Jane Grigson's Fish Book - Jane Grigson [225]
Large drums and croakers can be cooked according to recipes for cod steaks and fillets; really small fish can be grilled, or else dipped in beaten egg and breadcrumbs and deep-fried (in America cornmeal would be used instead of breadcrumbs).
Our fish was 375 g (12 oz) in weight. Madame Soarès, who sold it to us, suggested we should bake it in the oven. Then remembering we had no oven, she suggested we fry it meunière, in clarified butter. This was most successful because the skin turned to a golden crispness which made an excellent contrast to the sweet flavour and soft texture of the bass-like flesh. Some lemon juice and a few potatoes were all the addition it needed.
† DOGFISH alias FLAKE, HUSS or RIGG Scyliorhinus canicula
I cannot be the only person to associate dogfish with the appalling smell of formalin. On dissecting days at school, too often Fridays, the smell became unforgettably united, about halfway up the stairs, with the smell of fish pie. A cacophony of smell. No wonder the fish authorities have preferred the names of flake, huss and rigg.
There is good warrant for these names. Frank Buckland visited Folkestone harbour in the last century and saw that most of the fishermen’s houses were adorned ‘with festoons of fish hung out to dry. There was no head, tail or fins to them… the rough skin on their reverse side told me at once that they were a species of dogfish. I asked what they were? “Folkestone beef,” was the reply. What sort of fish is that? “That’s a Rig”, and this? “That’s a Huss”, and this other? “That! A ‘bull huss’.” ’ He went on to say that as soon as the boats arrived, the fish-dealers could be seen cutting off the heads, tails and fins and halving the fish, which were then salted and hung out to dry. When grilled, they tasted like veal chops, and were eaten ‘by the poorer class, as a relish for breakfast’.
The word dogfish covers a variety of small sharks, as fierce as a pack of wild dogs. They have a keen sense of smell, and hunt mackerel, herring and whiting like a pack of hounds.
All this being said, the name will not do. We are too closely attached to family dogs to eat anything that bears their name. The same with cats. I think that flake, huss and rigg are therefore reasonable. Rock salmon or rock turbot for catfish is a less happy choice of alias. It verges on a con trick, because catfish is not remotely like salmon or turbot at any point; rockfish is a better choice.
Good quality huss is certainly a wiser buy than a piece of tired white fillet of nothing-in-particular. It repays attention. Cut it into 8-cm (3-inch) pieces – the body is long and roughly eel-shaped – and coat them in seasoned flour. Fry gently until a true golden-brown, in butter, or preferably clarified butter*. Serve them with natural brown rice, boiled and tender, and with a creamy sauce. The curry sauce* is an excellent choice. So is sauce aurore*, or a white wine sauce; seasoning and richness.
Another way is to brown the floured pieces lightly in olive oil flavoured with garlic, and to transfer them to a tomato*, créole* or américaine* sauce to finish cooking.
Very fresh huss can be deep-fried in batter* and served hot or cold, with an olive oil and lemon vinaigrette*, or one of the highly flavoured mayonnaises*.
DOLPHINFISH OR DORADO
One of the fish now being imported from the Caribbean is the dolphinfish or dorado. It is also fairly common in the Mediterranean where it usually appears under the name of lampuga.
This strange grey and gilded creature, with a blunt, cat-like head and unbroken fins down its long body, has a delicious flavour. It should be better known. Do not be put off by the name – this fish has nothing to do with true dolphins which are mammals.
Dolphinfish is a