The Herring Book - Scores of Simple Recipes


HERRINGS        FOR

" Wasn't that a dainty dish to set before a King."

Often have I thought of those words,
surveying a dish of nicely grilled fresh
herrings, crisp and brown, with a little
ball of Maitre d'Hotel butter on each, and
with floury, mashed potatoes as an accom-
paniment. Cooked and served this way
for supper the herring is appetising and
digestible, and even though it contains fat
in itself, that fillip of Maitre d'Hotel butter
makes it tastier and the dish looks more
attractive.

It sounds more imposing than it is, for
all you have to do is to put a piece of fresh
butter, the size of a small egg, into a bowl,
add a pinch of dry mustard, a teaspoonful
of minced parsley, and squeeze in enough
lemon juice to moisten, then with a fork
beat these ingredients to a cream. Make a
little ball of this for each herring, and
before serving put it on top. That's all
. . . but what a difference it makes.

Potatoes baked in their jackets go well
with herrings for supper, so do Stuffed
Tomatoes.

Now I have served herrings and mustard
sauce as the fish course at a dinner party
and have been complimented on my good
sense, as well as my good cooking, and
whether for dinner or supper know they
are uncommonly delicious. A dish " to
set before a King " in very truth, for I
remember reading that His Majesty King
Edward VII declared that one of his
favourite dishes was a herring split, boned,
seasoned with salt and pepper, dipped in
milk and fine oatmeal, then grilled. Try
them for supper this way and serve with
them fried tomatoes, or, for a change, to
each grilled herring a tablespoonful of
plain boiled rice, and then add your ball
of Maitre d'Hotel butter to the rice. Here
are other ways of serving herrings for
supper.

HERRINGS    IN    SHRIMP
SAUCE.

ingredients : 6 fresh herrings, table-
spoonful vinegar, teaspoonful salt, 3 gills of
white sauce, gill of shrimps, measured after
their shells have been removed, * teaspoonful
anchovy essence.

method : Clean, scale and behead the
herrings, keeping in the roes. Bake or
boil, adding the vinegar and salt to the
water, if boiling. If boiling, allow 12-15
minutes according to size of fish, and put
the herrings in when the water boils.
Prepare and mince the shrimps, add them
to the white sauce, stir in the anchovy
essence. Lift out the herrings, drain well,
arrange them on a hot dish and pour the
shrimp sauce over; if the herrings are
baked, serve separately in a sauce boat.
Garnish with a few shrimps from which the
armours have been removed.

HERRING    MAYONNAISE.

And now . . . have you ever heard of
HERRING MAYONNAISE? Salmon
Mayonnaise we all know. But, comparing
salmon and herring there is little difference
in protein value, although salmon is richer
in fat, but as regards delicacy of flavour, I
am convinced that if herrings were very
expensive, people would rank them as high
as salmon. In summer if you serve cold
herrings in mayonnaise with a salad, this
dish, costing very little, becomes a rare
delicacy. Mayonnaise is not difficult to
make, although many people think so.
Use the freshest eggs possible, also good
olive oil, and remember that the yolk of
one egg will absorb a gill of oil.

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