To Boil a Turbot
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Empty the turbot and wash the inside until perfectly clean.
Rub a little coarse sea salt over the outside to remove slime.
Change the water several times until the fish is clean.
Make a shallow incision in the thickest part of the back on the dark side.
Poach
In a fish kettle, dissolve the salt and saltpetre in enough cold spring water to cover the fish.
Place the turbot on a clean fish plate with the white side up, then slide it into the kettle.
Bring the water to a slow boil, skimming off any scum that rises.
Let the water simmer until the fish is done, then lift it out and drain.
Serve
Slide the fish onto a very hot dish and cover with a hot napkin.
Serve immediately with rich lobster sauce, melted butter, and dressed cucumber.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Turbot
- Firm, delicate flesh that is cooked gently in the water until it flakes.
- Melted butter (in the method)
- Adds fat and richness to the mild, poached fish.
- Lobster sauce (in the method)
- Adds rich, savoury flavour that complements the mild fish.
The step that matters
Keep the water at a slow simmer. A hard, rolling boil toughens the delicate proteins in fish and can break the flesh apart. Gentle heat cooks the fish evenly and keeps it moist and tender. Skimming scum keeps the liquid clean.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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