Potted Salmon

A recipe for potted salmon from Hannah Glasse that Anne Willan selected to include in Women in the Kitchen is a simple and satisfying exemplar of eighteenth century English cuisine that incorporates robust seasonings of allspice, clove and pepper. May be doubled or tripled at constant proportion.

• 4 oz clarified butter (see the Notes)
• ½ lb skinless salmon
• heaped ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
• heaped ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
• heaped ¼ teaspoon ground mace
• heaped ¼ teaspoon pepper
• scant ½ teaspoon salt
• more clarified butter for topping the pot

Preheat the oven to 350°

1. Combine the spices, pepper and salt then smear the mixture over the fish and press it into the flesh.
2. Melt the butter.
3. Drop the seasoned salmon into a shallow baking dish lined with parchment paper and bake it until just flaky, usually in about 15 minutes.
4. Let the salmon cool, then pour off the butter and chill it.
5. Dump the salmon into a food processer or blender, pour off any liquid that has arisen from the butter, then add the butter to the salmon and grind the mixture to a paste.
6. Press the salmon mixture firmly into the pot or pots of your choice, ensuring that you eliminate any pockets of air.
7. Melt the amount of butter required to coat your pot or pots to a depth of about a generous quarter of an inch.

Notes:

-To clarify butter, melt it and then remove the white solids, or whey. Alternatively buy a jar of ghee, simply the Indian term for melted butter Ghee is widely available at specialty shops, Indian grocers and even Trader Joe’s.

-Clarification extends the shelf life of the pot considerably at larder temperature; with the advent of refrigeration it is no longer required as a preservative but does improve the flavor of the pot.

-Consistent with the practice of her time, Mrs. Glasse does not provide measurements in her recipe. Given the eighteenth century English palate, Willan seasons her potted salmon with too much timidity, mere half teaspoons of each spice for a whopping two pounds of salmon. Inauthentic.

-Willan also cuts her salmon into biggish chunks for potting, not a common practice for pots at any time. Grinding the fish, meat or cheese for a pot helps extend the time it will keep so that has been the predominant practice--except for the iconic pot made with Morecamb Bay shrimp which are, however, tiny.