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Matelote of Haddock with Oysters or Mushrooms (matelote au vin blanc)

French-inspired fish stew: haddock fillet poached in a stock made from trimmings, white wine, and a bouquet garni, laid on a bed of cooked onion slices with salt, pepper, and lemon. The sauce is enriched with butter and egg yolks (must not boil) and poured over the fish along with oysters or mushrooms. Stor kokebok 1914, pp. 96–97.

Source: Henriette Schønberg Erken, Stor kokebok, 1914-utg. s. 96 (falt i det fri)

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About the dish

Matelote is a French fish stew that Erken adapts to Norwegian ingredients—here with haddock and white wine instead of the classic red-wine version. The recipe shows French kitchen technique in a Norwegian household around 1914: stock made from trimmings, the fish poached in the stock, and the sauce enriched with egg yolks and butter that must not boil.

How to make it

  1. 1

    Fillet the fish

    Clean the fish, cut the fillets free from skin and bones, and divide them into two or three pieces depending on size.

  2. 2

    Make the stock

    Put the head, bones, and skin in a pot. Pour in the white wine, any oyster liquor, and enough water to just cover. Add a slice of onion, the bouquet garni, and the carrot slice. Let the stock simmer for half an hour, and strain it.

  3. 3

    Assemble the pot

    Cook the thinly sliced onions until tender. Lay a layer of onion in the bottom of an enameled pot, place the fish pieces on top, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Drizzle with lemon juice and lay a few onion slices on top.

  4. 4

    Poach the fish

    Strain the stock over the fish and let it poach slowly, covered, until the fish is done, about 15 minutes. If using mushrooms, blanch them in the stock.

  5. 5

    Plate up

    Lift the fish carefully onto a warm serving platter and place oysters or mushrooms in between.

  6. 6

    Enrich the sauce

    Stir the egg yolks with a little stock, and enrich the hot stock with butter and the egg-yolk mixture. The sauce must not boil after the egg yolks are added. Pour the sauce over the fish and serve at once.

Changes from the original

Measures have been modernized (2 dl white wine), and the use of the onion clarified (cooked, thin slices as a bed). Oyster liquor is noted as optional since fresh oysters with their liquor are hard to come by; mushrooms are mentioned as an alternative, blanched in the stock. Otherwise the method is unchanged.

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Time machine – what changed?

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Modernised → 1914 (proofread, p. 96)~85% of the text changedremovedadded
1 kg kolje eller annen fast kg. fisk (kan byttes med ål, abbor eller torsk). 2 stk løk (tynt skåret, kokes møre). 1 ts salt (etter smak). 0,25 ts pepper. 0,5 stk sitron (saften). pepper citron 2 stk eggeplommer. eggeblommer 10 stk østers eller sjampinjonger (kan sløyfes). champignons 50 g gr. smør (til å jevne sausen). 1 stk suppevisk (persille, timian og laurbær bundet sammen). 2 dl hvitvin. dl. hvitvin 1 skive gulrot (til kraften). Rens fisken, skjær filetene fri gulerot. Fisken renses, fileterne skjæres fra skinn skind og bein, ben og del dem skjæres i to–tre to à tre stykker etter størrelsen.. Legg hode, bein efter størrelsen. Hode, ben og skinn i en kjele. Hell på hvitvinen, eventuelt østersvann skind sættes over med saa meget vand, vinen og så mye vann østersvandet, at det bare står over. Tilsett netop staar over; tilsættes en skive løk, suppevisken og gulrotskiven. La kraften småkoke i en halv time, og sil den.. Kok de tynt skårne løkskivene møre. Legg et lag løk i bunnen av skive gulerot; smaakoker ½ time. I en emaljert gryte, legg fiskestykkene over og strø på salt og pepper. Dryp over sitronsaft og legg noen løkskiver over.. Sil kraften over fisken gryte lægges et lag tyndskaarne, kokte løkskiver, herover lægges fiskestykkerne, salt, pepper, citronsaften og la den trekke sakte nogen løkskiver. Kraften siles over. Smaatrækker under lokk lok, til fisken er ferdig, kokt, ca. 15 minutter. Forvell eventuelt sjampinjongene i kraften.. Løft fisken forsiktig opp på et Fisken lægges op paa varmt anretningsfat anretningsfat, og legg østers eller sjampinjong innimellom.. Rør eggeplommene ut østersen lægges indimellem. Sausen jevnes med litt kraft, smør og jevn den varme kraften eggeblommer, som først er rørt med smør litt kraft, og eggeplommeblandingen. heldes over fisken. Sausen må maa ikke koke etter at eggeplommene koke, efterat eggeblommerne er tilsatt. Hell sausen over fisken hat i. Østers og server straks. champignons kan sløifes. Matelote kan tilberedes av forskjellige slags fisk som aal, abbor, torsk o. lign.

Note on Modernised

Mål er modernisert (2 dl hvitvin), og løkens bruk er tydeliggjort (kokte, tynne skiver som seng). Østersvann er angitt som valgfritt siden ferske østers med skallvann er lite tilgjengelig; sjampinjong er nevnt som alternativ, forvellet i kraften. Ellers er fremgangsmåten uendret.

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Frequently asked questions

What fish is used, and how is it divided?
The recipe uses 1 kg of haddock. The fish is cleaned, the fillets are cut from skin and bones, and divided into two or three pieces depending on size. The head, bones, and skin are used for the stock.
How long do the stock and fish cook?
The stock of head, bones, and skin with water, white wine, oyster liquor, onion slice, bouquet garni, and a slice of carrot simmers for half an hour. The fish then poaches, covered, for about 15 minutes.
Can I use mushrooms instead of oysters?
Yes, the recipe calls for 10 oysters or mushrooms. They are placed between the fish pieces on the warm serving platter.
Where does the recipe come from?
From Henriette Schønberg Erken's «Stor kokebok» (1914), page 96. The dish is called matelote au vin blanc and is calculated for 4 servings.

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