Adding Variety to Fish Meals

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 82, Issue 6, 15 June 1951, Page 529

Adding Variety to Fish Meals

By

ANNA M. CHAPMAN,

Rural Sociologist,

Department of Agriculture, Dunedin

MANY of the less well-known fish not available in the markets today are extremely palatable and nutritious and could help in providing a better-balanced diet if they were used more often. Before the days of the pakeha the Maoris depended to a greater extent than they do today on the sea and the river for a large part of their daily diet. BECAUSE fish played such an important part in their diet, the Maoris were experts at catching them. They believed they were assisted in this by the advice of their tohungas or priests. Certain days in the month were considered most suitable for fishing and special recitations were prepared for those occasions. Some fish were more popular than others; hapuku, or groper as it is called in the south, was the favourite, with moki, warehou, mullet, snapper, tarakihi, kahawai, and blue cod following in approximately that order.

Because the Maoris had so many superstitions concerning their fishing and so many rules which could not be broken, they were rather limited in the methods by which they could cook the fish. For what today would be called a picnic meal they would probably grill the fish. The food would be placed skin down on very hot flat stones and would not take long to cook. Fairly thin steaks of fish such as snapper and tarakihi were usually prepared by this method, but smaller pieces were held on sticks and cooked over the coals. The commonest method of cooking fish used by the Maoris, however, was by baking it in a Maori oven or hangi. They would dig a hole about 2ft. deep in which they would build a large fire of quick-burning wood, placing on top of the fire stones about the size of a man’s fist. When the fire had burnt down and the stones were almost red hot the embers and the light ashes were removed from the stones, which were then packed so that they formed a very shallow basin. Fern leaves were usually placed round the edge of the stones. If kumaras or potatoes were being used, they were put in first, the fish being laid on top. Water was poured on and was immediately converted to steam, which was prevented from escaping by covering the food quickly with damp mats and then by heaping earth over the top. The hangi would be left for about an hour, by which time the food would be cooked.

Fish used also to be cooked in a kopaki. This was done by wrapping the fish in a covering of leaves, usually sowthistle, and placing it in the Maori oven. The leaves gave a flavour to the fish and were often eaten with it.

Another method was to encase the fish completely in a thick layer of mud and bake it in the hot embers of an open fire. The mud case would come off quite easily when the fish was cooked and the baked fish was very tender. Several varieties of fish in New Zealand are called by one name in one place and have an entirely different name in another. For instance groper is the name commonly applied in the South Island and in the southern part of the North Island to the fish which is known as hapuku m northern parts of the North Island. Piper (North Island) is called garfish in the south, kingfish is known as hake in the south, and herring is called mullet in Otago and Southland. Recipes for a Variety of Fish General methods for cooking fish and some standard recipes were given in an article by Eva Topping in the May, 1949, issue of the “Journal”. The recipes that follow are less common ones. Whitebait Fritters 2 eggs la teaspoons of baking powder 1 teacup of milk 1 breakfast cup of flour 1 tablespoon of butter (melted) Salt and pepper Separate the whites from the yolks 'of the eggs. Add the milk and the flour alternately to the well-beaten egg yolks and beat the mixture well. Add the melted butter. Stir the baking powder into the mixture and fold into it the stiffly beaten whites of the eggs.

Put the whitebait into a strainer or colander and wash them carefully. Turn them out on to a clean cloth, moving the whitebait along the cloth until they are free from vaster. Fold the whitebait lightly into the batter. Put the batter by spoonfuls into hot fat and fry the fritters on both sides until they are golden brown. Drain the fritters on soft paper and serve them decorated with parsley and sliced lemon.

Baked Trevalli 1 trevalli 1 teacup of milk 1 tablespoon of butter Pepper and salt Scale the fish and cut off its fins, but do not remove the head. Put the fish, dark side down, into a flat baking dish or meat tin. Season the fish and pour the milk over it. Put the butter in small pieces over the fish and cook it in a fairly hot oven for 10 to 15 minutes. Baste the fish with the milk and the butter two or three times while it is cooking. When the fish leaves the bone it is cooked. Lift it out on to a hot dish and pour the gravy over it. If the fish is large, cut it, before it is cooked, into pieces that are a suitable size for serving. Use a pair of kitchen scissors or a large knife to cut through the bone. Brill, plaice, turbot, butterfish, sole, and flounder can be cooked by this method also. ■ Paua Roe Patties 2 or 3 paua roes 12 pastry cases J pint of white sauce Carefully remove the roes from the muscle part of the fish. Simmer the roes very gently for about 10 minutes m a little milk and water, strain them, and use the liquid for the white sauce, the recipe for which is given later. Cut the roes into small pieces and add them to the white sauce. Put a teaspoon of the mixture, into each pastry case, replace the tops of the cases, and heat the patties thoroughly in the oven. White Sauce for Paua Roe Patties 1 cup of fish stock or water Pepper and salt i CU p of milk 2 tablespoons of flour 1 2 tablespoons of butter Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the flour to the butter, and mix them to a smooth paste. Cook the ingredients for a minute or two, add the milk and the stock, and stir the

mixture until it is boiling. Add the seasonings and a squeeze of lemon juice. '

Pipi Chowder 12 pipis Jib. of potatoes 1 slice of bacon Milk 1 onion Pepper and salt Scrub the pipis well and put them in a saucepan with a little water. Heat the saucepan for a few minutes until the shells open, when the fish can be removed. The water in which the pipis were heated should be strained carefully to remove any sand and should be kept for the chowder. . Cut the bacon into small dice and cook, it in a saucepan until the fat runs. Add the finely chopped onion and cook the mixture slowly with the lid on for about 10 . minutes; do not brown the bacon. Dice the potato and add it to the ingredients in the saucepan. Barely cover the ingredients with milk and the strained liquid in which the pipis were cooked. Season the mixture and cover the saucepan. Cook the mixture slowly until the potatoes are soft. Add a little milk or cream and the pipis. Reheat the chowder and serve it. Do not boil it again, because the pipis will become tough. Paua Fricassee Remove the paua from the shell and cut away all but the tough, muscular foot. Place this on a board and with a rolling pin beat it well. Cut it through to make two slices. Fry a few slices of bacon and put them in a casserole or other oven dish with a lid. Fry the slices of fish until they are a delicate brown on both sides. Cover them with water in the frying pan and add seasoning and a blade of mace. Bring the mixture to the boil, remove the fish, and place it in the dish with the bacon, pouring the gravy over it. Put the lid on the casserole and bake the contents in a slow oven until the fish is tender (from 4 to 6 hours).

Toheroas in Fried Potato Shells 4 medium potatoes 1 cup of white sauce 8 toheroas (as for paua roe 1 egg (hard boiled) patties) Peel the potatoes thinly. Cut them in halves lengthways and scoop out some of the centre of each. Wash the cases and dry them well. Cook them in deep fat which should be smoking hot, until they are well browned. Remove the toheroas frojn the shells, wash them well to remove any sand, and chop them into small pieces. Mix the fish and the white of the egg, chopped up, into the hot white sauce. Fill the potato cases with the mixture. Rub the yolk of the egg through a sieve or strainer and sprinkle it over the top of the mixture. Any kind of cooked, tinned, or shelled fish may be used for this recipe. ——

Shellfish Pie 2 or 3 dozen shellfish i cup of milk 2 cups of mashed A little cheese potatoes Breadcrumbs 2 cups of mashed carrots Prepare the shellfish by scrubbing them and soaking them in salt water to remove weeds and sand. Remove the fish from the shell and put them into a greased pie-dish. Season the shellfish with salt and pepper and cover them with a layer of wellseasoned, mashed, or cooked sliced potatoes. On top of this place a layer of mashed carrots and sprinkle it with the grated cheese and breadcrumbs. Pour the milk into the pie and bake it in a moderate oven for J hour. Shellfish pie is an excellent tea dish for the seaside where cockles, pipis, and toheroas are easily obtained.

Celery and Fish Casserole Jib. of fish (groper, J cup of water ■. cod, moki, or 1 cup of tomato puree tarakihi) 1 teaspoon of salt i head of celery J teaspoon of pepper 3 tablespoons of I cup of breadcrumbs butter 3 tablespoons of flour

Steam the fish and when it is cooked flake it and remove the bones. Wash the celery, cut it into small pieces, and cook it until it is tender. Make a tomato sauce as follows: Melt the butter in a saucepan and add to it the flour, salt, and pepper. Mix these to a smooth paste and cook them for 1 to 2 minutes. Add about two-thirds of the water to the paste, mix it in well, and return the saucepan to the heat until the mixture begins to thicken. Add to

L . the mixture the rest of the water and ! about a third of the tomato puree and ; mix the ingredients until they become i a smooth paste. Finally add the rest , of the tomato puree and heat the sauce t until it boils. Cook it for a few i minutes. Place the flaked fish and the cooked 1 celery in a casserole and pour the tomato sauce over them. Cover the top ; of the dish with breadcrumbs which ! have been fried in butter very lightly but not enough to brown them. Bake the casserole in the oven at 350 degrees F. until the contents are ■ brown and heated through (15 to 20 minutes) . -☆ 7