Kedgeree

Ingredients

• 500 g smoked haddock, undyed
• 300 g basmati rice, rinsed
• 400 ml milk
• 2 bay leaves
• 4 eggs
• 50 g butter
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 tsp mild curry powder
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 100 g frozen peas
• a big handful of parsley, chopped
• 1 lemon, in wedges

Method

1. Poach the haddock in milk

   Simmer the haddock gently in the milk with the bay for 6 minutes, then lift it out, flake it and keep the milk. Undyed haddock, if you can get it — the bright yellow kind is dyed and tastes harsher.

   6 min

2. Soft-boil the eggs

   Boil the eggs for 7 minutes and drop them straight into cold water. Seven minutes leaves the yolk just jammy, which is what you want folded through hot rice.

   7 min

3. Bloom the spices

   Cook the onion in the butter until soft, then add the curry powder and turmeric and fry for a minute. Cooking the powder in butter rather than stirring it into the rice later is what stops it tasting dusty.

   10 min

4. Cook the rice in the poaching milk

   Stir the rice through the spiced butter, then add the strained poaching milk topped up with water to 480 ml. Bring to a boil, cover, and cook on the lowest heat for 11 minutes.

   11 min

5. Rest with the peas on top

   Scatter the frozen peas over the surface, put the lid straight back on, and leave off the heat for 10 minutes. They cook in the trapped steam and the rice finishes evenly.

   10 min

6. Fold everything through

   Fork the flaked fish and parsley through gently, top with the halved eggs, and serve with lemon. Stir hard and the fish breaks up and the rice goes claggy.