Ways With Fish.

When buying, fish in season should be chosen as it is more wholesome and has a better flavour. The chief points to look for when choosing fish are: Red gills, bright eyes, firm flesh, a fresh smell, and plenty of scales.

Before cooking, fish should be thoroughly cleaned. Remove any black skin and blood by rubbing with salt and scraping. Wash in cold water. Remove the yellow part near the head as it is bitter. White fish, such as sole, flounder, cod and hapuka are the most easily digested. Oily fish—terekihi, trout and salmon—have more nourishment, but are not as easily digested. Oysters have a good food value and are easily assimilated. Cray-fish and other shell fish are more or less indigestible.

To boil fish: Have enough sea or salt water to just cover. It should be just off the boil when the fish is put in. Simmer gently, allowing ten minutes for each pound, and if thick an extra ten minutes.

To steam fish: Place between two buttered plates and steam over a saucepan of boiling water. Allow ten minutes for each pound and ten minutes over for thin fish, and up to twenty minutes over if fish is thick. Add the liquid to the sauce.

To fry fish: Dry thoroughly with a cloth and coat with batter or egg and breadcrumbs, and fry in boiling fat. Drain on paper and serve with slices of lemon.

* * *

Baked Stuffed Cod.

1 ½ lbs. cod, 1 cup breadcrumbs, 1 dessertspoon chopped parsley, ½ teaspoon dried herbs, 1 oz. butter, egg (if liked), seasoning.

Method: Melt the butter and add to breadcrumbs, parsley, herbs and seasoning. Add the egg. Prepare the fish and place the stuffing inside. Sew up. Brush with egg and sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Dot with butter and cover with greasy paper. Bake in a moderate oven for half an hour. Serve with parsley or other sauce.

N.B.—Any other fish, such as terekihi and butter fish, may be cooked in this way.

* * *

Kedgeree.

2 cups cooked fish or tinned salmon, ½ pint white sauce, 2 cups boiled rice, 1 egg, a little nutmeg, sea-soning, chopped parsley and hard boiled egg to garnish.

Method: Mix all together and make very hot. Pile on to a hot dish. Garnish with parsley and sieved yolk and finely chopped white of egg.

Flounder or Sole.

These fish may be grilled, fried, steamed or boiled. They are so good in themselves that the plainest and simplest method is advised. A well grilled sole or flounder is delicious.

* * *

Tinned Foods.

Immediately a tin is opened the contents should be turned out and used as soon as possible. Food put up in glass jars is less liable to deterioration than in tins, but, they too, should be turned out at once. Even fruit, if left in tins, is apt to become a poison. All bulging or rusty tins should be refused, and anything that gives out a rush of air on being opened should not be used.

Tinned fish should be cooked at once after being opened. Sardines or anything preserved in oil are less liable to decay, but they should not be kept indefinitely.