Erken's "Crayfish in shells" from 1914: cooked crayfish, mushrooms and small fish balls folded into a white sauce with anchovy butter, crayfish roe, lemon, sherry and cayenne, filled into shells and briefly gratinated in the oven, garnished with parsley.
Source: Henriette Schønberg Erken, Stor kokebok, 1914-utg. s. 152 (falt i det fri)
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About the dish
From the chapter on fish and shellfish in Stor kokebok (Great Cookbook) (1914). Crayfish was a festive ingredient in Norwegian and Danish gentry kitchens, and dishes like this one — served in scraped-out crayfish shells or scallop shells — belonged to the finer entertaining cuisine.
How to make it
1
Preparations
Cook the crayfish and clean the tails. Save the roe and the finest shells (or use scallop shells) for serving. Cook small fish balls from the forcemeat and cook the mushrooms; cut them into 2–4 pieces.
2
Make the sauce
Melt the butter, stir in the flour and thin with the milk into a smooth sauce. Add the anchovy butter and bring it to a boil.
3
Mix in
Stir in the finely grated roe, the crayfish meat, the fish balls, the mushrooms, the lemon juice, the sherry and the cayenne pepper. Let it just get hot.
4
Fill and gratinate
Place the mixture in shells and set them in a hot oven (about 200 °C (390 °F)) for a few minutes until heated through.
5
Serve
Sprinkle finely chopped parsley or finely shredded lettuce over just before serving.
Changes from the original
Measures modernized: the archaic "del." → deciliters, "teske" → teaspoon. The fish forcemeat is assumed to be ready-made or homemade. No other changes to the composition; the oven temperature is given for a modern stove.
📖1914
Original 1914 recipe
Verbatim from the first edition of the Big Cookbook.
Foto: Faksimile: Nasjonalbiblioteket
ProofreadPage 152
25 krebs
10 champignons
250 gr. fiskefarce
35 gr. smør
20 gr. hvetemel
2 del. melk
1 teske ansjossmør
1/4 del. citronsaft
1/4 del. sherry
1 knivsod cayenne.
Smørret smeltes, irøres melet, spædes med melken, tilsættes ansjossmørret, gives et opkok, tilsættes den fint utgnedne rogn, de kokte krebs, smaa, kokte fiskeboller, laget av farcen, de i 2—4 dele kløvede champignons, citronsaften, vinen og cayennen. Lægges i skjæl, staar i stekeovnen nogen minutter; idet de skal serveres, strøes finhakket persille eller finskaarne salatblade over.
📖1949
Revised 1949 recipe
From the revised edition of the Big Cookbook.
Foto: Faksimile: Nasjonalbiblioteket
ProofreadPage 179
25 kreps
10 champignons
250 gr. fiskefarse
35 gr. smør
20 gr. hvetemel
2 del. melk
1 teskje ansjossmør
½—¾ sitronsaft
½ del. hvitvin
1 knivsodd kajenne.
Smøret smeltes, irøres melet, speses med melken, tilsettes ansjossmøret, gis et opkok, tilsettes den fint utgnidde rogn, de kokte kreps, små, kokte fiskeboller, laget av farsen, de i 2—4deler kløvde champignons, sitronsaften, vinen og kajennen. Legges i skjell, star i stekeovnen noen minutter; idet de skal serveres, strøes finhakket persille eller finskårne salatblade over.
In stores now
Clean, minimally processed groceries matched to the ingredients — approximate prices.
Modernised → 1949 (proofread, p. 179)~89% of the text changedremovedadded
25 stk kreps (kokte). 10 stk sjampinjonger (kokte, delt i 2–4). champignons 250 g gr. fiskefarse (til små fiskeboller). 35 g smør. gr. smør 20 g hvetemel. gr. hvetemel 2 dl melk. del. melk 1 ts ansjossmør. 0,25 dl sitronsaft. 0,25 dl sherry. teskje ansjossmør ½—¾ sitronsaft ½ del. hvitvin 1 knivsodd cayennepepper. krepserogn (finrevet). persille eller salatblad (finhakket/finskåret, til pynt). Kok krepsen og rens halene. Ta vare på rognen og de fineste skallene (eller bruk kamskjell) til servering. Kok små fiskeboller av farsen og kok sjampinjongene; del dem i 2–4 deler.. Smelt smøret, rør inn melet og spe kajenne. Smøret smeltes, irøres melet, speses med melken til en jevn saus. Tilsett ansjossmøret og gi det melken, tilsettes ansjossmøret, gis et oppkok.. Rør inn opkok, tilsettes den finrevne rognen, krepsekjøttet, fiskebollene, sjampinjongene, fint utgnidde rogn, de kokte kreps, små, kokte fiskeboller, laget av farsen, de i 2—4deler kløvde champignons, sitronsaften, sherryen vinen og cayennepepperen. La det bare bli varmt.. Legg blandingen kajennen. Legges i skjell og sett dem noen minutter skjell, star i varm stekeovn (ca. 200 °C) til stekeovnen noen minutter; idet de er gjennomvarme.. Strø skal serveres, strøes finhakket persille eller finskåret salat over rett før servering. finskårne salatblade over.
Note on Modernised
Mål modernisert: «del.» → desiliter, «teske» → teskje. Fiskefarse antas ferdig eller hjemmelaget. Ingen andre endringer i sammensetning; stekeovnstemperatur er angitt for moderne komfyr.
What is the sauce in "Crayfish in shells" made of?
A white base sauce: 35 g butter is melted, 20 g wheat flour is stirred in, thinned with 2 dl milk, and 1 tsp anchovy butter is added before boiling. It is then seasoned with finely grated crayfish roe, 1/4 dl lemon juice, 1/4 dl sherry and a pinch of cayenne.
How many crayfish and what else is needed for 6 servings?
25 crayfish, 10 mushrooms and 250 g fish forcemeat, which is formed into small cooked fish balls. The mushrooms are cut into 2–4 pieces.
How is the dish served?
The mixture is placed in shells and set in the oven for a few minutes. Just before serving, finely chopped parsley or finely shredded lettuce leaf is sprinkled over.
Where does the recipe come from?
From Henriette Schønberg Erken's Stor kokebok (Great Cookbook) (1914), page 152. Total time is about 90 minutes.
