Topic: Kedgeree, anyone ?

[Peripatetic Phil]

I have a nice piece of undyed smoked haddock left over from last night's dinner, deliberately saved with the intention of making kedgeree tonight (rice, flaked smoked fish, boiled egg slices, parsley, spices) and was surprised to see almost no mention of this traditional Anglo-Indian dish on CR0.  Does anyone else make/enjoy kedgeree, and if so, what is your favourite recipe ?

** Phil.

[Unclefrank]

Hi Phil i do mine like this
Pre cooked rice
I place fish in some foil with enough rice to go underneath the fish (stops it from sticking)
once fish is cooked i get my big frying pan out then place madras powder (measurement vary) just keep tasting and the rice and stir to coat the rice ,the juice thats left over in the foil i put that in as well along with a little butter and the rice from under the fish, i add mushrooms, peas, salt and pepper  then cook until all is mixed and heated through i also do sometimes cover it and cook like that.
Not really a "real recipe" but my other half likes it so that will do for me.

[Peripatetic Phil]

Thank you, Uncle Frank : much appreciated !
** Phil.
--------
Incidentally, I thought I'd check the recipes in the books I have available, and try to identify the recurring themes.  These seem to be (on the basis of three samples) very limited. although the first two clearly have more in common with each other than with the third ...  All of those analysed in the table are from authentic Indian sources, and none make any mention of fish, egg or parsley : Constance Spry, on the other hand, clearly describes what most English people would think of as "kedgeree", but also gives useful tips on how the dish is served in India : "[C]oloured a delicate yellow with turmeric, and has thin strips of chilli pepper and green ginger in the rice, the whole garnished with crisply fried onions and hard-boiled eggs.  The cream is left out."

Rice	Rice	Rice
Lentils	Lentils	Lentils
Ghee	Ghee	Ghee
Salt	Salt	Salt
Onion	Onion	---
Garlic	Garlic	---
Ginger	Ginger	---
Cloves	Cloves	---
Cardamom	Cardamom	---
Allspice	---	---
Turmeric	---	---
---	Cumin	Cumin
---	---	Garam Masala
---	---	Fresh Coriander

... and now I've splashed my (previously unsullied) Constance Spry, with turmeric and ghee of all things.  D@mn 

[Later] OK, so it's cooked, eaten, and the remainder put away for lunch tomorrow.  Verdict : "not bad".  I was very light-handed with my spicing, and had to augment it virtually at the last minute, and would probably use maybe 1 1/2 times as much in the future.  Recipe, for what it's worth, as follows :

• 1 cup basmati rice, thoroughly washed and then cooked in a small excess of water in the microwave oven for 12 minutes, then allowed to stand with the lid on for about an hour.
• 1 piece of pre-cooked un-dyed smoked haddock.
• 2 hard-boiled free-range eggs
• 1 large shallot
• A little julienne of ginger, and one Chinese dried red chilli cut into thin strips
• Some ghee
• A little kala jeera
• A little turmeric
• A little CA curry masala
• About eight elachi seeds (inner, not pods)
• A few small fragments of Indian bay
• A few grinds of rock salt
• A sprinkling of frozen parsley, rubbed between the fingers.

I melted the ghee on a low heat (20%), added the shallot (cut into very small pieces), added the turmeric, gave it all a good stir, added the cardamom seeds, the chilli strips, the Indian bay, the julienne of ginger, the curry masala, gave it all another good stir and left it to gently bhoon for a few minutes; the smell was very pleasant, due (I think) mainly to the kala jeera.  I then added one desert-bowl of the cooked rice, gave it another good stir, added the pre-flaked and skinned haddock, further good stir, half the egg (pre-sliced), and most of the parley, a final stir and then put the lid on.  When it had had time to warm through, I tasted it and found it definitely needed salt, so gave it a half-a-dozen grinds of rock salt.  That was much better, but still lacking, so in a separate small saucepan I melted some further ghee and then gently bhooned a flat teaspoon of g/g paste and a flat teaspoon of Rajah hot Madras curry powder.  Kept stirring until the bubbles started to appear, added a little ground rock salt, then added the spice-laden ghee to the kedgeree that was still in the wok.  Gently worked the ghee and spices into the kedgeree, garnished with the remaining hard-boiled egg slices and served.  Forgot to garnish with the remaining parsley !

Improvements for next time : grind the elachi (no liquid, so seeds don't soften), increase the Chinese chilli content (very mild), increase spicing by a factor of about 1.5

[livo]

I've always wanted to try this as I love smoked cod.  I found some reduced price fish yesterday so finally did it last night and it was delicious.  I used Naga's recipe from Recipe Tin Eats.  Had to do without the curry leaves. My tree has departed this world.  I substituted diced carrot and broccoli for the peas as Mrs L doesn't like peas much.

https://www.recipetineats.com/kedgeree/

I also made a basic curry sauce to go on the side, which I found to be a very enjoyable combination.  It must be OK as Mrs has taken leftovers to work for lunch today.

[tempest63]

Bit late for you now Phil, but this is one I have scribbled down but for the life of me I cannot remember how it turned out. It originally came from a London hotel.

Kedgeree

A classic colonial breakfast from the iconic Piccadilly eatery. If it’s a bit too rich before midday for you, it fits the bill for supper, too.
Recipe supplied by Lawrence Keogh, The Wolseley

Serves 4
For the sauce
1 tbsp vegetable oil
75g onions, finely diced
30g ginger, finely chopped
10g garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp mild curry powder
1 tsp cumin seeds
50g madras curry paste
1 litre fish stock
500ml double cream
Salt and black pepper

For the kedgeree
250g basmati rice
1 tsp ground turmeric
500ml kedgeree sauce (above)
400g smoked haddock, poached in milk, then flaked
½ bunch parsley, chopped
Salt and black pepper
4 eggs, gently poached


1 To make the sauce, in a large, heavy-based saucepan, heat the vegetable oil then cook the onions, ginger and garlic for 5 minutes, until soft but not coloured. Add the curry powder and cumin seeds, then cook for 3 more minutes. Stir frequently. Add the curry paste, then cook, still stirring, for 2 more minutes. Add the fish stock and reduce by ¾, then add the double cream and simmer for 10 minutes, until thickened.

Whizz to a smooth sauce in a blender, then season with salt and pepper.
 
2 Cook the rice as per packet instructions in a saucepan with the turmeric. Gently reheat the sauce, then gradually add to the rice pan, stirring, until you have a thick rice pudding consistency. Add the smoked haddock to the pan and gently warm through.
 
3 To serve, divide the kedgeree between four bowls then scatter with chopped parsley, season with salt and pepper then top each with a soft poached egg.

There is always the Felicity Cloake version from the Grauniad. I have used her recipe before which is a lot simpler that the one above ang gave a good result.
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2011/feb/24/how-to-cook-perfect-kedgeree

[Peripatetic Phil]

Good Lord, I see I was quite creative in those days !  How tempus fugit.

[livo]

I can see I have a few different versions to try.  I will say that we enjoyed it and both Mrs L and I ate leftover for lunch yesterday. I warmed mine whereas she ate hers cold with a salad and the eggs.  This will be a repeat performer around here as I can usually always get smoked cod at a good price as not many people buy it anymore.  Even at full price, it isn't expensive.  It is an easy dish to prepare.

I like the look of the sauce on your Piccadilly recipe T63.  I'll have to give it a go.