NOURISHING FISH DISHES

New Zealand Listener, Volume 15, Issue 376, 6 September 1946, Page 26

NOURISHING FISH DISHES

ISH, once kept for Fridays, and as a small fish course at dinner, is now used more extensively as the main dish for a meal; especially now that we are trying to save our meat rations. Fish is a good source of protein, the amount of fat varies with the fish, and there is also iodine, which is lacking in so. many of our foods. There are numerous ways of cooking fish, other than frying, or boiling and serving with parsley sauce. Try some of these.

Fish Batter For those who want to have fried fish. Into 40z. of flour drop an egg yolk whole. Add a little tepid water to make a smooth batter. Leave for 10 minutes. Then beat the egg white stiff, with a little salt added, and add to the other mixture. This makes any fish nice, but the fat must be really boiling. A pinch of baking soda may be added to the batter. ‘ Eggless Fish Batter Mix one cup of flour to a batter paste with cold water. Then add about 14 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda, dip the fish in this, and fry in very hot fat. Salt must not be added. This recipe came from a fish and chip shop. Baked Fish Lay the whole prepared fish on greaseproof paper, cover with slices of onion, slices of lemon, salt, butter, and chopped parsley. Wrap it up well in the paper, put into a pan or dish with a little water. Cook for about % of. an hour in the oven, at about 375deg. Undo the paper, take out the fish, and with the good gravy and juices in the paper, make a good white sauce. Pour ayer and serve. Casserole Fish and Dumplings Prepare a medium-sized fish-any kind -and rub all over the inside and outside with lemon juice. Make your own favourite stuffing, fill the fish and sew it up. Put it in a casserole, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and a little brown sugar. Pour over the top, one pint of tomato puree, put the lid on, and cook in a slow oven for about 144 ‘hours. Fhen drop small dumplings into the tomato puree round the fish, put the lid on, and cook for another half hour. Dumplings Sift 1 cup of flour; 1 teaspoon of icing sugar; a pinch of cayenne; and salt to taste; 1. teaspoon of baking powder. Add 2 tablespoons of finely shredded suet, and 2 tablespoons of finely grated cheese. Mix to a soft dough with about 4 cup of warm milk and water, mixed with a few drops of celery und of onion essences. Fish and Potato Casserole Twelve ounces of mashed or flaked fish; 144lb. of mashed potatoes; 1 egg; Y pint of good white sauce; ‘oz. of butter, and a little parsley. Mix together the mashed potato, the egg, and butter. Season with salt and pepper to taste, then make a border of this round the

casserole, leaving a well in the centre. Blend the fish with the white sauce and parsley, and put into the centre. Mark the potato nicely round the edge with a spoon or fork, and bake in a moderate oven for 30 or 40 minutes. Sprinkle a little chopped parsley over before serving. Butterfish and Oysters Butter a casserole. Put a layer of butter fish, sprinkle with lemon juice, and put a few dabs of butter. Roll some oysters in crushed wheat flakes, and lay

on the fish. Then put another layer of butter fish, with more lemon juice and butter, Add a very little water, put the lid on, and bake in a moderate oven. Fish Envelope Have some good pastry ready, roll out, and divide it into two pieces. On one put flaked cooked fish, mixed up with white sauce. Cover with cooked mashed vegetables, and then cover with the other piece of pastry. Bake in a hot oven. This is very nice for school lunches, Savoury Fish Pie Have ready some pie crust; some cold cooked mashed parsnips; some good white sauce with parsley in it; and some cooked fish. Line a piedish nearly half way down with pastry, but not all the way. Then into the dish put a layer of parsnips, a layer of fish, and then a layer of sauce. Repeat these, finishing with the sauce. Put little dabs of butter on top, and sprinkle with wheat flakes. Cut little rounds of pastry, and decorate round the edge of the piedish with these, each resting on the next, like coins. Bake in a hot oven, to cook the pastry. Fish Soup _ Never waste the fish heads, and bones and skins. Make them into soup. Cover them well with water, and boil for about half an hour. Strain through a fine sieve into a clean saucepan, making sure there are no scales. Add an equal quantity of milk, a little grated onion to taste, and a grated carrot; pepper and salt to taste. Thicken to the required consistency with cornflour mixed with a little milk. Just before serving, add a good knob of butter and some chopped parsley. The buttter added to soup always makes it smoother. Serve very hot. (Next week we will consider more fish recipes, including oysters and crayfish).