Fish and brewis is one of Newfoundland's common fish dinners.

Brewis
A hard tack, hard bread or hard biscuit that has been soaked overnight and brought to a boil. It is usually eaten with salt or fresh fish and served with pork scrunchings (pieces of finely choped pork fat fried to a crisp). It is also good with bacon and eggs, a poached egg or beefsteak and gravy. Hard biscuit(brewis) was used as a bread substitute when men were at sea or away from home in the woods for a long time. Children like brewis with butter and sugar or molasses. Before being put to soak the brewis is usually broken and one story says that the "Cooke" on a schooner would be told to break up the brewis or “Bruise the bread”, hence the name bruise or brewis” used. A substitute for potatoes brewis can accompany any main course.

NEWFOUNDLAND FLIPPERS

“Flipper-the fore paw of a seal.”

Do not parboil. Take flippers and soak in cold water with 1 tablespoon baking soda for about ½ hour. The soda makes the fat show white-then take a sharp knife and remove all traces of fat. Render out fat back pork, dip flippers lightly in salted CREAM OF THE WEST Flour and fry until brown in the pork fat. Onions are optional-if you like them fry them with the flippers. Take from frying pan when brown and put in a covered roaster. Add onions, make gravy to which has been added Worcestershire sauce to taste, pour over flippers and allow to bake at 350 degrees F. until tender. They may then be put in a pastry or served as they are. Garnish with parsley and wedges of lemon, and you have a dish fit for a Viking

“To a Newfoundlander “fish” means cod. If you go to market and say “Have you any fish today?” The reply might well be—“No, but I have a nice piece of salmon.””

CODFISHCAKES

Cook onions in a very small amount of water. Mash together the fish, potatoes and parsnips. Add the onions and water in which they were cooked. Season. Add the beaten egg and combine well. Form into cakes; roll in bread crumbs. Fry in rendered pork fat.

2 onions, chopped
2 cups cooked salt codfish, boned and shredded
6 to 8 cooked potatoes
3 to 4 cooked parsnips
¼ teaspoon pepper
1 egg, well beaten
½ cup fine bread crumbs

“Rounders or tom-cods-small, salted unsplit codfish.”

“To smert, to pain or hurt “Be careful when frying fat, if it splatters on your hand it smerts.””

“A “scoff” a meal, especially one hastily served up aboard a vessel. Now it has come to mean a “boiled dinner” at party late at night”.

FRIED COD TONGES

Carefully wash fresh Cod Tongues and dry in a towel. Allow 6 or 7 per person. Put 1 ½ cups Cream of the West flour, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper together in a paper bag. Put tongues in and shake them until evenly floured. Cut up ½ pound salt pork and fry until golden brown. Remove pork cubes and fry tongues until nicely browned on both sides. Serve with potato and turnip fluff.

“ “You can’t tell the mind of a squid.” This refers to an unreliable person. A squid can move backward or forward” “.

Lobster cutlets

2 tablespoons butter
¼ cup of flour
½ cup milk
½ pound cooked lobster meat, cut up
1 teaspoon lemon juice or vinegar,
cayenne pepper, and salt to taste
1 egg, fine bread crumbs

Melt butter; add flour and stir to a smooth paste. Add milk and cook until sauce is thick, stirring constantly. Blend in lobster, lemon juice or vinegar and seasonings. Turn onto a plate and leave until cool and quite firm. Then shape into cutlets; dip in beaten egg; roll in bread crumbs. Fry until golden brown.

“ “He’s deaf as a haddock and she’s foolish as a caplin” ”.

Lobster soufflé

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons of flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
½ cup mayonnaise
3 egg yolks
1 cup lobster meat
3 egg whites

Melt butter’ add flour and salt, stir to a smooth paste. Add milk and cook until thickened, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and blend in the mayonnaise and well beaten egg yolks. Add finely broken lobster meat. Beat egg whites until stiff but not dry’ fold them into the lobster mixture. Pour into an un-greased 2-quart casserole. Place in a pan of hot water and over poach at 350 degrees F. for 45 minutes or until set and lightly browned.

“you are like a fish out of water.” -not at home in your environment.

Newfoundland Lobster Salad

3 freshly boiled lobsters, shelled
3 hard-cooled eggs, chopped
½ cup mayonnaise
½ cup sweet pickles, chopped
1 small onion, finely minced
½ teaspoon salt
few grains pepper

Cut lobster into bite size pieces; add other ingredients and toss together. Serve on lettuce leaves.

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