Smoked Haddock with Creamy Leeks and Mash

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Wide, shallow pan for poaching the fish
• •Heavy-bottomed saucepan with lid for the leeks
• •Large saucepan for the potatoes
• •Potato masher or ricer

Instructions

1. 1

   Start the potatoes

   Put the potatoes into a large pan of cold, salted water. Bring to a steady simmer and cook until they give way completely to a knife, no resistance at all, which takes about twenty minutes depending on their size. Don't rush this. Undercooked potato won't mash, it'll just break into stubborn lumps that nothing can fix.

2. 2

   Soften the leeks

   While the potatoes are on, melt the butter in a wide pan over a low heat. Add the sliced leeks and a good pinch of salt. Stir them through the butter, put a lid on, and let them sweat gently for ten to twelve minutes. You want them completely soft, silky, almost collapsed, with no colour at all. Stir now and then. If you hear sizzling rather than a quiet murmur, the heat is too high. When they've surrendered, pour in the cream, stir it through, and leave it on the lowest heat while you poach the fish.

   Split the leeks lengthways and wash them properly under cold running water. Grit hides between the layers and there is nothing worse than finding it in a forkful of something that should be entirely soft.
3. 3

   Poach the haddock

   Lay the haddock fillets in a shallow pan, skin side down. Pour the milk over them, tuck in the bay leaves and peppercorns, and bring it up to a bare simmer. You want the surface of the milk barely trembling, not bubbling. Poach for four to five minutes, until the fish has turned opaque and the flesh flakes easily when you press it gently with the back of a spoon. Lift the fillets out carefully and set them aside. Keep the poaching milk. It's golden and smoky and too good to waste.

   Ask the fishmonger for undyed haddock. The bright yellow stuff has been coloured artificially and tastes no different. Proper smoked haddock is pale, almost translucent, with a gentle smokiness that the dye only masks.
4. 4

   Mash the potatoes

   Drain the potatoes well and let them steam dry in the colander for a minute. Return them to the warm pan and mash with a generous knob of butter and a few splashes of the warm poaching milk. Work it until smooth and loose enough to fall lazily off a spoon. Season with salt and white pepper. Taste it. The poaching milk brings a whisper of smoke into the mash, which is the whole point.

5. 5

   Bring it together

   Spoon a generous mound of mash onto each warm plate. Settle the creamy leeks alongside, letting them spread and pool slightly. Lay the haddock on top of the leeks, skin peeled away if you like. Squeeze a little lemon juice over the fish, scatter the parsley if you have it, and carry the plates to the table. A recipe is a conversation, not a contract. Taste the leeks, adjust the salt, trust your instincts. That's all there is to it.

   If you want a little sauce, strain a few tablespoons of the poaching milk into the leek cream and let it simmer for a minute until it thickens slightly. Spoon it over the fish. Don't overthink it.

Chef Tips

• •The poaching milk is the secret ingredient. It carries the smoke from the haddock into everything it touches. Use it in the mash, stir a little into the leeks if you like, and don't throw the rest away. It makes extraordinary scrambled eggs the next morning.
• •Buy from a fishmonger if you possibly can. Supermarket smoked haddock is often thin, watery, and over-salted. A fishmonger's fillet will be thicker, firmer, and will hold together in the poaching milk instead of falling to pieces. If you can smell the sea when you unwrap it, you've done well.
• •Floury potatoes, not waxy. Maris Piper or King Edward will mash into something smooth and yielding. A waxy potato like Charlotte fights the masher and gives you something gluey. The wrong potato ruins the plate.
• •A glass of dry white wine suits this well. Something crisp and unoaked, Muscadet or a good Picpoul, cold from the fridge. But a mug of tea with the leftovers the next day is equally right.

Advance Preparation

• •The leeks can be made a day ahead and refrigerated. Reheat gently with an extra splash of cream to loosen them.
• •The mash is best made fresh, but the potatoes can be peeled and cut the morning of, kept in cold water until you're ready to cook.
• •The haddock should be poached just before serving. It takes five minutes and it's worth the last-minute effort.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 630g)