Ruth Messingers Gefilte Fish Recipes

Steps:

• 1. Place the reserved bones, skin, and fish heads in a wide, very large saucepan with a cover. Add the water and 2 teaspoons of the salt and bring to a boil. Remove the foam that accumulates.
• 2. Slice 1 onion in rounds and add along with 3 of the carrots. Add the sugar and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for about 20 minutes while the fish mixture is being prepared.
• 3. Place the ground fish in a bowl. In a food processor finely chop the remaining onions, the remaining carrot, and the parsnip; or mince them by hand. Add the chopped vegetables to the ground fish.
• 4. Add the eggs, one at a time, the remaining teaspoon of salt, pepper, and the cold water, and mix thoroughly. Stir in enough matzah meal to make a light, soft mixture into oval shapes, about 3 inches long. Take the last fish head and stuff the cavity with the ground fish mixture.
• 5. Remove from the saucepan the onions, skins, head, and bones and return the stock to a simmer. Gently place the fish patties in the simmering fish stock. Cover loosely and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes. Taste the liquid while the fish is cooking and add seasoning to taste. Shake the pot periodically so the fish patties won't stick. When gefilte fish is cooked, remove from the water and allow to cool for at least 15 minutes.
• 6. Using a slotted spoon carefully remove the gefilte fish and arrange on a platter. Strain some of the stock over the fish, saving the rest in a bowl.
• 7. Slice the cooked carrots into rounds cut on a diagonal about 1/4 inch thick. Place a carrot round on top of each gefilte fish patty. Put the fish head in the center and decorate the eyes with carrots. Chill until ready to serve. Serve with a sprig of parsley and horseradish.

Steps:

• Combine the fish bones, skin and heads in a 10-quart or larger stock pot. Add half of the onions and carrots and all the celery.
• Place the fish fillets in a food processor and pulse until coarsely ground (you may have to do this in batches). Set aside.
• Put the remaining onions and carrots in the food processor and chop medium fine. Mix with the ground fish by hand.
• Soak the matzohs in the seltzer for 5 minutes, then squeeze dry and crumble. Add the matzohs, whole eggs, egg yolks and half the salt and all the pepper to the ground fish mixture.
• Lightly shape the fish mixture into balls 2 to 2 1/2 inches in diameter. If the balls will not hold their shape or if mixture feels too sticky, add matzo meal until it is the consistency of meatballs.
• Place the balls in the pot on top of the bones and vegetables. They can be in a double layer. Add cold water to cover the fish balls almost completely. Add lemon juice and remaining salt. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until the balls are solid and the liquid has been reduced by half. Frequently baste any uncovered balls as they cook.
• Remove fish balls with slotted spoon. Place on a platter and wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
• Let broth simmer to reduce again by half. Cool; strain and pour a light layer over the fish balls. Chill. Broth will gel. Serve with fresh horseradish (recipe below).

Steps:

• Fill a large, wide pot with 10 cups of water and place over high heat. While bringing to a boil, coarsely chop and add to the pot 1 onion, 1 celery stalk, 1 carrot and the fennel bulb. Add the peppercorns and 1 teaspoon salt. Once water is boiling, reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, while preparing the fish.
• Coarsely chop the remaining onion, celery stalk and 1 carrot, then pulse in a food processor until finely chopped. Add fish, chives and 2 tablespoons parsley, tarragon and/or dill, and keep pulsing until fish is chopped but not mushy.
• Move the fish mixture to a medium bowl and add eggs, oil, matzo meal, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt (or more to taste) and the ground black pepper, and mix well with your hands.
• Put your hands in a bowl of cold water. Using your hands, mold the fish mixture into a 3- by 2-inch oval patty (about 2 ounces) and gently place on a platter. Repeat with the remaining fish mixture, dipping your hands in water as needed.
• Pop the third carrot into the simmering broth and gently add the patties to the pot. Cover and cook for about 20 minutes until patties are firm.
• Use a slotted spoon to remove the fish and carrot from the poaching liquid to cool on a plate. Slice the carrot diagonally into thin rounds.
• Place each patty on a leaf of radicchio or endive or both. Set the sliced carrot rounds on top of each patty. Garnish with the remaining tablespoon of fresh herbs and serve warm or at room temperature with horseradish, preferably homemade. If making a day ahead, refrigerate, covered, then return the patties to room temperature before serving.

Steps:

• Place leeks in a saucepan, cover with water and simmer until tender, about 25 minutes. Meanwhile, place carrots in separate saucepan, cover with water and simmer until tender, about 25 minutes. Drain vegetables.
• Puree leeks in a food processor along with 1 tablespoon parsley, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside. Without washing the machine, puree carrots, season them with lemon juice, salt, pepper and nutmeg and set aside.
• Place matzoh meal in a bowl, add fish stock and set aside.
• Without washing food processor, add onions and process until finely chopped. Add fish and process until smoothly pureed. Add softened matzoh meal, eggs and remaining parsley and process until well blended. Season with salt (about 1 teaspoon) and liberally with pepper. Taste mixture for seasoning by poaching a small amount in water, then allowing to cool briefly.
• Preheat oven to 350. Lightly oil a 6-cup loaf pan or ring mold.
• Spread half the fish mixture in the pan, making a depression in middle that extends to within about 1/2 inch of sides. Spread half the leek mixture in depression; spread carrot puree over leeks and top with rest of leeks. Smooth in remaining fish. Rap pan several times on counter top to eliminate air holes. Place wax paper or parchment paper on top of the terrine.
• Set the pan in a larger pan at least 2 inches deep and place in oven. Add 1 to 1 1/2 inches of boiling water to outside pan.
• Bake 50 minutes.
• Remove from oven and let cool. Remove fish loaf from pan and place on a serving dish. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 6 hours to chill completely. Serve in slices with herbed or horseradish sauce on side.

Steps:

• Place matzoh meal in a bowl, mix with 1 cup fish stock and set aside.
• Place cabbages in a large pot of simmering water and as leaves soften, carefully remove them. You will need about 15 large unbroken leaves or twice that many smaller leaves, which can be put together overlapping to make a large leaf. Rinse softened leaves under cold running water, dry and cut away any large central ribs.
• Heat oil in a small skillet and saute onion until translucent.
• Cube fish, season with salt and pepper and process, using a pulse mechanism, in a food processor. Fish should have some texture. Alternatively, fish can be ground in a meat grinder or ordered ground from fish market.
• Mix fish with onion, parsley and tarragon. Season with pepper. Lightly beat egg yolks and mix in, then add matzoh meal.
• Beat egg whites until frothy, then fold in. Taste mixture for seasoning by poaching a small amount in water, then allowing to cool briefly.
• Place 2 heaping tablespoons of fish mixture in a cabbage leaf or leaves and roll to enclose fish mixture completely, making a package. Repeat until all fish mixture is used.
• Heat remaining stock in large saucepan and add vinegar. Place cabbage rolls, seam side down, in the saucepan and scatter the carrots and leeks over them. Cover and simmer 10 minutes. Let cool completely in the stock. Remove fish rolls from stock and refrigerate until a half-hour before serving. Serve with fresh horseradish.

Steps:

• 1. In a food processor or grinder, grind fish (refrigerate heads and bones for later use), 2 onions, 1 stalk celery, and half a carrot. (If you use a food processor, make sure you leave no large pieces of fish or bones; you may want to transfer the mixture, bit by bit, into a wooden bowl, and go over it vigorously with a hand chopper.)
• 2. Place fish mixture in a large bowl, and add eggs, sugar, salt, pepper, and corn oil, mixing thoroughly with a wire whisk. Stir in matzo meal, and continue to mix until everything is thoroughly blended. Refrigerate for 1 hour or more (longer, even overnight, is better).
• 3. Fill 2 large stockpots three-quarters full of water, and bring to a vigorous boil. In each, throw in half the fish heads and bones, 2 onions, half the celery, and a carrot. Divide batter into 12 patties of equal size. (Don't worry that your batter is a little loose; it has to be that way to keep your gefilte fish light.) Transfer each patty to a large cooking spoon, shape into an oval, and very gently lower it into the boiling water. Put 6 in each pot. Lower heat and simmer for 1 1/2 hours.
• 4. Remove fish balls and carrots from pots, and refrigerate on a covered plate. Discard everything else. Serve chilled with red and/or white horseradish. Slice carrots for garnish.