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Matelote of Eels

Skin two large eels, cut them into pieces, without opening the belly, thrust a knife blade into each piece, and twist it around to remove the inside. Wash them well; put into a saucepan with one breakfast cupful of stock and half a pint of claret, adding a clove of garlic, a whole pepper, a sliced onion, a bay leaf, thyme, cloves, parsley and a little salt, and boil gently until done. Take out the pieces of fish, strain the liquor and add a liquorglassful of brandy to it. Put a piece of butter into a saucepan, stir in one tablespoonful of flour to thicken, add it to the sauce and boil. Place croutons of fried bread in a circle on a dish; arrange the fish in the center, pour the sauce over and serve.

Matelote of Eels, Normandy Style Cut a pound and a half of eels into pieces, put them in a saucepan with a table-spoonful of butter and fry for two minutes, add a wineglassful of white wine, three tablespoonfuls of mushroom catsup, season well with salt, pepper and nutmeg and cook for ten minutes longer; add half a pint of veloute sauce, six mushrooms, twelve blanched oysters, six fish quenelles, and six small cooked crayfish tails and continue cooking for five minutes. Beat in the yolks of three eggs when ready to serve, then remove the pan from the fire and serve with a garnish of croutons of fried bread.

Stewed Eels, American Style Take three pounds of cleaned, skinned eels, having all the fat removed from the insides, cut them into pieces about two inches long, shake a little pepper and salt over and place in a jar with a quarter of a pound of butter. Chop an onion and scatter over the eels, and one dessertspoonful of chopped parsley. Cover the jar closely, stand it over the fire in a saucepan of cold water, allow it slowly to come to a boil and cook until tender. This will take about and hour and a half from the time the water boils. Serve in a deep dish. Stewed Eels, Bordelaise Style Skin and clean an eel, split it open and put in a stewpan with a slice of onion, two or three sprigs of parsley and a pinch of salt and pepper. Cover with Madeira wine and simmer until the eel is done. Take it out and press between two plates until cold, strain and reduce the liquor, add a little fish glaze and strain it through a conical strain into a bain-marie pan, cut the eel into fillets, put these with a little of the sauce into a stewpan over a moderate fire and heat the eel. Arrange them in a circle on a dish and garnish the center with glazed and blanched small onions. Mix a little anchovy butter and a pinch of cayenne with matelote sauce. Pour over the eels and serve. Stewed Eels, Poulette Style Cut some cleaned eel in two-inch pieces and stew them in a marinade or stock. Make a little white roux, and mix a little broth with it; add a few green onions, a bunch of parsley, one small white onion, five or six mushrooms, and a little glaze, seasoning with pepper and salt, and boil for twenty minutes, stirring continually. Take out the parsley and onions, and add a little finely chopped parsley and the juice of one lemon. Remove the eels, drain, dish, pour over the sauce, and serve.