Both a hundred years ago and now, cooks sometimes struggle to figure out how to use leftovers. I recently had some leftover fish and some leftover mashed potatoes, so when I saw a recipe for Scalloped Fish in a 1924 cookbook that called for both cooked fish and mashed potatoes it seemed serendipitous, and I knew that I needed to give it a try.
The recipe was a winner. The Scalloped Fish was delightful, and I felt like I was being very frugal by using left-overs.
Here’s the original recipe:
I did not cook the milk mixture for the entire 20 minutes called for in the recipe. It seemed like it might begin to scorch on the bottom of the pan if I cooked it that long. I just cooked it until it came to a boil and thickened.
I added 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper when I made this recipe.
Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:
Scalloped Fish
2 hard-boiled eggs
2 cups milk
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon butter + additional butter for topping
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 cups cooked or canned fish, flaked (I used flounder.)
1/2 cup mashed potatoes
1 cup fine bread crumbs (I grated a slice of bread.)
Preheat oven to 400° F. Cut hard-boiled eggs in half. Mash the yolks with a fork. Press the whites through a sieve. (I used a Foley mill.) Set aside.
Put the cornstarch and 1/4 cup milk into a small bowl; stir until smooth. Put the milk mixture into a saucepan, then add the remaining 1 3/4 cups milk and stir together. Add 1 tablespoon butter. Bring to a boil using medium heat while stirring constantly. Reduce heat and gently simmer until the liquid thickens. Stir in the mashed egg yolks and egg whites that have been put through a sieve. Remove from the heat and add the flaked fish and the mashed potatoes; stir until combined. Put in a baking dish. Sprinkle the bread crumbs on top and dot with small pieces of butter. Bake in oven until hot and bubbly (approximately 15-25 minutes).
I have some leftover shrimp and haddock and about a half cup of purple mashed potatoes. Hmm….
I am not surprised to see this!
You should give this recipe a try.
What was the texture like? Was it firm enough to slice, like a pie, or did you spoon it out? Interesting how the instructions were; I would not have known what to do to “rub smooth” the egg yolks.
It is fairly thick, but it needed to be spooned out. I also found it interesting how the recipe calls for rubbing smooth the egg yolks. I was even more surprised that the egg whites were to be “passed through a sieve,” though it worked well and I ended up with much finer pieces of egg white than what I would have had if I’d chopped them.
One of the foods I heard about in Alaska, but never had the chance to eat, was “fish pie.” Perhaps it was kind of a quiche-like pie, but your recipe made me think of it. I applaud you for trying this out, and good to know you enjoyed it.
Fish pie sounds intriguing. If I ever get to Alaska I’ll have to give it a try.
I think this sounds delicious! I’ll have to keep this in mind but we rarely have any leftover fish!!
Perhaps you could cook extra fish sometime when you make it so that you you’d have left-overs. 🙂
You have no idea how much my family likes fish!! No mater how much I cook they manage to consume it all! I suspect it is their fault that the fish fry is no longer an all you can eat. Instead you get 1 additional time through the line!
I’m impressed. You must be a superb at cooking fish.
Interesting. We have leftover fish on occasion.
This recipe is a different, but nice, way to use left-over fish.
Yes.
Interesting use of leftovers. It seems easy to make as well.
I ended up with quite a few things to wash (including my Foley mill) when I made this recipe, but it was easy to make.