Gourmet Gefilte Fish Paté Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Blanch the head of cabbage in boiling salted water, about 5 minutes, then place in a basin of cold water. Remove the whole leaves and cut away the tough core. As you peel off the outer leaves, you may have to return the head of cabbage to the boiling water to soften the inner leaves. Dry on a clean towel and reserve.
• Place the matzoh meal in a small bowl. Cover with 1 cup of stock and let soak until needed.
• In a small skillet, heat the olive oil. Over medium heat, saute the onion until wilted, 4 to 5 minutes. Do not brown. Cool.
• In a wooden bowl or on a chopping board, chop the fish fine with a chopper or large knife. Add the matzoh meal with the stock, the cooled onions, 3 egg yolks, the chopped parsley and tarragon, 2 teaspoons of salt, white pepper, and cayenne, and continue to chop until well combined. In a clean, medium bowl, whisk the egg white until firm but not stiff. Stir a little into the fish mixture, then, quickly but gently, and fold in the remaining whites. To test for flavor, bring a little fish stock to a simmer, add a small ball of the fish mixture and cook for about 5 minutes. Taste and correct seasoning.
• Heat the remaining fish stock and spoon a little into an 11 by 17-inch baking pan. Divide the fish mixture into 12 portions, about 4 ounces each, and enclose each portion in 1 or 2 cabbage leaves. You will find that when the leaves get smaller, you will have to use 2 leaves to wrap the fish. As each package is formed, place in the prepared baking pan, seam-side down. This size pan holds the 12 packages comfortably. Pour the remaining stock over the fish and top with the julienned carrots and leeks. Cover the pan with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Let cool in the stock and refrigerate until needed.
• Presentation: Place 1 package of fish on each of 12 plates, garnishing with some of the julienned carrots and leeks. Serve with homemade horseradish, white or red.*
• Homemade Horseradish:
• To make white horseradish, finely grate peeled fresh horseradish into a small bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until needed.
• To make red horseradish, boil 1/2 pound red beets until tender. Peel and then finely grate into a medium bowl. Add about 1/2 cup grated horseradish, or to taste, and combine thoroughly. Refrigerate, covered, until needed.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook until translucent. Remove from heat and let cool.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine fish, cooled onions, eggs, water, matzah meal, salt, pepper, and sugar. Beat on medium speed for 15 minutes. Add grated carrots and mix until well combined.
• Transfer mixture to 12-cup bundt pan, smoothing top with a spatula. Place bundt pan in a larger baking dish and fill baking dish 2-inches high with water. Transfer to oven and bake for 1 hour. Cover bundt pan with parchment paper-lined foil and continue baking until center feels solid when a wooden skewer is inserted into the center, about 1 hour more.
• Remove bundt pan from oven and let stand 5 minutes. Invert onto a flat serving plate and refrigerate overnight. Slice and serve garnished with parsley.

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:

• Grind the fish, but not too finely. In a food processor it should be done in two batches, about 24 pulses each. Mix the fish with the onion, garlic, parsley, matzoh meal, lemon juice, wine or water and eggs. Season with salt and pepper. Do not underseason. The best way to check the seasonings is to poach a small amount of the mixture in simmering water and taste.
• For the stock, place the fish bones and heads in a stockpot. Cover with cold water, and bring to a boil. Boil about 5 minutes, skimming constantly. Lower heat to a simmer.
• Add the remaining stock ingredients except the salt, and simmer gently about 1 1/2 hours, adding additional water as needed to keep the ingredients covered. Strain through a very fine strainer. Season with salt.
• Pour the stock into a large shallow saucepan. Add the carrots, and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Remove the carrots, slice them and refrigerate. Add enough water to the stock so the liquid is about 3 inches deep. Bring to a simmer.
• Keeping your hands wet with cold water, form the fish mixture into oval patties about 3 inches long. Slip as many as will fit comfortably into the pan, and poach for 30 minutes. Remove and drain them, and continue poaching the rest. When all the fish is cooked, transfer it to a bowl or serving dish, scatter the carrot slices over it and refrigerate.
• Boil down the cooking liquid until it is reduced to about 3 cups. Strain through a fine strainer. Spoon some over the cooled fish. Refrigerate the rest. It should jell. Skim the surface.
• Serve the fish cold with horseradish and jellied broth on the side.

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.