This isn’t a traditional recipe for the Anglo-Indian fish and rice dish. I fold smoked haddock into the rice with a curried béchamel sauce. This results in a creamy, rich dish, not too sauces, just enough to avoid the kedgeree being dry. I like plenty of hard boiled eggs so most mouthfuls get some and serve it with mango chutney.
Serves 4
Prep: 20 min
Cook: 45 min
300g basmati rice
450g un-dyed, naturally smoked haddock (the thicker the piece the better)
350ml milk
4 black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
40g butter
1 level tbsp curry powder
1 level tbsp flour
1 onion
100ml single cream
4 hard-boiled eggs (9 minutes boil from cold)
small bunch flat leaf parsley
Wash the rice until the water runs clean and place in a saucepan with 450ml water. Bring to the boil, cover and then turn the heat as low as possible. Cook for 10 minutes, remove from the heat and leave without removing the lid for 10 minutes. The rice should be light and fluffy, having absorbed all the water. Meanwhile, place the smoked haddock in a large frying pan or similar, add the bay leaf and peppercorns and pour over the milk. Simmer gently for 10 minutes or until the fish is just cooked through. Lift the fish onto a plate, peel the skin off the fish, flake into big chunks (taking care to remove all bones) and keep warm (I did this part in advance and covered the fish in the hot milk with a stretch of clingfilm over the top until I was ready to flake it). Peel, halve and finely chop the onion. Melt the butter in a small pan and cook the onion over a gentle heat until limp and golden. Stir in the curry powder and flour and continue stirring for a minute or two to allow the curry power and flour to cook. Strain the milk into the mixture, stirring vigorously as the sauce comes to simmer. Cook, stirring every now and again, for about 5 minutes. Add the cream and bring back to simmer. Season with black pepper, remove from the heat and stir in the flaked fish. Have ready a warmed serving bowl. Tip the rice into the bowl and gently fold the sauce into the rice. Halve the eggs and arrange on top. Add chopped parsley for pretty (a quaint American expression I found, I think, in an old James Beard book).