TWENTY-SIX WAYS TO COOK BLUEFISH

BAKED BLUEFISH A L'ITALIENNE

Score and scale the bluefish and put it into a buttered pan with three tablespoonfuls each of white wine and mushroom liquor, a tablespoonful of chopped onion, half a dozen chopped mushrooms and salt and pepper to season. Cover with buttered paper and bake for fifteen minutes. Take out the fish and add to the sauce half a teaspoonful of beef extract, dissolved in half a cupful of boiling water. Add a wineglassful of white wine and thicken with one tablespoonful each of butter and browned flour. Pour the sauce over the fish, sprinkle with chopped parsley, and serve.

BAKED BLUEFISH--I

Clean, scrape, and split the fish and take out the backbone. Gash the flesh and insert a thin slice of salt pork under the skin. Make a stuffing of one cupful of bread-crumbs, two tablespoonfuls of chopped salt pork, and salt, [Page 70] minced parsley, chopped onion, red pepper, kitchen bouquet, and tomato catsup to season. Add one egg well beaten. Fill the fish and sew up. Lay on thin slices of salt pork and bake, basting frequently with the fat. Garnish with cress and lemon.

BAKED BLUEFISH--II

Clean a large bluefish, put into a baking-pan, pour over it a cupful of boiling salted water, cover and bake for an hour, basting frequently. Put on a serving platter, and thicken the sauce with browned flour, seasoning with salt, pepper, Worcestershire and tomato catsup. Serve with a garnish of sliced lemon.

BAKED BLUEFISH--III

Make a stuffing of bread-crumbs, two tablespoonfuls of minced onion, a teaspoonful of minced parsley, three tablespoonfuls of butter, one egg well-beaten, and salt and pepper to season. Stuff the fish and tie securely. Bake in a pan with a cupful of hot water and a tablespoonful of butter, basting frequently. Take out the fish, boil up the sauce, add a tablespoonful of catsup, a tablespoonful of browned flour wet with four tablespoonfuls of cold water, and the juice of a lemon. Cook until thick, and strain.

[Page 71] BAKED BLUEFISH--IV

Prepare a stuffing of crumbs, grated onion, beaten egg and capers. Stuff a large bluefish and sew up. Season with salt and pepper, rub with butter, and add sufficient boiling water. Bake, baste frequently, and serve with any preferred sauce.

BAKED BLUEFISH--V

Make a stuffing of one cupful of bread-crumbs, a tablespoonful of melted butter, and salt and pepper to season. Fill the fish and sew firmly. Gash the fish and lay strips of pork in the gashes. Cover with crumbs, dot with butter and add sufficient boiling water to keep from burning. Bake for an hour, basting frequently. Garnish with parsley and lemon and serve with tomato sauce.

BAKED BLUEFISH--VI

Slit a large bluefish, take out the bone, put in a buttered baking-dish and season with salt and pepper. Fry a chopped onion in butter, add half a dozen chopped mushrooms, three tablespoonfuls of chopped cooked egg-plant, and a teaspoonful of minced parsley. Add two cupfuls of stock, and cook for fifteen minutes. Thicken with a tablespoonful or more of flour rubbed smooth in cold water, [Page 72] and pour over the fish. Sprinkle with crumbs, dot with butter, and bake for an hour in a moderate oven.

BAKED BLUEFISH WITH WHITE WINE SAUCE

Put a cleaned bluefish into a buttered pan with salt, pepper, minced parsley, sweet herbs, a sliced onion, two cupfuls of white wine, and one cupful of white stock. Cover with a buttered paper and cook for forty minutes, basting as required. Take out the fish, strain the sauce, and thicken with a tablespoonful of flour cooked in butter. Boil for ten minutes, add three tablespoonfuls of butter, the juice of half a lemon and three egg yolks well beaten. Bring to the boil, pour over the fish, and serve.

BAKED BLUEFISH A LA NAPLES

Prepare the fish according to directions given for Baked Bluefish--II. Fry in butter for five minutes two tablespoonfuls each of chopped onion, carrot, and lean raw ham. Add twelve pepper-corns, two cloves, and a sprig of marjoram. Add two and one half tablespoonfuls of flour and cook until brown. Add gradually one cupful of brown stock and one and one fourth cupfuls of white wine. Cook until [Page 73] thick, stirring constantly, strain, reheat, pour over the fish, sprinkle with minced parsley, and serve.

BOILED BLUEFISH

Prepare according to directions given for Boiled Bass.

BROILED BLUEFISH--I

Split the fish down the back and soak for half an hour in brine. Rinse in fresh water, dry on a towel and broil on a buttered broiler. Serve on a hot platter with melted butter poured over, and garnish with watercress and sliced lemon.

BROILED BLUEFISH--II

Clean and split down the back, season with salt and pepper, and broil according to directions previously given. Sprinkle with minced parsley and lemon-juice and pour over a little melted butter. Serve with a border of mashed potatoes.

PAN-BROILED BLUEFISH

Lay the fish flesh side down in a well greased, very hot pan. Turn with a pancake-turner.

[Page 74] BROILED BLUEFISH AU BEURRE-NOIR

Broil a bluefish according to directions previously given. Mix together one tablespoonful each of vinegar and minced parsley, one teaspoonful of lemon-juice, and salt and pepper to season. Put two tablespoonfuls of butter into a frying-pan and when it browns add the other ingredients. Bring to the boil and pour it over the broiled fish.

BROILED BLUEFISH WITH MUSTARD SAUCE

Broil a bluefish according to directions previously given, and sprinkle with lemon-juice. Pour over a Cream Sauce to which prepared mustard has been added.

MATELOTE OF BLUEFISH

Prepare according to directions given for Matelote of Blackfish, using white wine instead of Claret.

STUFFED BLUEFISH--I

Prepare according to directions given for Stuffed Sea-Bass.

STUFFED BLUEFISH--II

Scrape, clean, and dry a large bluefish. [Page 75] Chop three onions fine and fry in butter. Add enough mashed potatoes to make the required quantity of stuffing, and season with salt, pepper, minced parsley, and melted butter. Fill the fish and sew up. Rub with melted butter, put a little hot water into the pan, and bake for thirty minutes, basting as required. Garnish with lemon and parsley.

ESCALLOPED BLUEFISH

Flake cold cooked bluefish and mix it with an equal quantity of mashed potatoes. Fill buttered shells, sprinkle with grated cheese, cover with crumbs, dot with butter, and brown in the oven.

FILLETS OF BLUEFISH A LA DUXELLES

Skin, bone, and fillet a bluefish. Season with salt and pepper, and cook with melted butter and lemon-juice until firm. Take from the fire and cool. Prepare a Duxelles Sauce, boil down until thick, and cook the fish with it. Dip in crumbs, then in beaten egg, then in crumbs, and fry in deep fat. Serve with the diluted sauce poured around the fish.

FILLETS OF BLUEFISH WITH ANCHOVY SAUCE

Prepare the fish according to directions [Page 76] given in the preceding recipe, cooking with white wine as well as lemon-juice. Prepare a Cream Sauce, and add to it two tablespoonfuls each of butter and anchovy paste. Pour over the fish and serve.

BLUEFISH A L'ICARIENNE

Scale and score a two-pound bluefish, and put in a buttered baking-dish with three tablespoonfuls each of mushroom liquor and white wine, and salt and pepper to season. Cover with a buttered paper and bake for fifteen minutes. Take out the fish and add to the sauce three tablespoonfuls of stewed and strained tomatoes and one tablespoonful of chopped, cooked, smoked beef tongue. Bring to the boil, pour over the fish, and serve.

BLUEFISH A LA VENETIENNE

Prepare according to directions for Baked Bluefish a la Italienne, adding to it a chopped tomato and six whole mushrooms. Sprinkle with crumbs, dot with butter, brown in the oven, and sprinkle with minced parsley.

FRIED FILLETS OF BLUEFISH

Cut the fish into fillets and soak for half an hour in olive-oil and lemon-juice. Dip in crumbs, then in beaten egg, then in seasoned [Page 77] cracker crumbs, and set into a cold place for an hour. Fry in deep fat and serve with Tartar Sauce.

FRIED BLUEFISH

Clean the fish, season with salt and pepper, dredge with flour and fry in plenty of hot lard. Drain on brown paper and garnish with parsley.

STEAMED BLUEFISH

Season the fish with salt and pepper and pour over it a cupful of vinegar. Let stand for an hour, pour off the vinegar, and steam for twenty minutes. Serve with any preferred sauce.