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SOUPSMussel ChowderIn Ireland mussels are gathered at low tide, by hand, or using rakes or dredges. Mussels are found all year round. Sea farming or aquaculture today concentrates mainly on harvesting salmon, trout, mussels and oysters. Of these mussels are easiest to cultivate: seeding can be done at little or no cost; the growing period is short; harvesting requires only simple and inexpensive equipment.Serves: 4–6 Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 25 minutes Ingredients: 2 dozen mussels 1oz butter or margarine 25g 11/2 level tablespoons 2 finely chopped onions 3 chopped tomatoes (with skins and seeds removed) 3 diced potatoes 1 apple (peeled, cored and chopped) 20 fl oz fish stock 575ml 21/2 cups 10 fl oz milk 275ml 11/4 cup 1oz cornflour blended with a little milk 25g 2 level tablespoons 10 fl oz Guinness 275ml 11/4 cup tomato slices Method: Wash mussels and let sit in fresh cold water. Melt margarine or butter, add vegetables and apple and cook for a minute. Add stock and milk. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Add mussels, blend cornstarch and Guinness. Cook for 5 minutes. Remove mussel shells. Serve garnished with tomato slices. Scallop SoupServes: 4Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 30 minutes Ingredients: 6 scallops 1oz butter or margarine 25g 11/2 level tablespoons 2oz lean diced bacon 50g 1/3 cup 8oz diced potatoes 225g 2 cups 20 fl oz milk 575ml 21/2 cups 10 fl oz fish stock 275ml 11/4 cups 4oz seeded and sliced tomatoes 100g 2/3 cup a little mace salt and pepper a little cream finely chopped parsley Method: Wash scallops in fresh cold water. Melt fat in a large saucepan; add bacon and potatoes and fry for a minute. Add the milk and fish stock, bring to the boil. Cover and simmer for 25 minutes. Put the scallops into a saucepan and just cover with cold water, bring to the boil. Strain, reserve juice and remove shells. Chop the flesh. Add scallop meat, juice, tomatoes and mace to milk and potatoes and season to taste. Bring back to the boil and simmer for 3–5 minutes. Serve hot, garnish with cream and chopped parsley. Whitefish SoupWhitefish (whiting) live, like cod and haddock, near the bottom of the sea. Irish fishermen usually trawl for them, dragging a conical net bag along the seabed. The largest quantities are fished off the east and north-west coasts. Until recently Catholics were obliged to abstain from meat on Fridays; whitefish soup was often a staple of the Friday diet.Serves: 4–6 Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 20 minutes Ingredients: 8oz whiting, cod or haddock 225g 1 cup 1 finely chopped large onion 2 finely chopped parsnips 20 fl oz fish stock or water 575ml 21/2 cups 20 fl oz milk 575ml 21/2 cups seasoning lemon wedges Method: Clean out fish, fillet and skin it, then cut it up. The bones and skin can be used in making stock. Put all ingredients into a saucepan, bring to the boil, season to taste, and simmer for 20 minutes. Serve hot, garnished with lemon wedges. Fish ChowderSome people like to say that there’s both eating and drinking in a pint of Guinness, but the saving better describes the ineffable satisfactions of good chowder. Even when we were children we knew this was more than merely a soup; rightly made it could be a delicious main course dish. For fish chowder almost any non-oily fish will do. Two Irish favourites are cod and haddock. Haddock is called St Peter’s thumb because of the indentation the old fisherman is supposed to have made in its side.Serves: 4 Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 30 minutes Ingredients: 12oz haddock or cod 325g 11/2 cups 2oz butter or margarine 50g 1/4 cup 2 diced onions 1lb peeled and diced potatoes 500g 4 cups 3 chopped sticks celery 35 fl oz fish stock 1 litre 41/2 cups bouquet garni salt and pepper Method: Clean out the fish, fillet it and skin it, the skin and bones can be used in the making of fish stock. Heat butter or margarine, add fish and vegetables and fry for a minute. Add fish stock, bring to the boil; add bouquet garni and season to taste. Cover and simmer for 25 to 30 minutes. Serve piping hot. |
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