Tench, Choosing of. — Barbel are easily
mistaken for tench, and are sometimes sold as
that fish. It is worth while observing, there-
fore, that tench, spawn in July, so if any fish,
be sold for tench in INIarch or April, and proves
to be full of spawn, it cannot be tench, but is a
cheat upon the purchaser, and must be barbel.
Tench is in season aU the year, but is most
valued in the six winter months.
Tench, Fried. — Scale, draw, and clean
the fish with gi-eat care, and remove the gills.
Dry them well, and flour them, then put them
into boiling fat, and when they are brown on one
side turn them upon the other. Drain them
on soft paper before the fire, and serve on a
hot dish. Garnish with crisped parsley, and
send a little sauce to table with them in a
tureen. Time to fry, six to twelve minutes,
according to size.
Tench, Fried (another way). — After
having scaled and emptied the tench, split the
back of the fish, but take care not to touch the
belly, for if you do it will divide. Let it pickle
for "thi-ee hours in vinegar, salt, pepper, stalks
of parsley, and onions. Then drain it, and dip
it into flour. Fry of a fine colour and quite
firm. The dripping must be very hot. This
you try with a drop of water, which, being-
thrown into the dripping, occasions a noise if it
is in a proper state. Send it up to table on a
cloth with fried parsley all roimd ; if you have
a soft roe, fry it likewise, and serve it in the
middle.
Tench Pie. — Butter a pie-disb rather
thickly, and line the edges with a good crust.
Put in the tench, season with, pepper' and
salt, and grate a little nutmeg over it. Place
small lumps of butter here and there upon it,
and pour over it a little claret and water. Cover
the dish with crust, and bake the pie in a well-
heated oven. Have ready a little nicely-seasoned
strong gravy, and when the pie is done enough,
pour it in thi-ough the hole at the top. A good
pie may be made with tench and eels. The fish
should be cut into convenient-sized pieces, and
placed in layers in the dish with a little pepper
and salt, chopped parsley, and an anchovy cut
small between each layer. Time to bake, about
an hour. Sufficient for three or four persons.
Tench, Sauces for.— Tench maybe served
w4th melted butter, anchovy sauce, parsley
sauce, poulette sauce, or with . a -n-hite sauce
prepared as follows: — Rub a large lump of
butter to a smooth paste with a tea-spoonful of
flour. Add a table-spoonful of water, and stir
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THI
the rnixtiiro over the fire for two minutes.
Pour in a quarter of a pint of thick cream, or,
failing cream, use milk. Have a filleted an-
chovy finely minced. Stir the sauce over the
fire until it is on the point of boiling-, add a
table-spoonful of Indian soy, pour it into a
tureen, stir for a minute or two, put with it a
little popper and salt and a table-spoonful of
strained Icmon-j uice. ✪ Tench, Broiled with Fine Herbs
Page 1978 · 3 recipe records on this page
Presented as published in 1892. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
Tench, Choosing of. — Barbel are easily mistaken for tench, and are sometimes sold as that fish. It is worth while observing, therefore, that tench spawn in July, so if any fish, be sold for tench in March or April, and proves to be full of spawn, it cannot be tench, but is a cheat upon the purchaser, and must be barbel. Tench is in season aU the year, but is most valued in the six winter months.
Tench, Fried. — Scale, draw, and clean the fish with great care, and remove the gills. Dry them well, and flour them, then put them into boiling fat, and when they are brown on one side turn them upon the other. Drain them on soft paper before the fire, and serve on a hot dish. Garnish with crisped parsley, and send a little sauce to table with them in a tureen. Time to fry, six to twelve minutes, according to size.
Tench, Fried (another way). — After having scaled and emptied the tench, split the back of the fish, but take care not to touch the belly, for if you do it will divide. Let it pickle for three hours in vinegar, salt, pepper, stalks of parsley, and onions. Then drain it, and dip it into flour. Fry of a fine colour and quite firm. The dripping must be very hot. This you try with a drop of water, which, being thrown into the dripping, occasions a noise if it is in a proper state. Send it up to table on a cloth with fried parsley all round; if you have a soft roe, fry it likewise, and serve it in the middle.
Tench Pie. — Butter a pie-disb rather thickly, and line the edges with a good crust. Put in the tench, season with, pepper and salt, and grate a little nutmeg over it. Place small lumps of butter here and there upon it, and pour over it a little claret and water. Cover the dish with crust, and bake the pie in a wellheated oven. Have ready a little nicely-seasoned strong gravy, and when the pie is done enough, pour it in through the hole at the top. A good pie may be made with tench and eels. The fish should be cut into convenient-sized pieces, and placed in layers in the dish with a little pepper and salt, chopped parsley, and an anchovy cut small between each layer. Time to bake, about an hour. Sufficient for three or four persons.
Tench, Sauces for.— Tench maybe served with melted butter, anchovy sauce, parsley sauce, poulette sauce, or with a white sauce prepared as follows: — Rub a large lump of butter to a smooth paste with a tea-spoonful of flour. Add a table-spoonful of water, and stir
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the rnixtiiro over the fire for two minutes. Pour in a quarter of a pint of thick cream, or, failing cream, use milk. Have a filleted anchovy finely minced. Stir the sauce over the fire until it is on the point of boiling-, add a table-spoonful of Indian soy, pour it into a tureen, stir for a minute or two, put with it a little popper and salt and a table-spoonful of strained Icmon-j uice.
Records on this page
Tench, Broiled with Fine HerbsTench, FriedTench Pie