Warne's model cookery and housekeeping book : containing complete instructions in household management / compiled and edited by Mary Jewry.
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peel of half a lemon ; a sprig of parsley ; lemon thyme; winter savory ; sweet mar- joram ; a piece of butter or dripping ; pepper ; salt ; nutmeg, and a spoonful of suet. Cut a piece about a foot long from the head end of a fine conger, make a stuffing of the bread-crumbs, minced parsley, lemon thyme, winter savory, and sweet marjoram minced fine ; a little chopped suet, grated lemon peel, and butter or dripping ; season it with pepper, salt, and nutmeg ; stuff the fish, and sew it up. Put it into warm water, let it simmer until it is ccoked enough, and serve it with any sauce usually eaten with boiled fish. A tliick piece will take half an hour after it simmers. It may be boiled without the stuffing, if it be preferred. Stewed Conger. Time, according to size. 85. A conger eel; a bunch of sweet herbs ; one onion ; pepper ; salt, and mace ; water or broth ; a little flour. Cut the conger into pieces as for frying, dry and flour the pieces, and brown them in a frying-pan. Put them into a stewpan with a bunch of sweet herbs, an onion cut in quarters, seasoning of pepper and salt, and of spice, if it be liked, and enough water, or broth, nearly to cover the fish. Let it stew gently until it is cooked enough, thicken the gravy with flour just enough to take off the richness that may have risen to the top, and serve the conger with the gravy round it. Tile gravy may be flavoured with toma- toes, chutney, or any other sauce. The stewed conger is nice with oysters ; open them, and save the liquor, mix it with a little flour, use it to thicken the gravy, as much as necessary, let it just boil up, and put in the oysters long enougli for them to get hot. Baked Congev. Time, one hour ; less in a quick oven. 86. Take such a piece of fine conger as would be chosen for boiling ; make a stuff- ing, and stuff it as mentioned for boiled conger Put it into a pie dish or a baking dish, with a pint of water, lay pieces of butter over the fish, flour it well, and put it into a moderate oven ; baste it often with ■ the liquor while it is cooking, and when it; is almost done thicken the liquor with flour, just enough to correct any little richness! that may float on the top of it; not more. Baked conger may be varied in many ways. It is very nice with potatoes baked under it; but as there must be liquor in the dish with which to baste the fish, to prevent the skin getting dry and hard, they will not brown on the outside. I'he gravy may be thickened with tomatoes, or with tomato sauce, and this is particularly nice. It may be taken from the liquor, and eaten with dressed cucumber and early potatoes. It may bo flavoured with or eaten with any sauce that is nice, and it will be e.xcellent any way. A good flavouring for a change, is a tablespoonful of lemon pickle, the same of walnut ketchup, and a dessertspoonful of soy. Fried Conger. Time, twenty to twenty-five minutes, or longer. 87. Conger ; egg ; bread-crumbs. Cut the conger into slices an inch and a half or two inches thick, or a little thicker, according to the size of the fish. This is the best way to cut conger for frying, and most other purposes for which it may re • quire similar subdivision ; because by it the solid back of the fish and the richer under part go together, which they do not when collops are cut longitudinally. Cover the fish with egg and bread-crumbs, and fry it in plenty of fat, made to boil before the fish is put in. Take care that the frying-pan is perfectly clean, and that the fish is fried to I a briglit colour. Serve it with lemon to I squeeze over it, plain melted butter, oyster sauce, shrimp sauce, or any sauce preferred. PEECH. It is so difficult to scale perch that some people have them boiled with the scales on, as they come off easily afterwards. To Boil Perch. Time, half an hour, if large. 88. Cut off the spines from the back, scrape off the scales w^ith an oyster knife, and thoroughly clean and wash them. Then boil them in cold water very carefully, as they are a most delicate fish. To Fry Perch Plain. Time, twelve minutes. 89. When the perch are scaled, gutted, and washed, dry them well with a cloth, and lay them out singly before the fire for a few minutes. Flour them well, and fry them a fine brown in plenty of good drip ping. Serve them with molted butter and crisped parsley. To Boil Pike. Time, half an hour to one hour. 90. Pike: twelve oysters ; half of a