e beating them
while another person gently pours to them the boiling vinegar by
degrees, lest they should curdle; and continue stirring them all the
while. Set it over a gentle fire, still continuing to stir until it is
very hot and of the thickness you desire; then serve it.

_Sprats, to bake._

Wipe your sprats with a clean cloth; rub them with pepper and salt, and
lay them in a pan. Bruise a pennyworth of cochineal; put it into the
vinegar, and pour it over the sprats with some bay-leaves. Tie them down
close with coarse paper in a deep brown pan, and set them in the oven
all night. They eat very fine cold.

You may put to them a pint of vinegar, half a pint of red wine, and
spices if you like it; but they eat very well without.

_Sturgeon, to roast._

Put a walnut-sized bit of butter (or more if it is a large fish), rolled
in flour, in a stewpan, with sweet-herbs, cloves, a gill of water, and a
spoonful of vinegar; stir it over the fire, and when it is lukewarm take
it off, and put in your sturgeon to steep. When it has been a sufficient
time to take the flavour of the herbs, roast it, and when done, serve it
with court bouillon, or any other fish sauce.

_Turbot, to dress._

Wipe your turbot very dry, then take a deep stewpan, put in the fish,
with two bay-leaves, a handful of parsley, a large onion stuck with
cloves, some salt, and cayenne; heat a pint of white wine boiling hot,
and pour it upon the turbot; then strain in some very strong veal gravy,
(made from your stock jelly,) more than will cover it; set it over a
stove, and let it simmer very gently, that the full strength of the
ingredients may be infused into it. When it is quite done, put it on a
hot dish; strain the gravy into a saucepan, with some butter and flour
to thicken it.

Plaice, dabs, and flounders, may be dressed in the same way.

_Turbot, plain boiled._

Make a brine with two handfuls of salt in a gallon of water, let the
turbot lie in it two hours before it is to be boiled; then set on a
fish-kettle, with water enough to cover it, and about half a pint of
vinegar, or less if the turbot is small; put in a piece of horseradish;
when the water boils put in the turbot, the white side uppermost, on a
fish-plate; let it be done enough, but not too much, which will be
easily known by the look. A small one will take twenty minutes, a large
one half an hour. Then take it up, and set it on a fish-plate to drain,
before it is laid i