Fish Cutlets
Cut cod, haddock, or any good-sized, firm fish into slices the size and shape for cutlets, sprinkle each with salt and pepper, roll in fine cracker crumbs; then dip in beaten egg to which a spoonful of milk has been added, then in the crumbs again. Fry, until well done and a nice brown, in butter or good beef drippings. Put the cutlets on a hot platter, and pour around them a hot tomato sauce.
A plain breaded fish cutlet, pan-fried and served in a pool of tomato sauce. The technique is sound; only the vessel, the fat and the vagueness about thickness need attention.
- What "cutlet" means hereNot a chop but a portion cut across the fillet or through a steak of thick fish, roughly the size of a lamb cutlet. Aim for pieces about 3/4 inch thick and 3-4 oz each so the crumb browns and the centre just sets at the same moment.
- Fish choiceCod and haddock still work, though modern fillets from thawed blocks hold more water than the fresh-landed fish assumed here. Pat thoroughly dry before salting, or the crumb coat will slide off in the pan.
- Cracker crumbsPeriod cracker crumbs generally came from plain soda or common crackers, ground fine; salting varied from baker to baker. Saltines crushed to a fine sand are the closest easily available match; panko gives a coarser, crisper crust, and if your crumbs are salty, ease back on the seasoning.
- Standard breading orderThe recipe crumbs, then eggs, then crumbs again, skipping flour. This works if the fish is dry, but a light dusting of flour first gives the egg something to grip and makes the coat far less likely to peel.
- Frying fatButter alone browns and burns before the fish is through. Use clarified butter, or half butter and half neutral oil, at a steady medium-high heat — about 350F in the pan. Beef drippings are still excellent here if you have them.
- "Until well done"That phrase reflects an era wary of underdone fish. Three to four minutes a side is enough for 3/4-inch pieces; the flesh should flake and read about 145F. Longer and it turns dry and cottony inside the crust.
- The tomato sauceA simple cooked tomato sauce, seasoned and slightly reduced, poured around rather than over so the crust stays crisp. Keep it hot and thin enough to pool.
- YieldTwo pounds of fish gives eight or so cutlets, enough for four as a main course.