3. Fish and Appetizers

Most of the fish recipes are used as appetizers. You will also find recipes for appetizers in the poultry and beef sections, and throughout the book. You can use any of the given recipes for appetizers as main dishes, provided you also serve some kind of soup and an ample side dish and dessert.

GEFILTE FISH

5 lbs. fish (whitefish, carp and yellow pike—mostly whitefish)

2 ts. salt

1 t. pepper

1 t. sugar

1 large onion (grated)

4 eggs

SAUCE

1  lb. onions

2  ts. salt

1 t. sugar 1 t. pepper

Slice the onions and put into a heavy aluminum pot, add enough water to cover and bring to a boil. Wash the skin and bones of the fish, add to the onions and let sim­mer on a low flame until your fish is prepared.

Fillet and grind your fish, add all other ingredients and mix with chopping knife. Add 1 cup of water to your onion sauce. Make flame higher, shape fish into balls, and gently put into the sauce (keep hands wet). Cover and keep flame high for about five minutes, then lower flame and simmer for about two and a half hours. Shake pot fre­quently to keep from burning and add water once or twice to make sure you have enough liquid. Put in a carrot or two the last 20 minutes of cooking.

Mama used to put the fish balls into the skins with a little o£ the fish left on the skins. In order to do it that way you will have to do your own filleting or ask the man who cleans and fillets your fish to open the fish through the back, to avoid cutting open the stomach, and remove the entrails through the slit back. Remove the flesh from around the back and do not touch the stomach. Thus the skin is kept intact and you can then cut the skin into desired portions, fill skins and put into the sauce.

BAKED GEFILTE FISH

5 lbs. fish (whitefish or salmon trout) 1 T. salt

1 t. sugar

1  t. pepper

2  cloves garlic (minced) or  

1 T. garlic salt

1 large onion (grated)

4 eggs

Ask the man who fillets your fish to open fish through the back, take out all the soft flesh from around the back and leave the stomach intact and closed. In this way you can stuff the fish whole or into cut up portions. Grind your fish. Add all other ingredients. Mix thoroughly with chopping knife, fill skins, put into oiled baking dish and bake in moderate, 350°, oven for at least 3 hours.

When you cook gefilte fish you can save yourself a lot of work if you double the recipe, divide in half, and use one half for cooking in sauce, the other half for baking. Thus, all you have to do is add a little more pepper and garlic or garlic salt to the fish intended for baking.

BAKED FISH (whitefish, carp or salmon trout)

4 lbs. fish

1 T. salt

1 t. onion salt

1/4 t. pepper

1 t. paprika

1/2 t. garlic salt

1/3c. sweet cream

3 Ts. melted butter or oil

Mix seasoning. Cut fish into portions and clean thor­oughly. Rub seasoning into the portions of fish, put into a shallow baking dish and bake in a moderately hot, 400°, oven for 1 hour or until brown on all sides. Turn off oven. Pour sweet cream over fish and let stand in hot oven. If you wish to broil the fish it can be done under broiler, and when browned on all sides pour sweet cream over fish. Let stand in hot oven.

BAKED FISH WITH VEGETABLES

4 lbs. fish (whitefish, carp or salmon trout)

1 T. salt

1/2 t. garlic salt

1 t. paprika

1 large onion

1  green pepper

2  stalks celery

2  carrots

3 Ts. melted butter or oil

1/2 c. sour cream

1  c. green peas

2  medium potatoes

Mix seasoning. Clean fish, rub in seasoning and let stand until ready for oven. Place onion, celery, green pepper and oil in a baking dish in moderate, 350°, oven until slightly sautéed. Arrange fish in baking dish, cover with sautéed mixture and bake for 1/2 hour. Cut carrots and potatoes into small chunks and scatter into baking dish. Add the green peas and bake for another 1/2hour, or until fish is done. About ten minutes before turning off oven, when fish is nearly done, pour the sour cream over the fish and let stand in hot oven.

BAKED HALIBUT IN SOUR CREAM

3 lbs. halibut

1 T. salt

1 t. onion salt

1/2 t. garlic salt Dash of pepper

1 large onion (sliced)

1/4 c. melted butter or oil

1 c. sour cream

1  c. matzo cake meal

2  eggs

3/4 c. water

Mix salt, onion salt, garlic salt and pepper together. Glean and wash your fish and cut up into desired portions. Rub the mixed seasoning into each piece of fish. Dip the fish into matzo meal or bread crumbs and let stand.

Sauté onion until light brown and put into buttered or oiled baking dish. Make batter of eggs and water; coat fish with matzo cake meal and dip into batter, then fry in butter or oil until light brown on both sides. Place fish in baking dish with sautéed onion, cover with sour cream, and bake 20 minutes in moderate, 350°, oven.

BAKED FLOUNDER

1  large fillet of flounder

2  large onions (minced)

2  stalks celery (cut into small pieces)

3  Ts. melted butter or oil

1  t. salt

Dash of pepper and garlic salt

2 cs. corn-flake crumbs

Sauté the onion and celery in either butter or oil. Mix salt, pepper and garlic salt and rub fish with it. Spread sautéed onion and celery over each half of the fish. Put 1 T. melted butter into your corn-flake crumbs, roll the fish in the buttered crumbs and bake in moderate, 375°, oven for 3/4 hour, or until brown on both sides. Cut into portions before serving.

LOX (smoked salmon) WITH POTATOES

2 heads of lox

½ t· pepper

1 c. sour cream

1 large onion (minced)

6 cs. water

1 lb. potatoes (cut into chunks)

Wash fish, remove all scales, add all other ingredients ex­cept cream and potatoes. Bring to a boil, skim, let boil 15 minutes, add the potatoes and simmer for 1/2 hour. Turn off flame, add the sour cream. Serve as soup.

PICKLED LOX (smoked salmon)

1 lb. lox (single piece)

3/4 c. water

1 c. vinegar

11/2 ts. sugar

2.Ts. allspice

2 large onions (sliced)

Cube lox and place in jar. Make a mixture of water, vine­gar, allspice and sugar. Add sliced onions. Pour the mix­ture over the lox. Cover tightly and refrigerate for about three days.

PICKLED FISH

4 lbs. salmon trout

3 large onions  1/2 t. pepper

1 t. salt

3/4 c. vinegar

1/4 c. sugar

6 bay leaves

12 peppercorns

1 lemon (sliced)

Clean fish. Slice onions and put up to boil with water to cover. Add fish and seasoning and boil 1/2 hour. Add sugar and vinegar and boil another 10 minutes. Remove the fish and put into jar or jug. Strain the liquid and pour over the fish. Add the bay leaves, peppercorns and sliced lemon. Cool and refrigerate.

In Mama's days the price of herring was not what it is today. Herring was one of the cheapest fish in the market and Mama had so transformed the poor lowly herring that, but for the smell, it would have entirely lost its identity. She baked it, boiled it, broiled it, pickled it, chopped it and made herring cutleten. She even made gefilte fish out of it, and that was a delicacy to be remem­bered. Since this book contains all of Mama's meichulim, here are all her herring recipes.

AN EASY WAY TO MAKE CHOPPED HERRING

2  schmaltz herrings

1 pickled herring (ask the man in the appetizing store to give you plenty of the pickled onions)

3  large tart apples

3  hard-boiled eggs

Soak the schmaltz herring for at least 18 hours. Remove bones from all the herring, skin, and put through grinder with all other ingredients including the onions.

ANOTHER  EASY  WAY  TO  MAKE  CHOPPED  HERRING

1 large jar of herring in wine sauce

1 schmaltz herring (soaked for 18 hours)

1 large onion

4  hard-boiled eggs

3 tart apples

Bone and skin the herring, put through grinder with all other ingredients and add some of the wine sauce.

YET ANOTHER  WAY

1 large jar o£ herring in wine sauce

1 large onion

4 hard-boiled eggs

3 apples

Grind the herring with all the other ingredients.

PICKLED HERRING

3 herrings  (not soft; there are special large her­rings that are sold for pickling purposes)

2 cs. water

1/3c. sugar

1  c. vinegar

2  or 3 onions

6 bay leaves

12 peppercorns

Wash herring. Cut off heads. Remove black tissue from stomach cavity with a knife. Soak herring in water to cover for at least 24 hours. Boil sugar, vinegar and water and let cool. Cut herring into portions and put into boiled mixture; cool, add sliced onions, bay leaves and peppercorns. Keep at cool room temperature overnight, then refrigerate.

HERRING KOTLETEN (patties)

2 schmaltz herrings

2 medium sized onions

1/4 t. pepper

2 eggs

1 c. matzo meal

Clean herring, scrape off membrane from cavity with a knife. Soak herring in water to cover for 24 hours. (When soaking keep in covered jar in refrigerator.) Then bone, grind, and add the pepper. Grate in the onion, fold in the raw eggs, roll in matzo meal and fry in either oil or butter until brown on all sides.

BAKED HERRING

1  or 2 schmaltz herrings

1  t. onion powder

1/4  t· pepper

1/2 c. matzo meal

1/2  c. sweet cream

Clean herring and soak in water to cover over night. Cut herring into desired portions. Mix seasoning with the matzo meal. Dip portions of herring into the seasoned matzo meal. Put into a shallow baking dish. (Put some butter or oil into dish and heat.) Bake in a moderately hot, 400°, oven about three quarters of an hour. Turn off flame, pour the sweet cream over the herring and let stand in hot oven for about 10 minutes.

BROILED HERRING

Use the above recipe, place under broiler, brown on both sides. When herring is thoroughly browned, pour the sweet cream over it, turn off flame, put herring into moderately hot, 400°, oven for about 10 minutes.

CHOPPED LIVER

1/2 lb. liver (beef, calf, or chicken), boiled, broiled or fried (not well done)

2  eggs (hard-boiled)

1 large onion (sliced)

3  Ts. chicken fat

1 t. salt

Dash of pepper

Sauté onion in 2 Ts. chicken fat. Grind liver, onion and eggs. Should you have some gribenes, add and grind with the liver. Add salt and pepper. When ready to serve, add 1 T. chicken fat. Should you want to serve chopped liver which has been chilled in refrigerator, sauté finely cut up onion in fat until almost brown and add to the liver. The liver will taste as if just prepared.

LIVER AND MUSHROOMS

1/2 lb.  liver  (beef,  calf or chicken),  broiled  or

boiled

1/2 lb. mushrooms

1 large onion

1 stalk celery

1 green pepper

3 Ts. chicken fat (melted)

1 t. salt

Dash of pepper

1/2 c. water

1/2 c. tomato juice

Salt to taste (for sauce)

1 T. flour 

1/3 c. cold water  for thickening

Boil mushrooms in plenty o£ water with 1 T. salt for ten minutes. Drain, put in cold water to cool, cut off tips and slice.

Sauté onion, celery and pepper in chicken fat, add water and tomato juice, season, and simmer on low flame. Cut up liver in small pieces, add to the mixture and simmer for about 20 minutes. Make a paste of flour and cold water, add to the mixture while it is simmering, stir constantly to keep flour from settling to bottom and cook for another 10 minutes.

BRAINS WITH MUSHROOMS

1 pr. calf's brains

1 large onion

1 green pepper

1 stalk celery

3 Ts. chicken fat

1 T. salt

Dash of pepper

1/4 t. garlic salt

1/2 c. cold water

1/2 lb. mushrooms

1/2 c. water

1/2 c. tomato juice

1. T. flour

1/3 c. cold water

Remove all membrane and let stand in cold water. Boil mushrooms in water and salt to cover for 10 minutes (for cleansing purposes). Cut off tips and slice.

Cut up onion, celery and green pepper in small pieces and sauté in chicken fat, add sliced mushrooms and brains (cut into small pieces), water and tomato juice and simmer for 1/2 hour. Make a paste out of flour and water and add to the boiling mixture while it is simmer­ing, stirring all the time, and simmer for another 10 minutes.

SWEETBREADS AND MUSHROOMS

1  pr. sweetbreads

1  large onion

1  green pepper

1  stalk celery

3  Ts. chicken fat

1  T. salt

1/4  t. garlic salt

1/2  lb. mushrooms

1/2  c. water

1/2   c. tomato juice

} for thickening

1 T. flour 

1/3 c. cold water 

1 T. salt

Dash of pepper

Boil sweetbreads in water to cover for 1/2 hour. Plunge into cold water and let stand until you prepare all the other ingredients.

Boil mushrooms in water to cover and add 1 T. salt— cool, cut off tips and slice. Sauté the onion, celery and green pepper in chicken fat. Add mushrooms, water, tomato juice and seasoning and let simmer while pre­paring the sweetbreads. Remove membrane, cut sweet­breads into small pieces, add to the sautéed mixture and let simmer on low flame for about 3/4 hour. Make paste with the flour and cold water and thicken by adding the paste a little at a time while it is simmering, stirring constantly to keep flour from settling to bottom. Let simmer for another 10 minutes. You may add 1 c. of fresh or frozen green peas before thickening the mixture.

STUFFED VINE LEAVES

2 or 3 dozen (depending on size of leaf) vine leaves or parboiled grape leaves

BEEF  PREPARATION  FOR STUFFING

11/2 lbs. ground beef (tenderloin and neck meat)

1 large onion (grated)

1 t. salt

Dash of pepper

2 eggs

SAUCE  PREPARATION

1 large onion

1 green pepper

2 stalks celery

3 Ts. chicken fat (melted)

1 c. tomato juice

1/2 c. brown sugar

2 Ts. Honey

3/4 c. raisins

2 lemons (juice and pulp)

1 c. water

1 T. salt

Soak leaves in cold water for 1/2 hour. Sauté onion, pepper and celery in chicken fat—add all other ingredients. Put a heaping t. of the meat filling into each leaf. Fold leaf, tuck in edges, with stem sticking out. Put into the simmer­ing mixture and cook on low flame for one hour. Crush 3 ginger snaps to thicken mixture or thicken with a paste of flour and water as in other recipes.

STUFFED CABBAGE (called hulubtzes or prakes) 1 large head o£ cabbage

PREPARATION FOR THE BEEF FILLING

11/2 lbs. ground beef (tenderloin and neck meat)

1 large onion (grated)

1 t. salt

Dash of pepper

2 eggs

1/2 c. cooked rice (optional)

1 lb. (or more) flanken

SAUCE  PREPARATION

1 large onion

1 green pepper

1 stalk celery

3 Ts. chicken fat

1  c. tomato juice

1/2 c. brown sugar

2 Ts. Honey

3/4 c. raisins

1  T. salt

2 lemons (juice and pulp)

1/2 c. water

Put the whole head of cabbage in a large pot with water to cover, and salt. Boil covered for about 10 minutes. Plunge cabbage into cold water to cool, and separate leaves.

Mix ground beef with seasoning, eggs and grated onion. Sauté onion, celery and green pepper in chicken fat, add all other sauce ingredients and simmer.

Put heaping T. o£ prepared meat into each cabbage leaf, roll, tuck in edges and put into the simmering sauce. Cut what is left of the cabbage into wedges and put into sauce. Add the flanken and cook on low flame for 11/2 hours. The added flanken will take on the flavoring of the stuffed cabbage, add flavoring to the cabbage and give you an additional meal to serve with the cabbage wedges as a vegetable.

STUFFED GREEN PEPPERS

MEAT PREPARATION

11/2 lbs. ground beef (tenderloin and neck meat)

1 large onion (grated)

1 t. salt

Dash of pepper

2 eggs

1/2 c. cooked rice (optional)

SAUCE PREPARATION

1  large onion

1  green pepper

1  stalk celery

2  Ts. chicken fat

1  c. tomato juice

1/2 c. brown sugar

2  Ts. honey

3/4 c. raisins

2 lemons (juice and pulp)

1 T. salt (level)

1 c. water

1 dozen green peppers

Boil the green peppers in salted water for about 15 minutes, drain and cool. Cut into halves. Scoop out all seeds and white substance. Prepare meat with all given ingredients and fill pepper cavities.

Cut up onion, celery and one green pepper into small pieces and sauté in chicken fat. Add all other ingredients and bring to a boil. Put stuffed peppers into boiling sauce; lower flame, cover and simmer for 1 hour. Thicken with either ginger snaps or flour thickening and keep on flame for another 15 minutes.

CHICKEN OR DUCK FRICASSEE

Parts from one or more chickens or ducks (neck,

feet, wings, gizzard and heart)

1 large onion

1 small green pepper

1 stalk celery

2 Ts. chicken fat (melted)

1 T. salt

Dash of pepper and garlic salt

1 c. water

1/2 c. tomato juice

Prepare chopped meat as directed in previous recipes. Cut up onion, green pepper and celery and sauté in chicken fat. Clean chicken parts and add to the sautéed mixture. Add water and tomato juice and simmer on low flame until chopped meat is prepared. When ready, add a little more water to your sauce. Make small meat balls, keeping hands wet. Add to the boiling sauce and cook on low flame about 1 hour or until giblets are tender. Fif­teen minutes before turning off flame, thicken sauce with flour as directed in previous recipes.

CHICKEN OR DUCK PATTIES

Patties are made from whatever leftover poultry you have or from giblets which have been cooked in soup. Separate the chicken or duck from the bone.

1  egg

2  Ts. chicken fat

1 onion (grated)

1 t. salt

Dash of pepper

1 c. matzo meal

Remove all bones from leftover chicken or duck, grind in meat grinder, add grated onion and egg, season to taste, mix well, dip into matzo meal and fry in chicken fat.

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