Fish House Recipes, 1940s

The Haddock Species

The most obvious characteristics in which haddock differs from cod are its black lateral line (that of cod and pollock is paler than the general ground tint) and the presence of a dusky blotch on the side over the middle of the pectoral fin and close below the lateral line. The margin of the haddock's tail is more concave or "lunate" than that of the cod; the haddock's mouth is relatively smaller, not gaping back to below the eye, and the lower profile of the face is straight and the upper only slightly rounded, giving the nose a characteristic wedge shaped outline in side view. The upper jaw projects further beyond the lower in the haddock than in the cod. The haddock is a slimmer fish than the cod and its scales (which clothe it from nose to tail) are smaller indeed hardly visible through the mucus with which the skin is coated.

A live haddock is very different from the pale drab object to be seen in the market. When fresh from the water the top of the head and the back down to the lateral line, are dark purplish gray, paling below the latter to a beautiful silver gray with pinkish reflections, with the black lateral line and the sooty shoulder patch just mentioned standing out vividly.

The haddock is a smaller fish than the cod, the largest on record being 37 inches long and weighing 24 1/2 pounds; the great majority running from 21 to 28 inches and from 3 to 7 pounds.

The haddock shows its age on its scales almost as clearly as does the herring. The rather level bottom on the eastern part of George's Bank is the most productive spawning ground for the haddock off the North American coast.

Spawning is at its height in mid April, in a temperature ranging from about 42° to 43°. It is estimated the number of eggs in a female of 19 1/4 inches is about 169,000. A fair average for eggs to spawn is 15 days.

Probably the lower limit of depth is about the same for haddock as for the cod, few being caught much below 100 fathoms; but on the average haddock live deeper than cod, very few being caught in less than 5 to 10 fathoms and most of them in 25 to 60 fathoms.

Most haddock are caught at South Channel and George's Bank by trawls, but hand lines and nets are also used.

The haddock owes its first commercial success to the fact that it is with this fish that finnan haddie is made, as finnan haddie has always been a very welcome food. In the last few years its commercial success has been in fillets.

The most popular ways of serving haddock in New England are baking, chowder, pan frying, and it also makes a good boiled fish.

Related Recipes
Baked Stuffed Haddock
Filet Of Haddock

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