and lay on the lampry with two or three good big onions, a few whole cloves and butter, close it up and baste it over with yolks of eggs, and beer or saffron water, bake it, and being baked, fill it up with clarified butter, stop it up with butter in the vent hole, and put in some claret wine, but that will not keep long.

To bake a Lampry otherways with an Eel.

Flay it, splat it, and take out the garbidg, then have a good fat eel, flay it, draw it, and bone it, wipe them dry from the slime, and season them with pepper, salt, and nutmeg, cut them in equal pieces as may conveniently lye in a square or round pye, lay butter in the bottom, and three or four good whole onions, then lay a layer of eels over the butter, and on that lay a lampry, then another of eel, thus do till the pye be full, and on the top of all put some whole cloves and butter, close it up and bake it being basted over with saffron water, yolks of eggs, and beer, and being baked and cold, fill it up with beaten butter. Make your pies according to these forms.

To bake a Lampry in the Italian Fashion to eat hot.

Flay it, and season it with nutmeg, pepper, salt, cinamon, and ginger, fill the pie either with Lampry cut in pieces or whole, put to it raisins, currans, prunes, dryed cherries, dates, and butter, close it up, and bake it, being baked liquor it with strained almonds, grape verjuyce, sugar, sweet herbs chop't and boil'd all together, serve it with juyce of orange, white wine, cinamon, and the blood of the lampry, and ice it, thus you may also do lampurns baked for hot.

To bake a Lampry otherways in Patty-pan or dish.

Take a lampry, roast it in pieces, being drawn and flayed, baste it with butter, and being roasted and cold, put it into a dish with paste or puff paste; put butter to it, being first seasoned with pepper, nutmeg, cinamon, ginger, and salt, seasoned lightly, some sweet herbs chopped, grated bisket bread, currans, dates, or slic't lemon, close it up and bake it, being baked liquor it with butter, white-wine, or sack, and sugar.