Boiled Herrings

Herrings
Butter
Anchovy Fillet, finely chopped
Parsley
Lemon
Salt

Scale and wash the herrings, removing the milt and roes.
Skewer and tie them with butchers twine.
Place into a broad saucepan with the backs of the fish at the bottom.
Add enough water to cover and add some salt.
Add the roes and milts.
Bring to the boil and poach gently until tender.
Remove from the pan using an egg slice and keep warm.
Make a sauce from a little of the cooking liquid, butter, anchovy and chopped parsley.
Put the sauce in a basin in the centre of a serving plate and arrange the herrings around with the tails towards the basin and the milts and roes between.
Garnish with crisp parsley and lemon.

To boil Herrings

Take your herring, scale and wash them, take out the milt and roan, skewer them round, and tie them with a string or else they will come loose in the boiling and be spoil'd; set on a pretty broad stew-pan, with as much water as will cover them, put to it a little salt, lie in you herrings with the backs downwards boil with them the milt and roans to lie round them; they will boil in half a quarter of an hour over a slow fire; when they are boiled take them up with an egg slice, so turn them over and set them to drain.
Make your sauce of a little gravy and butter, an anchovy and a little boiled parsley shred; put it into the bason, set it in the middle of the dish, lie the herrings round with their tails towards the bason, and lie the milts and roans between every herring.
Garnish with crisp parsley and lemon; so serve them up.
English Housewifry - 1764

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HistoricFish

Boiled Herrings

To boil Herrings

Historic
Fish