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Depending on which week it was, she prepared various meals, either fish or beef, but we always had to have chicken soup. We weren’t allowed to buy dead fish. Fish had to be alive. We usually took carp. Because there are acceptable and unacceptable fish. The acceptable ones had to have scales and fins. Mom would buy such a fish on Thursday. She would put it in the water so that it could live till Friday. On Friday she’d hit it in the head with a hammer and she’d start the cooking.
First you would scrape off the scales with a special knife – it went very quickly. Then you would gut it. Some people used to throw out all the guts, others used to separately clean intestines and add them to a broth. For taste and its gelatin content. Of course you had to be careful so that the bile wouldn’t break. After scraping off the scales, you would cut the head off. And some again gouged the eyes out, others left them in, and then added the head to the broth. Then you would roll the rest of the fish in flour, add some salt and wait for the broth.
There was fish, onions and some carrots in the broth. Some used to add a bit of root parsley. The vegetables would cook for about 15, 20 minutes, and then the pieces of fish were added. Then again 15, 20 minutes under a lid – of course you’d add some salt, appropriately, sometimes you’d have it sweet, some people would add more salt and pepper, and others no pepper but sugar. I know that some people used to even add raisins. And, after 15 minutes you had to taste it. How does it taste? And add salt, pepper, sugar to taste – depending on how you liked it. Then you’d remove the pot from the fire so that the fish absorbed the taste of the broth. They you’d put the pieces of fish on a special plate, pour the broth on them, so that it would set into a jelly.
That was regular fish. But there was also gefilte fish – that was the whole ceremony. You had to, after the washing and cleaning, separate the skin from the meat. The meat was ground or chopped. Then you’d add some fine bread crumbs to that mass, and sometimes also some white flour. Season it. Then the stuffing was wrapped in the fish skin and boiled. Of course you’d add a bit of pepper, some salt, as you normally would to stuffing. And that was gefilte fish. That is, a stuffed fish.
First you would scrape off the scales with a special knife – it went very quickly. Then you would gut it. Some people used to throw out all the guts, others used to separately clean intestines and add them to a broth. For taste and its gelatin content. Of course you had to be careful so that the bile wouldn’t break. After scraping off the scales, you would cut the head off. And some again gouged the eyes out, others left them in, and then added the head to the broth. Then you would roll the rest of the fish in flour, add some salt and wait for the broth.
There was fish, onions and some carrots in the broth. Some used to add a bit of root parsley. The vegetables would cook for about 15, 20 minutes, and then the pieces of fish were added. Then again 15, 20 minutes under a lid – of course you’d add some salt, appropriately, sometimes you’d have it sweet, some people would add more salt and pepper, and others no pepper but sugar. I know that some people used to even add raisins. And, after 15 minutes you had to taste it. How does it taste? And add salt, pepper, sugar to taste – depending on how you liked it. Then you’d remove the pot from the fire so that the fish absorbed the taste of the broth. They you’d put the pieces of fish on a special plate, pour the broth on them, so that it would set into a jelly.
That was regular fish. But there was also gefilte fish – that was the whole ceremony. You had to, after the washing and cleaning, separate the skin from the meat. The meat was ground or chopped. Then you’d add some fine bread crumbs to that mass, and sometimes also some white flour. Season it. Then the stuffing was wrapped in the fish skin and boiled. Of course you’d add a bit of pepper, some salt, as you normally would to stuffing. And that was gefilte fish. That is, a stuffed fish.
Period
Interview
Michal Nadel
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