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Whole Poached Mackerel

Erken 1914: whole mackerel is cleaned without opening the belly, stuffed with parsley and gently poached in salted water (3 l water, 3 dl salt), served with parsley butter; alternatively the fish is cooked in slices.

Source: Henriette Schønberg Erken, Stor kokebok, 1914-utg. s. 100 (falt i det fri)

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About the dish

The simplest mackerel dish in the fish chapter of "Stor kokebok" (1914). The fish is gutted through the gills so the belly stays whole, stuffed with parsley and gently poached in salted water – Erken repeatedly stresses that fish should be poached gently, not hard-boiled.

How to make it

  1. 1

    Clean the fish

    Clean and wash the mackerel, but do not open it at the belly.

  2. 2

    Stuff with parsley

    Wash the parsley, pick off the coarse stalks and stuff parsley into the belly of the fish.

  3. 3

    Poach the fish

    Put the fish in good hot, salted water and let it gently poach until fully cooked.

  4. 4

    Serving

    Serve with parsley butter. The fish can also be cut into slices; then the slices are put into boiling salted water and served with parsley butter.

Changes from the original

Measures are converted to modern units (del. → dl). The amount of salt is kept as in the original (3 dl to 3 liters water) but can be reduced to taste. The method is divided into numbered steps.

Time machine – what changed?

Pick two editions and see what Henriette Schønberg Erken added, removed or changed between them.

Modernised → 1914 (proofread, p. 100)~72% of the text changedremovedadded
4 stk makrell (renset, buken holdt hel). makreller 1 bunt stor bundt persille (stor bunt, grove stilker fjernet). 3 l vann. l. vand 3 dl salt (kan reduseres etter smak). persillesmør (til servering). Rens del. salt. Fisken renses og vask makrellen, men åpne den vaskes, aapnes ikke i buken.. Vask persillen, plukk av buken. Persillen vaskes, de grove stilkene stilker plukkes fra, og fyll persille fyldes i buken på fisken.. Legg fisken buken. Sættes over ilden i godt varmt, saltet vann og la den småtrekke vand, smaatrækker til den fisken er ferdig kokt.. Server færdig kokt. Serveres med persillesmør. Fisken kan også ogsaa skjæres i skiver; sættes da legges skivene over i kokende saltet vann vand og serveres med persillesmør.

Note on Modernised

Mål er omregnet til moderne enheter (del. → dl). Saltmengden er beholdt som i originalen (3 dl til 3 liter vann) men kan reduseres etter smak. Fremgangsmåten er delt i nummererte trinn.

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Frequently asked questions

Should the mackerel be opened at the belly?
No. The fish is cleaned and washed, but the belly is not opened. Parsley (without coarse stalks) is stuffed into the belly.
How is the fish cooked?
The whole mackerel is put into good hot, salted water (3 liters water and 3 deciliters salt) and gently poaches – not hard-boils – until fully cooked. If the fish is cut into slices, it is instead put into boiling salted water.
What is served with it?
Parsley butter, both for the whole poached mackerel and for fish cooked in slices.
Where does the recipe come from?
From Henriette Schønberg Erken's "Stor kokebok" (1914), p. 100. It is calculated for 4 mackerel, about 4 servings, and takes around 40 minutes.

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