by Tom Stobart
[Halibut – French: flétan German: Heilbutt Italian: grosso rombo, ippoglosso Spanish: hipogloso, halibut]
Lemon sole (Microstomus kitt) gets its name from the French limande (which comes, like the biological name of the dab, from the Latin, lima, file). It is dextral and is distinguished notably by its small head and its oval shape. Lemon sole is a well-flavoured flatfish and is often unjustly despised because it is compared to *sole; it is not a sole or even a substitute for it. Found from the Bay of Biscay to the North Sea, Iceland and the White and Arctic Seas, it can grow to 60 cm (2 ft) in length, but 40 cm (16 in) is more common. Two similar flatfish are the scald (Arnoglossus laterna) and the megrim or whiff (Lepidorhombus whiffiagonis). Both are inferior to the Lemon sole and may be easily distinguished from it as they are both sinistral.
[Lemon sole – French: sole limande German: Rotzunge Italian: sogliola limanda Spanish: mendo limon
Scald – French: fausse limande German: Lammzunge Italian: suacia Spanish: serrandell
Megrim, whiff – French: cardine Italian: rombo giallo Spanish: Iliseria]
Plaice (Pleuronectes platessa) come mainly from the North Sea, the Atlantic coasts of Europe and the Baltic; they are not much found in the Mediterranean. In Britain, they are the best-known and most important flatfish, and are the most common fish sold in restaurants. The flesh is nice-tasting, lean and easily digested; plaice is the flatfish that most people who cannot afford sole will choose as next best. It is a dextral fish and can be identified by its red or orange spots. Plaice grow to 75 cm (29 in), but are more usually around 40 cm (16 in).
[Plaice – French: carrelet, plie German: Plattfisch, Scholle Italian: passerino Spanish: platija]
Sole (Solea solea) is often called Dover sole in Britain to distinguish it from the Lemon sole, and even the French admit that the best ones are caught near Dover and not on the French coast, an admission which has to be true, as torture would otherwise be needed to wring such an opinion from French chefs. This fish is usually skinned (a trick that Carême apparently learned in England), preferably on both sides. Sole is found from the Mediterranean to Norway, but not on the west side of the Atlantic, although some are shipped to the US from Europe.
Soles are dextral and reach 40-70 cm (16-28 in) and face right.
There are many other species of sole, such as the Sand or French sole (Soleo lascaris) and the Thickback sole (Soleo variegata), but most are somewhat inferior to the real thing.
[Sole – French: sole German: Seezunge Italian: sogliola Spanish: lenguado]
Turbot (Scophthalmus maximus) comes close to sole at the top of the flatfish league. lt is a larger fish at 70-100 cm (28-39 in), with lean, white, very well flavoured flesh and a firm consistency. Turbot are found in waters from the Mediterranean to Norway, though not on the western side of the Atlantic. A related species is found in Canadian waters and on the Pacific coast. The turbot is a sinistral fish and can be distinguished immediately by the bony knobs on its top side. Since the fish weigh up to 20 kg (45 lb), a special rhomboid kettle (turbotière) is necessary for cooking them whole. This was used more in the past; today, in a less lavish age, we have to be content with turbotin weighing 1-2 kg (2¼-4½ lb) or with pieces.
[Turbot – French: turbot German: Steinbutt Italian: rombo chiodato Spanish: rodaballo]
Witch (Glyptocephalus cynoglossus), also called Torbay sole, is a small elongated flatfish (30-50 cm/12-20 in long), common in the trawls. When I was on a trawler, witches were the fish the cook picked out and flung, still nipping, into the frying pan to feed the crew. They had less commercial value than the other fish in the trawls. However, they are well flavoured and are found plentifully on the Atlantic coasts of Europe, but not in the Mediterranean.
FLAVOURINGS. Apart from natural herbs, vegetables, spices, and condiments, there are a number of flavourings which cooks find useful in the kitchen. True, many commercial *essences (particularly bitter almond and synthetic vanilla) can be horrid, but I suppose everyone would allow oil of peppermint (which has a taste that is difficult to get from the fresh or dried herb). There are also a whole range of chemicals supposed to simulate anything from bananas to cherries, of which the best known is the amyl acetate of old-fashioned peardrops. Such things are to be avoided where possible, because they lack subtlety.
Other substances like maple syrup flavouring (because real maple syrup is difficult to come by) and Bisto (because of its Pied Piper effect on children) must be kept out of sight of purists, but every cook is entitled to some secret ingredients; a box of tricks with which to tart up the tasteless and disguise the failures is fine so long as you do not depend on it too much.
[Flavouring – French: saveur artificielle German: künstliches Schmackmittel Italian: aroma artificial Spanish: artificial sabor]
FLIES. Among the thousands of different kinds of flies, the ones that mainly bother the cook are blow flies and house flies.
House flies are filthy creatures, which breed in refuse and excreta. They not only bring possibly pathogenic bacteria to food on their feet but actually vomit part of their last meal on to it. The famous old French naturalist Henri Fabre once put the body of a bird in a paper bag and hung it up. It did not go bad but became dry and mummified. Had flies walked on it, the result would have been putrefaction. Moral: food should always be kept covered and not left lying exposed for flies to walk on.
Blow flies, bluebottles, greenbottles and grey flesh flies all lay their eggs on meat, and the eggs hatch to maggots, which feed and grow before turning into pupae, and eventually adult flies. Some species do not ‘lay’ eggs but tiny maggots which have already hatched in the mother, and some are able to shoot their maggots or eggs sideways, so that meat near the edge of a meat-safe is liable to be reached. Meat should be hung away from the sides of a meat-safe, which should have a solid top.
[Flies – French: mouches German: Fliegen Italian: mosche Spanish: moscas]
FLITCH. See bacon.
FLOTØST. See whey.
FLOUNDER. See flatfish.
FLOUR means wheat flour, unless otherwise qualified as rice flour, maize flour, barley flour, besan flour, pea flour and so on.
White flour is usually ground in roller mills (see milling), during which almost all the *bran and *wheatgerm are separated out, leaving mainly the starchy endosperm, the inside of the wheat (which makes up about 85% of the grain).This endosperm is ground to the required fineness and separated by sieving through woven wire, silk or nylon screens in plansifters (vertical nests of horizontal sieves which gyrate in a horizontal plane). Stone-ground flour, which has been ground between old-fashioned millstones, contains much more of the bran and germ than does white flour.
Flour improves both in bread-making quality and in whiteness if it is stored for several months. These improvements develop more rapidly if the flour is exposed to the air and are caused by the oxidation of components of the protein. It was found that certain substances would bleach and ‘improve’ flour very quickly. This made storage for long periods unnecessary and reduced the risk of spoilage; the public demand for white flour and bread could thus more easily be satisfied. Chlorine gas was patented as a flour bleach as long ago as 1879, although its use for this purpose seems not to have been commercially exploited until much later. In the early 1900s, nitrogen peroxide was introduced; by 1920, other oxidizing agents, including benzoyl peroxide, potassium bromate and Agene (nitrogen trichloride) were in use as bleaching and/or improving agents. Agene continued to be widely used until it was shown that heavily-treated flour caused hysteria in dogs. Although Agene-treated flour was never shown to be harmful to human health, its use was voluntarily discontinued by British millers in 1955. It was replaced by another bleacher/improver, chlorine dioxide. In Britain, white flour is fortified with certain nutrients lost during milling (thiamine, nicotinic acid, iron). It must also, by law, contain between 2.35-3.9 g of chalk per kilo, although wheat is not an important source of calcium, and the need for the addition of chalk has been ques
tioned.
Extraction rate is the percentage of the whole grain that is produced as flour during milling. Wholewheat flour has a 100% extraction rate, but what are known as brown or wheatmeal flours contain 80-90% of the wheat grain (thus have an 80-90% extraction rate). Flour of 85% extraction rate still contains much of the germ, but the bulk of the bran has been removed. White flours contain mainly the endosperm and have a 70-75% extraction rate because, although the endosperm makes up about 85% of the grain, some of it always remains attached to the bran and the germ. Even white flours will contain a trace of bran, as separation is never perfect. Patent flours, which are the whitest of all, have an extraction rate of about 40-50% and are used only for special purposes as they are expensive.
Flour varies in granularity and also in strength. Strong flours are often from *wheat with a high *gluten content and are best for bread and other yeast-raised goods. Softer flours are good for cakes and biscuits. Coarsely-ground flours, especially if they are wholewheat, do not rise so much as fine flour and bake to a closer texture. Biscuits, which should have a very short texture, may even have *rice flour or *cornflour – ingredients with no gluten and much starch – added.
Self-raising flour contains chemical leaveners, usually added at the mill. The mechanical mixing methods used are more efficient than the blending done by hand in the kitchen. The raising agents are formulated in such a way that doughs and batters made from self-raising flour can be left standing for short periods in a cool place with little loss of performance.
High-ratio cake flours are specially treated flours which are common in America as ‘cake flour’, but are not generally available in Britain, except in bought cake mixes. They are snow-white, low in gluten, starchy, soft and finely ground. When combined with specially emulsified fat, they take up high quantities of liquid and sugar. Cake batters which are made with this flour have a pouring consistency; the cakes are of a melting quality – sweet, rich and moist.
Super-sifted flours. Modified methods of grinding and sifting have enabled millers to produce a flour which is free-flowing. Particles do not cling together into lumps and they mix smoothly with liquids. This makes the flour easier to use and is a convenience for the cook.
Proprietary flours and meals. In addition to the usual grades of white, brown and wholewheat flour, some flours are available for special purposes. They may contain ingredients such as wheatgerm, bran, soya flour, malt flour, rye and barley. They are for making special types of bread and are available mainly to professional bakers, but also in health-food shops. In the more famous patent wheatgerm flours, the germ has been heat-treated to improve its keeping qualities and much of its value may thus have been destroyed.
Storing and keeping. Experts recommend keeping flour in its bag on a cool, dry, airy shelf, but if the kitchen is damp or steamy the bag should be put into an airtight container. Fresh flour should not be added to old, and containers should always be carefully cleaned and washed, then thoroughly dried before refilling. Plain flour can keep for 4-6 months (white flour much longer than that), and self-raising flour for 2-3 months, but wholewheat flour, which contains the germ, should only be kept for 2 months in ordinary circumstances, because the oil in the germ tends to go rancid.
[Flour – French: farine German: Mehl ltalian: farina Spanish: harina]
FLUORINE (F). This element, which does not exist in an uncombined state in nature, is a yellow gas, very similar to chlorine but even more active and toxic. It is used industrially in making PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) non-stick plastic, and the fluoro- and chlorofluoro-carbons such as freon for refrigerators and propellants for aerosols. Fluorine has become noticed in recent years as a trace element because of its effect in preventing decay in teeth, although the whole subject is still extremely controversial, and feelings run very high over the merits and demerits of fluoridating water supplies. Nevertheless, many water supplies are now fluoridated with fluorine salts (e.g. sodium fluoride or sodium fluorosilicate) to a level of 1 part per million. Too much fluorine, however, is definitely bad and will produce mottled teeth. Sea-fish contain 5 to 10 parts per million and tea some 80 (China tea even 100), but you would have to eat a lot of fish and drink a lot of tea to make up for tap water being deficient in the element.
[Fluorine – French: fluor German: Fluor Italian: fluorina Spanish: flúor]
FOIE GRAS is goose-liver pâte, one of the great French delicacies. Large breeds of geese (Toulouse or Strasbourg) are fattened on a rich diet, which includes hard-boiled eggs and skimmed milk as well as barley and potato. They are finished by force-feeding with boiled maize through a funnel. Geese are naturally greedy, but this force-feeding, combined with total lack of exercise (they are kept in tiny cages) causes the livers to become huge (reaching 1.5 kg/3¼ lb) and bloated with fat. In France, such livers are mainly produced in Alsace, in the Périgord region and in the south-west. The livers are fat from mid-November until January. Most convenient for the amateur are medium-sized livers of 500-750 g (1-1½ lb) which should be pink, without hard nodules or spots. Most people will prefer to buy their foie gras ready made, but serious French cookery books offer recipes.
For a start, any parts stained yellow with gall will have to be cut off. Livers may be soaked overnight in anything from cold water to spices and port, or simply salted and peppered and allowed to ‘rest’. The livers are often kneaded first and any threads of connective tissue are removed, then perhaps placed overnight in a marinade of armagnac, kirsch, pepper and allspice, but the treatment varies with the chef. Finally the livers are slit, pieces of black truffle are put in, and some salt sprinkled on. This done, the livers are squashed into terrines, and the lids are sealed on with flour and water paste. They are cooked in an oven in a bain-marie for periods of 30-80 minutes for a 500 g (1 lb) liver, according to the type of terrine and the ideas of the chef. Certainly the water in the bain-marie must never come to the boil. When cooked, the foie gras is chilled, although a version from the Landes is served hot. Alsatian foie gras is pinker than the foie gras of Périgord, but opinions differ as to which is better. Those who are rich enough can spend many happy hours trying to decide. Outside France, you are usually limited to the foie gras from a can. lt may be in one piece or sliced. The black bits are the truffle.
Cans labelled pâté de foie gras must, by law, contain 80% goose liver. Mousse de foie gras must contain over 55%. This latter is only slightly inferior and is difficult to tell from the real thing, but it cannot be used as a garnish on hot dishes (like tournedos Rossini), because it will melt. However, mousse and purée are excellent for sauces. Foie gras en croûte, in which the liver is cooked in a pastry case is sometimes to be found, but is a very expensive delicacy.
Although foie gras is usually served at the start of a meal, it can also be a second course, as it sometimes is in France. As it is very rich, not much is required for each serving. It should be well chilled (but not frozen) and should be cut in slices or served in curls scooped with a spoon. (Dip the spoon or knife in hot water to prevent it sticking.) Foie gras deserves a good wine. Dry Champagne, Alsatian Riesling, dry or sweet white Bordeaux, even a light red Bordeaux all have their advocates.
Foie gras de canard, made from duck liver, has devotees who think that it is even better than the more usual goose version. It comes from the Landes and the Dordogne.
FOOTS. See sugars.
FORCEMEAT. See stuffing.
FORMALDEHYDE (HCHO). A simple organic gas made by the partial oxidation of methyl alcohol. Formaldehyde is best known as a 40% solution in water called formalin. Even when greatly diluted, it has a strong and distinctive smell. Because of its powerful action against bacteria, yeasts and fungi, it is used as a *disinfectant for barrels and in other situations when sterilization by heat is impossible. Formalin is poisonous. It damages the eyes and lungs, and will harden the skin of the hands, so needs to be used with care in well-ventilated places or in the open air. Once dissipated, however, it leaves no harmful residues.
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FORMIC ACID (HCOOH).The acid of ants and the simplest organic acid, formed when the simplest alcohol, methyl alcohol, is oxidized. A sharp, blistering acid and very toxic to micro-organisms, it is used sometimes for disinfecting wine barrels, but is too unpleasant for general use in the household. A strong solution (55%) in water is sold under proprietary names for removing hard-water scale from kettles.
FOULE MEDAMES. See ful medames.
FRAISE. See fruit brandy.
FRAMBOISE. See fruit brandy.
FRANKFURTER. Smoked sausage of German origin made, in its original form, of very finely ground lean pork with a small amount of salted bacon fat. Other versions contain varying proportions of beef and other meat, while some American frankfurters (and all Kosher ones) contain no meat other than beef.
Knackwurst look like fat frankfurters and are similarly smoked and sold in pairs. They contain finely ground pork beef and pork fat, pinked with saltpetre and seasoned with cumin, garlic and salt. Bockwurst, at least in Frankfurt, look like large frankfurters, and are dispensed singly in snack bars which deal out the smaller fellows in pairs.
Sausages of this sort should be poached, but must never be boiled, or they will split. Frankfurters have a claim to be the original hot dog sausage, but so have *Wienerwurst.
FREEZING. The American, Clarence Birdseye, who is regarded as the father of deep freezing, thought up his revolutionary ideas between 1912 and 1916 when he was living in Labrador, where in winter the fish froze as soon as it was caught in temperatures that hovered around -45°C (-50°F). He experimented with fish, seal and caribou meat, and had a special shipment of cabbages sent to him – probably the first-ever frozen vegetables. In 1924, Birdseye built his first automatic quick-freezing machine, but the general introduction of frozen foods depended on the foods being conveniently packed and display freezers being installed in the stores. In the US, this innovation began in the late 1930s but in Britain packaged frozen food was not generally sold until after World War II.