Kippers with Spiced Rice and a Poached Egg

This is a slightly different way of making kedgeree, using kippers instead of smoked haddock and poached instead of boiled eggs. It was very tasty, although be careful of all those little bones kippers seem to hide, they are such a pain!

Kippers with Spiced Rice and a Poached Egg (from Good Food Magazine January 2003)
(Serves 4)

2 plump kippers, about 650g total weight
2 tsp coriander seeds
2 tsp cumin seed
½ tsp black peppercorns
seeds from 2-3 cardamom pods
good pinch of saffron threads or ¼ tsp turmeric
1 dried red chilli or 1 tsp crushed chilli flakes
2 tbsp oil
50g butter
1 medium onion, chopped
225g basmati rice
600ml fish stock or water
1-2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
4 eggs

Put the kippers in a pan, cover them with hot water and simmer for 2 mins. Turn off the heat, cover the pan and leave the kippers in the hot water while you start the rice.

Crush the spices and chilli using a mortar and pestle. Heat the oil and butter in a large pan and cook the onion until soft. Tip in the rice and cook for 2-3 mins, stirring occasionally, then add the crushed spices and cook for another 2-3 mins.

Pour in the stock or water and bring to the boil, then cover and simmer for 10 mins until the rice is tender. There still needs to be a little moisture in the pan, so if it is dry, add more liquid and continue to cook. Taste and season.

Flake the fish, removing all the skin and bones. Gently fold the fish and coriander into the rice, then cover and cook over a low heat for 3-4 mins. At the same time, poach the eggs for about 2-4 mins until the whites are just cooked but the yolks are soft. Divide the rice between 4 bowls and top with a poached egg.

Kipper Chowder

This soup is from the new River Cottage book Light and Easy, which doesn't seem to have a TV series to compliment it. I was given it for Christmas and I have bookmarked in the traditional sense of the word lots of recipes to make from it. I'm also on a bit of a soup kick with all this cold weather, tis the season and all that! I really enjoyed this kipper chowder, you couldn't feel the bones of the kippers, which is the one thing I hate about them, so that and the lovely smoky flavour made the soup fantastic in my book!

Kipper Chowder
(Serves 4)

1 tbsp oil
1 large leek, quartered lengthways and sliced
250g potatoes, peeled and diced into 1cm cubes
2 garlic cloves, grated
4 kipper fillets
2 rounded tsp cornflour, mixed to a paste with water
850ml milk
2 bay leaves
small bunch parsley, chopped
small bunch chives, sliced
juice 1/2 lemon
salt and pepper

Put a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the oil, followed by the leeks. Season with a little salt and pepper and gently sweat the leeks for a couple of mins, until softened a little. Add the potatoes and garlic and cook for a further 3-4 mins, stirring often.

Meanwhile, carefully skin the kipper fillets and cut into 2cm pieces.

Stir the cornflour paste into the leek and potato mixture, then pour in the milk, add the bay leaves and bring to a simmer. Cook gently for 10-12 mins until the potatoes are almost tender. Add the kipper pieces and stir them in. Bring back to a simmer, then turn off the heat and put a lid on the pan. Leave to stand for 5-10 mins. This will cook the kipper and infuse the soup with its smoky flavour.

Add the parsley, chives, lemon juice and salt and pepper and serve.

Kipper, Spinach, Bacon and New Potato Salad

This was a really yummy salad, I love the mixture of smoked fish and salted bacon and the egg just brought everything together perfectly. It felt a bit like a breakfast salad, definitely one to make again.

• Kipper, Spinach, Bacon and New Potato Salad (from BBC Food)
  (Serves 4)
  
  
  6 rashers streaky bacon, fried until crisp
• 500g new potatoes, cooked and halved
• 350g spinach washed and dried
• 3 kipper fillets, bones removed, flaked

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• 2 tsp wholegrain mustard
• salt and pepper
• 4 eggs, poached, to serve
   
  For the salad, place all of the salad ingredients into a large bowl and gently stir.
  
  
  For the dressing, place all of the dressing ingredients into a bowl and mix well. Pour the dressing over the salad and stir to coat the salad ingredients.
  
  
  To serve, place the salad into a serving dish and top with the poached egg.

Kippers with Crushed New Potatoes

This is the first time I've had kippers in a very long time. For me they conjure up eating breakfast at a friend of my parent's house when I was a child, and even then they were novel as this only happened once a year. With everyone digging in, they had four children and we were three plus the parents and grandparents, and helping themselves. It was always a really good hearty breakfast with lots of laughter.

I did something a little different with my kippers and mixed them with potato. I'm a bit obsessive over bones so I had a lot of bone picking out to do, but this seems to be common to most oily fish so I'm becoming a little less picky than I was. The mixture was delicious. I served it with home made pickles, tomato salad and green salad.

Kippers with Crushed New Potatoes (from River Cottage Everyday)
(Serves 4)

1kg new potatoes, scrubbed
4 double kipper fillets
knob of butter
1-2 tbsp oil
2 tbsp parsley/chives, finely chopped
lemon juice
pepper

Boil the new potatoes in a pan of water until tender.

Meanwhile, skin the fish, removing any pin bones and flake the fish into large bite-sized pieces. Heat the butter and oil in a frying pan and cook the kipper pieces gently for a couple of mins. Take off the heat and stir in the herbs.

When the potatoes are cooked, drain well and return to the pan. Using a potato masher or wooden spoon, crush them lightly to form a rough, chunky mash.

Combine the fish and any juices in the pan with the mash. Season well with pepper and lemon juice and serve with a green salad.