salted water for twenty minutes or so, till ready, when
they are lifted out, placed in a piedish with sufficient
of their liquor to cover them, and left till next day.
When wanted for use, remove the tapes, return them
to the dish with the liquor, to which you add a little
more vinegar if necessary, and serve garnished with
sprays of fennel.
— en Mayonnaise, or à la Vert-pré.—Lift the
fillets off as neatly and whole as possible from the
requisite number of cold boiled mackerel, and arrange
these fillets evenly in fours, piling them as timber is
piled; have ready a nice green mayonnaise flavoured
with minced tarragon and fennel, and pour this over the
piled-up fish, serving it garnished with sprays of
fennel, and shelled prawns or shrimps, as preferred.
Another version of this is masked with tomato mayon-
naise, and decorated with seasoned watercress.
— Salted.—Cleanse some very fresh mackerel
very carefully, and wipe them well inside and out with
a clean cloth; meanwhile mix together in a crock half a
gallon of cold water, 1lb. of salt, 4oz. saltpetre, and 4lb.
of coarse brown sugar; lay the fish into this, and leave
them to steep for six hours or so, according to size; then
lift them out, straighten and stretch them well between
two laths, rinse them well with the pickle, and hang them
up by the head to dry. (For this the Scotch fisherwives
use triangles of three laths nailed together—with nails
run through them so that each fish hangs clear and
separate—and usually dry them in the open.) They
should dry for an hour or so, then be put in the smoke
in a hot corner for an hour, being shifted to a cooler
place and left in the smoke till they are of a rich dark
brown (this takes from eighteen to twenty-four hours).
When nicely coloured let them get quite cold, then pack