When buying fish, choose those which are really in season and plentiful. Fish when not in season is frequently very unwholesome, and quite unfit for food.

The supply of fish is so uncertain, and its price so variable, that a housekeeper will find it her wisest plan to visit the fishmonger’s and see for herself what is best and cheapest for the day.

Fresh fish may be known by the brightness of the eyes, the redness of the gills, and the firmness of the flesh. The skin should be well covered with scales, and there should be no disagreeable smell. Do not buy fish when the gills are dark, the flesh flabby, and the eyes dull.