I first tasted kedgeree a few weeks after I arrived in the UK. The friend who was hosting me at the time threw a brunch. ‘We have to make kedgeree’, she said. ‘It’s one of the most interesting dishes. It was part of my own welcome to this country, so now we will make it part of yours.’ And indeed we prepared it and it was delicious. This dish combines warm and metallic spices, smoked fish, comforting rice, soft boiled eggs and fresh herbs. Since then, I’ve prepared it a few times, but mostly for lunch. I find this combination of flavours particularly appealing, especially during the dull winter days.
So this week, we’ve got an oliveology take on this iconic dish. We are using bulgur wheat instead of rice, a bit of smoked haddock for flavour, and adding a few more interesting ingredients! What’s that you ask? Unripe lemon olives! They are hand picked at the beginning of the season and we love their unique crunchy texture. Their incredibly fresh flavour and lemony tones complement perfectly this dish!
Serves 4 for lunch
300g smoked haddock
2 medium onions
2 cloves of garlic
2 thumb-sized pieces of ginger
2 tbsp olive oil or butter
3 tablespoons kedgeree spice mix (or any curry powder of your choosing)
300g bulgur wheat
600ml water
salt
To serve:
1/2 tub of unripe olives
1 small bunch of coriander
4 soft boiled eggs
lemon wedges
Place the haddock in a pot and cover in water. Bring to the boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 10min, until fish is cooked through. Remove haddock and keep the water on the side. Flake the fish. You can keep the skin if you like.
Peel and finely chop the onions, garlic and ginger. In the same pot, add your oil and gently fry the onions, garlic and ginger. Add the spice mix and fry in gently heat until translucent and caramelised. Add the bulgur wheat and stir until it’s coated in the fragrant oil/vegetables. Add the water you have reserved from the haddock, adding more water if needed. You need 600ml in total. Season with salt. Turn up the heat and bring to the boil. Lower the heat and let the bulgur wheat absorb all liquid. Taste and add more water if needed.
Serve with the olives, coriander, eggs and lemon wedges.
