Cookery for every household

Prepare the smelts as directed above, cutting off the heads and trimming the fins neatly. Chop the shallots and the mushrooms, and mix them with the parsley, pepper, and salt. Grease a fireproof dish and sprinkle over it half the chopped ingredients. Lay in the fish, sprinkle the remainder of the mushrooms, &c., on the top, squeeze over a little lemon juice, and cover with fine breadcrumbs. Place some small pieces of butter on the top, pour the wine or fish stock round the sides, and bake in a moderate oven. Time to bake, 10 to 15 minutes. Sufficient for 3 or 4 persons. Sole (Sole) This is a flat fish of excellent quality ; in fact, next to the turbot, it is considered the finest of all white fish. The flesh of the sole is firm and delicate in flavour, and it lends itself to a variety of modes of cooking. It is best when eaten fresh, but in cold weather it will keep for a day or two without harm. There are two different kinds of sole, the real or black sole, which is long and narrow in shape, A. Lemon Sole B. Sole with a dark and roughish upper skin, and the lemon sole, which is rounder and more like the plaice in appearance, with a smoother and reddish brown upper skin. The lemon sole is decidedly inferior in quality to the real sole, and is, in consequence, cheaper. The sole is one of our most useful kinds of fish, as it lends itself to such a variety of treatment. 249. Soles, To Fry, 1 (Soles Frites) Small soles. | Seasoning. A little flour. | Egg and bread-crumbs. When soles are small they may be fried whole. Wash and clean them thoroughly, removing the skin, then cut off the heads and fins, and dry well in a cloth. Put a little flour on a plate, and season it with pepper and salt. Dip the fish into this, coating them lightly. Then egg and bread-crumb (see p. 249), and fry in boiling fat (see Wet Frying, p. 248) until nicely browned. Drain on kitchen paper, and serve on a hot dish with a dish paper under them. Garnish with parsley and cut lemon. Note. — Larger fish must be fried in a small quantity of fat in a frying pan, as they will require a longer time to cook. 250. Soles, To Fry, 2 Prepare the soles in the same way as above, but instead of egging and bread-crumbing them dip them in flour, then in milk and in flour again. This must be done just before the fish is to be cooked, otherwise the flour becomes damp and the fish will be sodden. 251. Filleted and Fried Sole Prepare in the same way as Filleted and Fried Haddock (see Recipe 205). 252. Sole au Gratin (Sole au Gratin) 1 sole. 1 dessert-sp. chopped parsley. 6 button mushrooms. 1 shallot. £ oz. butter. Grated lemon rind. Lemon juice. Salt, pepper. 1 table-sp. browned bread-crumbs. 1 glass white wine or stock.