Lampreys To Pot Recipe

Well cleanse your lampreys in the following manner: the intestines and

the pipe which nature has given them instead of a bone must be taken

clear away, by opening them down the belly from head to tail. They must

then be rubbed with wood-ashes, to remove the slime. Then rub with salt,

and wash them in three or four waters. Let them be quite free from water

before you proceed to season them thus:--take, according to the quantity

you intend to pot, allspice ground with an equal quantity of black

pepper, a little mace, cayenne pepper, salt, about the same quantity as

that of all the other seasoning; mix these well together, and rub your

lampreys inside and out. Put them into an earthen pan or a well-tinned

copper stewpan, with some good butter under and over, sufficient to

cover them, when dissolved. Put in with them a few bay-leaves and the

peel of a lemon. Let them bake slowly till they are quite done; then

strain off the butter, and let them lie on the back of a sieve till

nearly cold. Then place them in pots of suitable size, taking great

care to rub the seasoning well over them as you lay them in; because the

seasoning is apt to get from the fish when you drain them. Carefully

separate the butter which you have strained from the gravy; clarify it,

and, when almost cold, pour it into your pots so as to cover your fish

completely. If you have not sufficient butter for this purpose you must

clarify more, as the fish must be entirely hid from sight. They are fit

for use the next day.

Great care must be taken to put them into the pots quite free from the

gravy or moisture which they produce.