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Passover Seder is not like Thanksgiving. The shank bone, egg, parsley, horseradish, and salt water that are included on the traditional Seder Plate are there primarily for symbolic reasons, not because they’re especially tasty.
Brad Levy, chef-owner of Firefly Restaurant in San Francisco, has done his best to change this, cooking Passover Seder for his customers for the last 13 years. CHOW followed him through the process of making Gefilte Fish, the traditional ground, deboned fish patties that typically come from a jar. Originally gefilte fish was stuffed back into the skin of the deboned fish, then served in slices. That’s why it’s called gefilte, which means stuffed or filled in Yiddish.
Also, according to Jewish folklore, fish are believed to bestow certain beneficial qualities on the eater, like fertility.
sorry, forgot to say that you must add the left over carrots to the water before cooking. slice them like coins and place them all over. they will add great taste and look to your fish.
I remember how my grand mother was handling fish -like a baby:) - from the moment of choosing one at the market to the point of placing it on the table.
Well, I decided to share with you some traditional way of making Gefilte fish. I come from Belarus and by us this wonderful dish was made different then shown on here. Gefilte fish in Yiddish means - stuffed fish, so you have to stuff the fish. We usually used carp and pike to make it. For Peisach we have never used any Matzo mehl for it because it's not permissible by the Laws of Peisach.
So...+READ
Well, I decided to share with you some traditional way of making Gefilte fish. I come from Belarus and by us this wonderful dish was made different then shown on here. Gefilte fish in Yiddish means - stuffed fish, so you have to stuff the fish. We usually used carp and pike to make it. For Peisach we have never used any Matzo mehl for it because it's not permissible by the Laws of Peisach.
So here it goes:
Whole carp, 2 onions, half cup of sugar, salt - by the taste, paper - by the taste, 1 whole potato, 2 big carrots, celery
Clean your fish from scales, find and gills - don't throw them out.
half cut the skin by the head and take out all insides. make sure to preserve the caviar - you can use if for the filling or prepare it separately.
using fillet knife separate the flesh from the skin so the skin would leave the perfect shape of the fish. if it is difficult for you - make perfect slices but don't cut the stomach of the fish. the main idea is to take out all the bones and flesh and leave the skin for stuffing.
separate the flesh from bones - small bones are ok - they will dissolve in the cooking process one they are chopped up thin enough.
peal the onions and don't throw out the onion peals. add fish flesh, 1 carrot, onions, 3 eggs, potato and spices to the grinder. in the process add some vinegar and water. grind it. I always add cellary, dill, parsley, basilisk or anything else I find in my kitchen.
In a wide pot lay out sliced onion - as much as you want. take all the bones, onion shell, gills and fins, and put them into some cheese cloth, place them on the bottom.
Now stuff the skin with the ground flesh. if you like that flesh to be harder - let it cool for a while and add some starch, if you like it to be softer - add some seltzer. Don't be afraid if the mass is too soft - eggs and potato will do the job.
place your fish or the stuffed slices on top of the onions.
now pour the water so it barely covers the fish.
Take some sugar into some metal vessel and burn it so it turns black. pour it into the water. Ad as much of an onion shell as you can.
add some slat, sugar and pepper into the water.
Cook in the oven for not less then 2 hrs covered.
In Ukraine they add some beats to the water and they don't add the burnt sugar. Hungarians add more sugar so it is sweet and polish - add more pepper - it is all up to you. Romanians do not eat fish on Passover at all:)
Once the fish is ready - place it on a nice long dish, decorate it with fresh dill and parsley.
I apologies for my limited English and I hope you got the point:)-COLLAPSE
This was an awesome step by step breakdown and I found it very helpful for my first time preparing gefilte fish.
On the West Coast it is indeed difficult to find the traditional fish, so after discussing w/ my fishmonger, we decided to go with Atlantic Cod.
It turned out wonderfully...(almost) just like grandma used to make :)
As for tasting the mixture before adding the matzo meal, I just pan...+READ
This was an awesome step by step breakdown and I found it very helpful for my first time preparing gefilte fish.
On the West Coast it is indeed difficult to find the traditional fish, so after discussing w/ my fishmonger, we decided to go with Atlantic Cod.
It turned out wonderfully...(almost) just like grandma used to make :)
As for tasting the mixture before adding the matzo meal, I just pan cooked a little chunk w/ a little olive oil...that gave me a pretty good idea of what it tasted like. (similar to the test patty method in making sausage)...I personally wouldn't eat raw fish unless it's sushi grade.-COLLAPSE
I was intrigued enough to Google the parasite, which is a fish tapeworm! There is a story at this link: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/08/health/08case.html
Really quite nasty!
That is a LOT of work. Unless I ever visit his restaurant, I'll continue to buy mine in a jar. We eat ours with the traditional horseradish sauce - but we also serve kosher red lumpfish caviar with it to add a bit of saltiness and extra flavor.
I wished I'd seen this before passover!!!
When I asked Brad of Firefly about the tasting of the fish, he replied, "I don't know about particular parasites in the fish I used, but I taste and spit, not swallow. But what I do know is very little joy exists without peril." I love that he said that, but it sounds as though this parasite question merits more research. I'll see what I can do about that. Thanks for your comments everyone!...+READ
When I asked Brad of Firefly about the tasting of the fish, he replied, "I don't know about particular parasites in the fish I used, but I taste and spit, not swallow. But what I do know is very little joy exists without peril." I love that he said that, but it sounds as though this parasite question merits more research. I'll see what I can do about that. Thanks for your comments everyone! Meredith-COLLAPSE
I repeat the warning: DO NOT taste the fish raw. You can (like many gefilte-making housewives) contract a fish tapeworm. Yes, it's curable, but why let yourself get sick in the first place! Do a little research by googling "gefilte fish parasite."
My daughter-in law --on the East Coast but originally from LA--makes salmon, baked in strips and served with a tomato "marmelade" that's so good I never get beyond it in the meal.
Don't taste the raw gefilte mix! There's a particular form of parasite that Jewish women used to get from tasting raw gefilte fish, although I can't remember the particular name.
What is with the traditional cooking times of two hours or so? I never understood that.
Here on the west coast, I've used salmon and halibut because they don't have the traditional fish here. It's good, but looks like children's aspirin. And Regan is so right about thie gills. I didn't know that the first time. That was pretty sad.
Gills make stock bitter too. You also don't want to add any of the guts or scales, but it looks like these fish came gutted and scaled.
Who knew fish fins were bitter!