Whiting au Gratin, or Baked Whiting is a traditional British recipe, based on Mrs Beeton's recipe of 1861, for a classic dish of whiting placed on a bed of mushrooms and parsley in a baking dish that are topped with mushrooms and breadcrumbs and baked in sherry or Madeira wine. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic British version of: Whiting au Gratin, or Baked Whiting.
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This is a traditional British recipe redacted from the redoubtable Mrs Beeton's 1861 volume Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management, the classic Victorian cookbook.
Original Recipe
346. INGREDIENTS.—4 whiting, butter, 1 tablespoonful of minced parsley, a few chopped mushrooms when obtainable; pepper, salt, and grated nutmeg to taste; butter, 2 glasses of sherry or Madeira, bread crumbs.
Mode.—Grease the bottom of a baking-dish with butter, and over it, strew some minced parsley and mushrooms. Scale, empty, and wash the whitings, and wipe them thoroughly dry, carefully preserving the livers. Lay them in the dish, sprinkle them with bread crumbs and seasoning, adding a little grated nutmeg, and also a little more minced parsley and mushrooms. Place small pieces of butter over the whiting, moisten with the wine, and bake for 20 minutes in a hot oven. If there should be too much sauce, reduce it by boiling over a sharp fire for a few minutes, and pour under the fish. Serve with a cut lemon, and no other sauce.
Time.—-20 minutes. Average cost, 4d. each.
Seasonable all the year, but best from October to March.
Sufficient.—This quantity for 4 or 5 persons.
Modern Redaction
Ingredients:
4 whiting
1 tbsp parsley, minced
4 mushrooms, chopped
salt, freshly-ground black pepper and freshly-grated nutmeg, to taste
4 tbsp butter, finely diced
400ml sherry or Madeira
200g breadcrumbs (about)
Method:
Clean, scale, wash and dry the fish (reserve the livers). Butter a baking dish then scatter the parsley and mushrooms over the base. Lay the fish on top, season to taste then scatter over the breadcrumbs then top with a little more parsley and mushrooms.
Dot with the butter and moisten with the Madeira or sherry. Transfer to an oven pre-heated to 200°C and bake for 20 minutes. If the dish is too liquid then boil the sauce to reduce and pour back under the fish.
