The Book of Household Management, by Isabella Beeton, Part 12 - Fish Recipes

Good evening, and thank you for joining me for another boring books for bedtime. I hope tonight's selection provides all the boredom your busy brain needs to quiet down and let you get some sleep. Before we begin, I'd like to give a special shout out of thanks to some new members of our Patreon family. Mary Ellen, Jennifer, Pluto, Hannah, and Mary exclamation point. Thank you all so much for supporting this podcast. By becoming members of Patreon, you help us remain 100% listener supported and at free for everyone, and it's very much appreciated. If you are interested in supporting boring books for bedtime and finding out more about the perks available to subscribers, including exclusive episodes, full books, and giveaways found nowhere else, you'll find a link to Patreon in the show description. You'll also find a link to buymeacoffee.com, where you can support us with a one-time tip, no subscription required. I hope you'll take a moment to check them out. Now let's read and relax. Find a comfortable spot. Adjust your volume. Take a nice deep breath in. Let it out slowly. And off we go. Tonight, let's continue our theme month of long time favorites with a book that most definitely fits the bill. Let's relax with more from the book of household management, comprising information for the mistress, housekeeper, cook, kitchen maid, butler, footman, coachman, valet, upper and under housemaids, ladies maid, maid of all work, laundry maid, nurse and nursemaid, monthly wet and sick nurses, etc. Also sanitary, medical and legal memoranda, with a history of the origin, properties and uses of all things connected with home life and comfort, by Mrs. Isabella Beaton. Published originally by S.O. Beaton in 24 monthly parts, from 1859 to 1861, and first published in a bound edition in 1861. Let's pick up right where we left off last time, after we learned all about the world of fish, and enter into a new chapter about how to cook them. Let's begin. Chapter 8 Recipes for Fish Fishing is more difficult than to give the average prices of fish. In as much as a few hours of bad weather at sea, will in the space of one day, cause such a difference in its supply, that the same fish, a turbid for instance, which may be bought today for six or seven shillings, will tomorrow be in the London markets, worth perhaps almost as many pounds. The average cost therefore which will be found appended to each recipe, must be understood as about the average price for the different kinds of fish, when the market is supplied upon an average, and when the various sorts are of an average size and quality. General Rule in Choosing Fish A proof of freshness and goodness in most fishes is there being covered with scales, for if deficient in this respect, it is a sign of there being stale, or having been ill-used. Fried Anchovies Ingredients 1 tablespoon full of oil 1 half a glass of white wine sufficient flour to thicken 12 anchovies Mold Mix the oil and wine together, with sufficient flour to make them into a thick paste. Cleanse the anchovies, wipe them, dip them in the paste, and fry of a nice brown color. Time 1 half hour A huge cost for this quantity, 9 pence. Seasonable all the year, sufficient for two persons. The Anchovy In his book of British Fishes, Mr. Yerl states that the anchovy is a common fish in the Mediterranean, from Greece to Gibraltar, and was well known to the Greeks and Romans, by whom the liquor prepared from it called garum was in great estimation. Its extreme range is extended into the Black Sea. The fishing for them is carried on during the night, and lights are used with the nets. The anchovy is common on the coasts of Portugal, Spain, and France. It occurs I have no doubt at the Channel Islands, and has been taken on the Hampshire coast and in the Bristol Channel. Other fish of inferior quality but resembling the real Gorgona anchovy are frequently sold for it and passed off as genuine. Anchovy Butter or Paste Ingredients 2 dozen anchovies, 1 half pound of fresh butter. Mode Wash the anchovies thoroughly. Bone and dry them and pound them in a mortar to a paste. Mix the butter gradually with them and rub the whole through a sieve. Put it by in small pots for use, and carefully exclude the air with a bladder, as it soon changes the color of anchovies, besides spoiling them. Average cost for this quantity, 2 shillings. Potted Anchovies Potted anchovies are made in the same way by adding pounded mace, cayenne, and nutmeg to taste. Anchovy Toast Ingredients Toast 2 or 3 slices of bread, or if wanted very savory, fry them in clarified butter and spread on them the paste, shown in the recipe above. Made mustard or a few grains of cayenne may be added to the paste before laying it on the toast. Anchovy Paste Then some delicate zest, says a work just issued on the adulterations of trade, is required to make the plain English breakfast more palatable. Many people are in the habit of indulging in what they imagine to be anchovies. These fish are preserved in a kind of pickling bottle, carefully corked down and surrounded by a red looking liquor, resembling an appearance diluted clay. The price is moderate, one shilling only being demanded for the luxury. When these anchovies are what is termed potted, it implies that the fish have been pounded into the consistency of a paste and then placed in flat pots, somewhat similar in shape to those used for pomatum. This paste is usually eaten spread upon toast and is said to form an excellent bombouche which enables gentlemen at wine parties to enjoy their port with redoubled gusto. Unfortunately, in six cases out of ten, the only portion of these preserved delicacies that contains anything indicative of anchovies is the paper label pasted on the bottle or pot on which the word itself is printed. All the samples of anchovy paste analyzed by different medical men have been found to be highly and vividly colored with very large quantities of Armenian clay. The anchovy itself, when imported, is of a dark, dead color and it is to make it a bright, handsome looking sauce that this red earth is used. Barbell. Ingredients. One half pint of port wine. A salt spoon full of salt. Two tablespoon fulls of vinegar. Two sliced onions. Sweet herbs. Nutmeg and mace to taste. The juice of a lemon. Two anchovies. One or two barbells according to size. Mode. Boil the barbells in salt and water till done. Pour off some of the water and to the remainder put the ingredients mentioned above. Simmer gently for one half hour or rather more and strain. Put in the fish. Heat it gradually but do not let it boil or it will be broken. Time altogether one hour. Sufficient for four persons. Seasonable from September to November. The barbell. This fish takes its name from the barbs or wattles at its mouth and in England is esteemed as one of the worst of the freshwater fish. It was however formerly if not now a favorite with some. Others would boil with it a piece of bacon that it might have a relish. It is to be met with from two to three or four feet long and is said to live to a great age. From putty upwards in the Thames some are found of large size but they are valued only as a fording sport to the brethren of the angle. Brill. Ingredients. One quarter pound of salt to each gallon of water. A little vinegar. Mode. Clean the brill. Cut off the fins and rub it over with a little lemon juice to preserve its whiteness. Set the fish in sufficient cold water to cover it. Throw in salt in the above proportions and a little vinegar and bring it gradually to boil. Simmer very gently till the fish is done which will be in about ten minutes. But the time for boiling of course depends entirely on the size of the fish. Serve it on a hot napkin and garnish with cut lemon, parsley, horseradish and a little lobster coral sprinkled over the fish. Send lobster or shrimp sauce and plain melted butter to table with it. Simmer after the water boils a small brill ten minutes, a large brill fifteen to twenty minutes. Average cost from four shillings to eight shillings, seasonable from August to April. The brill. This fish resembles the soul but his broader and when large is esteemed by many in a scarcely less degree than the turbot whilst it is much cheaper. It is a fine fish and is abundant in the London market. To choose brill, the flesh of this fish like that of the turbot should be of a yellowish tint and should be chosen on account of its thickness. If the flesh has a bluish tint it is not good. Hot fish. Cod may be boiled whole but a large head and shoulders are quite sufficient for a dish and contain all that is usually helped because when the thick part is done the tail is insipid and overdone. The latter cut in slices makes a very good dish for frying or it may be salted down and served with egg sauce and parsnips. Cod when boiled quite fresh is watery, salting a little renders it firmer. The cod tribe. The jugular, characterized by bony gills and ventral fins before the pectoral ones, commences the second of the Linnaean orders of fishes and is a numerous tribe inhabiting only the depths of the ocean and seldom visiting the fresh waters. They have a smooth head and the gill membrane has seven rays. The body is oblong and covered with deciduous scales. The fins are all enclosed in skin whilst their rays are unarmed. The ventral fins are slender and terminate in a point. Their habits are gregarious and they feed on smaller fish and other marine animals. Cod's head and shoulders. Ingredients. Sufficient water to cover the fish. Five ounces of salt to each gallon of water. Mode. Sufficient water to cover it. Be very particular not to pour the water on the fish as it is liable to break it and only keep it just simmering. If the water should boil away, add a little by pouring it in at the side of the kettle and not on the fish. Add salt in the above proportion and bring it gradually to a boil. Skim very carefully. Draw it to the side of the fire and let it gently simmer till done. Take it out and drain it. Serve on a hot napkin and garnish with cut lemon, horseradish, the roe and liver. Time. According to size, one half an hour more or less. Average cost from three shillings to six shillings. Sufficient for six or eight persons. Table from November to March. Note. Oyster sauce and plain melted butter should be served with this. To choose cod. The cod should be chosen for the table when it is plump and round near the tail. When the hollow behind the head is deep and when the sides are undulated as if they were ribbed. The glutinous parts about the head lose their delicate flavor after the fish has been 24 hours out of the water. The great point by which the cod should be judged is the firmness of its flesh. And although the cod is not firm when it is alive, its quality may be arrived at by pressing the finger into the flesh. If this rises immediately, the fish is good. If not, it is stale. Another sign of its goodness is if the fish when it is cut exhibits a bronze appearance like the silver side of a round of beef. When this is the case, the flesh will be firm when cooked. Goodness in a cod or in any other fish is a sure sign of freshness, though not always of quality. Sometimes codfish, though exhibiting signs of rough usage, will eat much better than those with red gills, so strongly recommended by many cookery books. This appearance is generally caused by the fish having been knocked about at sea in the wellboats in which they are conveyed from the fishing grounds to market. Salt Cod, commonly called salt fish. Ingredients, sufficient water to cover the fish. Mode, wash the fish and lay it all night in water with a quarter pint of vinegar. When thoroughly soaked, take it out. See that it is perfectly clean and put it in the fish kettle with sufficient cold water to cover it. Heat it gradually, but do not let it boil much or the fish will be hard. Skim well and when done, drain the fish and put it on a napkin, garnished with hard-boiled eggs cut in rings. Skim about one hour. Average cost, six pints per pound. Seasonable in the spring. Sufficient for each person, a quarter pound. Note, serve with egg sauce and parsnips. This is in a special dish on Ash Wednesday. Preserving Cod. Only as the cod are caught, their heads are cut off. They are then opened, cleaned and salted. When they are stowed away in the hold of the vessel, in beds of five or six yard square, head to tail with a layer of salt to each layer of fish. When they have lain in this state three or four days, in order that the water may drain from them, they are shifted into a different part of the vessel and again salted. Here they remain till the vessel is loaded, when they are sometimes cut into thick pieces and packed in barrels for the greater convenience of carriage. Cod sounds should be well soaked in salt and water and thoroughly washed before dressing them. They are considered a great delicacy and may either be boiled, fried or boiled. If they are boiled, mix a little milk with the water. Cod sounds on pool. Ingredients for force meat, twelve chopped oysters, three chopped anchovies, one quarter pound of breadcrumbs, one ounce of butter, two eggs, seasoning of salt, pepper, nutmeg and mace to taste, four cod sounds. Mode. Make the force meat by mixing the ingredients well together. Wash the sounds and boil them in milk and water for one half an hour. Take them out and let them cool. Cover each with a layer of force meat. Roll them up in a nice form and skewer them. Rub over with lard, dredge with flour and cook them gently before the fire in a dutch oven. Time. One hour. Average cost. Six pence per pound. Cool from November to March, sufficient for four persons. The sounds in codfish. These are the air or swimming bladders, by means of which the fishes are unable to ascend or descend in the water. In the Newfoundland fishery, they are taken out previous to incipient putrefaction, washed from their slime and salted for exportation. The tongues are also cured and packed up in barrels. Whilst from the livers, considerable quantities of oil are extracted, this oil having been found possessed of the most nourishing properties and particularly beneficial in cases of pulmonary affections. Cod pie. P1. Economical. Ingredients. Any remains of cold cod. 12 oysters. Sufficient melted butter to moisten it. Mashed potatoes enough to fill up the dish. Mode. Flake the fish from the bone and carefully take away all the skin. Apply it in a pie dish. Pour over the melted butter and oysters, or oyster sauce if there is any left, and cover with mashed potatoes. Bake for one half an hour and send to table of a nice brown color. Time one half hour. Seasonable from November to March. Cod pie recipe two. Ingredients. Two slices of cod. Pepper and salt to taste. One half a teaspoon full of grated nutmeg. One large blade of pounded maize. Two ounces of butter. One half pint of stock number 107. A paste crust. For sauce, one tablespoon full of stock. One quarter pint of cream or milk. Thickening of flour or butter. Lemon peel chopped very fine to taste. 12 oysters. Mode. Lay the cod in salt for four hours. Then wash it and place it in a dish. Then add the butter and stock. Cover with the crust and bake for one hour or rather more. Now make the sauce by mixing the ingredients named above. Give it one boil and pour it into the pie by a hole made at the top of the crust, which can easily be covered by a small piece of pastry. Cut and bake in any fanciful shape, such as a leaf or otherwise. Time one and one half hour. Average cost with fresh fish, two shilling sixpence. Seasonable from November to March. Sufficient for six persons. Note, the remains of cold fish may be used for this pie. Great cod. Ingredients. Two slices of large cod or the remains of any cold fish. Three ounces of butter. One onion sliced. A tea cup full of white stock. Thickening of butter and flour. One small teaspoon full of curry powder. One quarter pint of cream. Salt and cayenne to taste. Mode. Flake the fish and fry it of a nice brown color with the butter and onions. Put this in a stew pan. Add the stock and thickening and simmer for ten minutes. Stir the curry powder into the cream. Combine it with the seasoning to the other ingredients. Give one boil and serve. Time three quarters of an hour. Average cost with fresh fish, three shillings. Seasonable from November to March. Sufficient for four persons. The food of the cod. This chiefly consists of the smaller species of the Scaly tribes. Shellfish, crabs and worms. Their veracity is very great and they will bite at any small body they see moved by the water. Even stones and pebbles which are frequently found in their stomachs. They sometimes attain a great size but their usual weight is from 14 to 40 pounds. Cod a la creme. Ingredients. One large slice of cod. One ounce of butter. One chopped shallot. A little minced parsley. One quarter tea cup full of white stock. One quarter pint of milk or cream. Flour to thicken. Cayenne and lemon juice to taste. One quarter teaspoon full of powdered sugar. Mowed. Boil the cod and while hot break it into flakes. Put the butter, shallot, parsley and stock into a stew pan and let them boil for five minutes. Stir in sufficient flour to thicken and pour to it the milk or cream. Simmer for ten minutes at the cayenne and sugar and when liked a little lemon juice. Put the fish in the sauce to warm gradually but do not let it boil. Serve in a dish garnished with croutons. Time rather more than one half hour. Average cost with cream, two shillings. Seasonable from November to March. Sufficient for three persons. Note the remains of fish from the preceding day answer very well for this dish. Cod a la bechamel. Ingredients. Any remains of cold cod. Four tablespoon fulls of bechamel. Sea sauces. Two ounces of butter. Seasoning to taste of pepper and salt. Fried bread. A few breadcrumbs. Mowed. Flake the cod carefully leaving out all skin and bone. Put the bechamel in a stew pan with the butter and stir it over the fire till the later is melted. Add seasoning. Put in the fish and mix it well with the sauce. Make a border of fried bread around the dish. Lay in the fish. Sprinkle over with breadcrumbs and baste with butter. Brown either before the fire or with a salamander and garnish with toasted bread cut in fanciful shapes. Time. One half hour. Average cost exclusive of the fish. Six pints. The habitat of the cod. This fish is found only in the seas of the northern parts of the world between the latitudes of 45 degrees and 66 degrees. Its great rendezvous are the sandbanks of Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Cape Breton and New England. These places are its favorite resorts. For there it is able to obtain great quantities of worms, a food particularly grateful to it. Another cause of its attachment to these places has been said to be on account of the vicinity to the polar seas where it returns to spawn. Few are taken north of Iceland and the shoals never reach so far south as the Straits of Gibraltar. Many are taken on the coast of Norway, in the Baltic and off the Orkneys, which prior to the discovery of Newfoundland formed one of the principal fisheries. The London market is supplied by those taken between the Dogger Bank, the Well Bank and Kroemer on the east coast of England. Cod alla metra d'otel. Ingredients. Two slices of cod. One quarter pound of butter. A little chopped shallot and parsley. Pepper to taste. One quarter teaspoon full of grated nutmeg or rather less when the flavor is not light. The juice of one quarter lemon. Mode. Boil the cod and either leave it whole or what is still better, flake it from the bone and take off the skin. Put it into a stew pan with the butter, parsley, shallot, pepper and nutmeg. Melt the butter gradually and be very careful that it does not become like oil. When all is well mixed and thoroughly hot, add the lemon juice and serve. Time one half hour. Average cost two shelling six pence. With remains of cold fish five pence. Seasonable from November to March sufficient for four persons. Note, cod that has been left will do for this. The season for fishing cod. The best season for catching cod is from the beginning of February to the end of April. And although each fisherman engaged in taking them catches no more than one at a time, an expert hand will sometimes take four hundred in a day. The employment is excessively fatiguing from the weight of the fish as well as from the coldness of the climate. Cod altallion. Ingredients. Two slices of crimped cod. One shallot. One slice of ham minced very fine. One half pint of white stock. Number 107. When liked, one half tea cup full of cream. Salt to taste. A few drops of garlic vinegar. A little lemon juice. One half teaspoon full of powdered sugar. Mode. Chop the shallots. Mince the ham very fine. Pour on the stock and simmer for 15 minutes. If the color should not be good, add cream in the above proportion and strain it through a fine sieve. Season it and put in the vinegar, lemon juice, and sugar. Now boil the cod. Take out the middle bone and skin it. Put it on the dish without breaking and pour the sauce over it. Time three quarter hour. Average cost. Three shillings, six pints with fresh fish. Seasonable from November to March. Sufficient for four persons. The fecundity of the cod. In our preceding remarks on the natural history of fishes, we have spoken of the amazing fruitfulness of this fish. But in this we see one more instance of the wise provision which nature has made for supplying the wants of man. So extensive has been the consumption of this fish that it is surprising that it has not long ago become extinct, which would certainly have been the case had it not been for its wonderful powers of reproduction. So early as 1368 says Dr. Cloquet, the inhabitants of Amsterdam had dispatched fishermen to the coast of Sweden. And in the first quarter of 1792, from the ports of France only, 210 vessels went out to the cod fisheries. Every year however, upwards of 10,000 vessels of all nations are employed in this trade and bring into the commercial world more than 40 million of salted and dried cod. If we add to this immense number, the havoc made among the legions of cod by the larger scaly tribes of the great deep, and take into account the destruction to which the young are exposed, by sea fowls and other inhabitants of the seas. Besides the myriads of their eggs destroyed by accident, it becomes a miracle to find that such mighty multitudes of them are still in existence and ready to continue the exhaustive supply. Yet it ceases to excite our wonder when we remember that the female can every year give birth to more than 9 million at a time. Baked carp. Ingredients. One carp. Force meat. Breadcrumbs. One ounce butter. One half pint of stock number 105. One half pint of port wine. Six anchovies. Two onion sliced. One bay leaf. A bundle of sweet herbs. Flour to thicken. The juice of one lemon. Cayenne and salt to taste. One half teaspoon full of powdered sugar. Mowed. Stuff the carp with a delicate force meat after thoroughly cleansing it and sew it up to prevent the stuffing from falling out. Rub it over with an egg and sprinkle it with breadcrumbs. Lay it in a deep earthen dish and drop the butter oiled over the breadcrumbs. Add the stock, onions, bay leaf, herbs, wine and anchovies and bake for one hour. Put one ounce of butter into a stew pan. Melt it and dredge in sufficient flour to dry it up. Put in the strained liquor from the carp. Stir frequently and when it has boiled add the lemon juice and seasoning. Serve the carp on a dish garnished with parsley and cut lemon and the sauce in a boat. Time one and one quarter hour. Average cost seldom bought. Seasonable from March to October. Sufficient for one or two persons. The carp. This species of fish inhabit the fresh waters where they feed on worms, insects, aquatic plants, small fish, clay or mold. Some of them are migratory. They have very small mouths and no teeth and the gill membrane has three rays. The body is smooth and generally whitish. The carp both grows and increases very fast and is accounted the most valuable of all fish for the stocking of ponds. It has been pronounced the queen of river fish and was first introduced to this country about 300 years ago. Of its sound or air bladder a kind of glue is made and a green paint of its gall. Stood carp. Ingredients. One carp. Salt. Stock number 105. Two onions. Six cloves. 12 peppercorns. One blade of mace. One quarter pint of port wine. The juice of one half lemon. Cayenne and salt to taste. A bundle of savory herbs. Mode. Scale the fish. Clean it nicely and if very large divide it. Lay it in the stew pan after having rubbed a little salt on it and put in sufficient stock to cover it. Add the herbs, onions and spices and stew gently for one hour or rather more should it be very large. Dish up the fish with great care. Strain the liquor and add to it the port wine, lemon juice and cayenne. Give one boil. Pour it over the fish and serve. Time one and one quarter hour. Average cost. Seldom bought. Seasonable from March to October. Sufficient for one or two persons. Note. This fish can be boiled plain and served with parsley and butter. Chub and char may be cooked in the same manner as the above as also dace and roach. The age of carp. This fish has been found to live 150 years. The pond in the garden of Immanuel College Cambridge contained one that had lived there 70 years and Gessner mentions an instance of one 100 years old. They are besides capable of being tamed. Dr. Smith in his tour on the continent says in reference to the Prince of Condé's seat at Chantilly the most pleasing things about it were the immense shoals of very large carp silvered over with age like silverfish and perfectly tame so that when any passengers approached their watery habitation they used to come to the shore in such numbers as to heave each other out of the water begging for bread of which a quantity was always kept at hand on purpose to feed them. They would even allow themselves to be handled. The chub. This fish takes its name from its head not only in England but in other countries. It is a river fish and resembles the carp but is somewhat longer. Its flesh is not in much esteem being coarse and when out of season full of small hairy bones the head and throat are the best parts. The row is also good. The char. This is one of the most delicious of fish being esteemed by some superior to the salmon. It is an inhabitant of the deep lakes of mountainous countries. Its flesh is rich and red and full of fat. The largest and best kind is found in the lakes of Westmoreland and as it is considered a rarity it is often potted and preserved. The dace or dare. This fish is gregarious and is seldom above 10 inches long although according to Linnaeus it grows a foot and a half in length. Its haunts are in deep water near piles of bridges where the stream is gentle over gravelly sandy or clay bottoms. Deep holes that are shaded, water lily leaves and under the foam caused by an eddy. In the warm months there to be found in shoals on the shallows near to streams. They are in season about the end of April and gradually improve till February when they attain their highest condition. In that month when just taken, scotched, crimped, embroiled they are said to be more palatable than a fresh herring. The roach. This fish is found throughout Europe and the western parts of Asia in deep, still rivers of which it is an inhabitant. It is rarely more than a pound and a half in weight and is in season from September till March. It is plentiful in England and the finest are caught in the Thames. The proverb as sound as a roach is derived from the French name of this fish being roche which also means rock. To dress crab. Ingredients. One crab. Two tablespoonfuls of vinegar. One ditto of oil. Salt, white pepper and cayenne to taste. Mode. Empty the shells and thoroughly mix the meat with the above ingredients and put it in the large shell. Garnish with slices of cut lemon and parsley. The quantity of oil may be increased when it is much light. Average cost from 10 pence to two shellings. Seasonable all the year but not so good in May, June and July. Sufficient for three persons. To choose crab. The middle-sized crab is the best and the crab like the lobster should be judged by its weight for if light it is watery. Hot crab. Ingredients. One crab. Nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste. Three ounces of butter. One quarter pound of breadcrumbs. Three tablespoonfuls of vinegar. Mode. After having boiled the crab pick the meat out from the shells and mix with it the nutmeg and seasoning. Cut up the butter in small pieces and add the breadcrumbs and vinegar. Mix all together. Put the hole in the large shell and brown before the fire or with a salamander. Time. One hour. Average cost from 10 pence to two shellings. Seasonable all the year but not so good in May, June and July. Sufficient for three persons. The crab tribe. The whole of this tribe of animals have the body covered with a hard and strong shell and they live chiefly in the sea. Some however inhabit fresh waters and a few live upon land. They feed variously on aquatic or marine plants. Small fish, maleske or dead bodies. The black clawed species is found on the rocky coasts of both Europe and India and is the same that has introduced to our tables. Being much more highly esteemed as a food than many others of the tribe. The most remarkable feature in their history is the changing of their shells and the reproduction of their broken claws. The former occurs once a year usually between Christmas and Easter when the crabs retire to cavities in the rocks or conceal themselves under great stones. Fishermen say that they will live confined in a pot or basket for several months together without any other food than what is collected from the seawater and that even in this situation they will not decrease in weight. The hermit crab is another of the species and has the peculiarity of taking possession of the deserted shell of some other animal as it has none of its own. The circumstance was known to the ancients and is alluded to in the following lines from Appian. The hermit fish, unarmed by nature, left helpless and weak, grow strong by harmless theft. Fearful they stroll and look with panting wish for the cast crust of some new covered fish or such as empty lie and deck the shore whose first and rightful owners are no more. They make glad seizure of the vacant room and count the borrowed shell their native home. Screw their soft limbs to fit the winding case and boldly herd with the crustaceous race. Crayfish. Crayfish should be thrown into boiling water to which has been added a good seasoning of salt and a little vinegar. When done, which will be in one quarter hour, take them out and drain them. Let them cool, arrange them on a napkin and garnish with plenty of double parsley. Note this fish is frequently used for garnishing boiled turkey, boiled fowl, calf's head, turbot and all kinds of boiled fish. Potted crayfish. Ingredients 100 crayfish, pounded mace, pepper and salt to taste, two ounces of butter. Mowed. Boil the fish in salt and water. Pick out all the meat and pound it in a mortar to a paste. Whilst pounding add the butter gradually and mix in the spice and seasoning. Put it in small pots and pour over it clarified butter, carefully excluding the air. Time 15 minutes to boil the crayfish. Average cost two shillings nine pence, seasonable all the year. John Dory. Ingredients one quarter pound of salt to each gallon of water. Mowed. This fish which is esteemed by most people a great delicacy is dressed in the same way as a turbot which it resembles in firmness but not in richness. Cleanse it thoroughly and cut off the fins. Lay it in a fish kettle. Cover with cold water and add salt in the above proportion. Bring it gradually to a boil and simmer gently for one quarter hour or rather longer. Should the fish be very large serve on a hot napkin and garnish with cut lemon and parsley. Lobster, anchovy or shrimp sauce and plain melted butter should be sent to table with it. Time after the water boils one quarter to one half hour according to size. Average cost three shillings to five shillings. Seasonable all the year but best from September to January. Note small John Dory are very good baked. The Doru or John Dory. This fish is of a yellowish golden color and is in general rare although it is sometimes taken in abundance on the Devon and Cornish coasts. It is highly esteemed for the table and its flesh when dressed is of a beautiful clear white. When fresh caught it is tough and being a ground fish it is not the worse for being kept two or even three days before it is cooked. And before we head in to a rather sizable section about eels I think we'll end this evening's reading from the book of household management by Mrs Isabella Beaton who as always is committed to improving our education about the foods we eat. What a lot of information that was in addition to what seemed to be some pretty basic and serviceable recipes for once. I hope you enjoyed that. If you'd like to read this monumental work for yourself and try some of these recipes as always you'll find a link to a free e-book from Project Gutenberg in the show description. If you'd like to connect suggest a boring book you'd like to hear read or request more from one we've already started you can drop me an email via our website www.boringbookspod.com. It's always a pleasure to hear from you. Thank you so much for joining me for this evening's reading. Until our next boring book, good night.