Recipe: Herby haddock potato pancakes

Published on Friday 6 March 2009 13:13

HERBY haddock potato pancakes demand a classic hollandaise sauce, and whipping up one of your own needn't leave you feeling scrambled

THIS is a classic marriage: eggs, hollandaise and haddock, all atop a herby potato pancake. It's the ultimate comfort food. It's also pretty versatile, making the perfect brunch but great for a simple supper, too.

As ever, produce is paramount. We use Aberdeen smoked haddock at the Cook School, with its lovely pale flesh. I wouldn't go near the dyed stuff, which is oddly coloured and tends to be rubbery. As for tatties, we use Red Roosters, which are tasty and versatile and work excellently in these pancakes.

Despite this being a simple dish, several techniques are involved. Cooking the fish takes all of four or five minutes but needs care to avoid overcooking. Frying the pancakes is another technique, then there's the hollandaise sauce – a classic emulsion. A lot of people are frightened of making hollandaise, but adopt our tips below and you'll never look back. Taking the fear out of supposedly tricky techniques is one of our goals.

Most of this recipe can be set up ahead of time, meaning you're not scrambling about at the last minute – no pun intended. Preparation is key to your success.

Potato and herb pancake with smoked haddock, poached egg and hollandaise sauce

Serves four

For the hollandaise sauce

15ml white wine vinegar

1 tbsp white wine

3 peppercorns

shallot, finely sliced

3 egg yolks

325g clarified butter (separated unsalted butter, see Critical Points)

Maldon salt and freshly ground black pepper

pinch cayenne pepper

squeeze lemon juice

For the potato pancake

300g plain mashed potato (no butter added), cooled but not chilled

2 free-range eggs

50g self-raising flour

2 tbsp milk

80ml double cream

2 spring onions, finely shredded

2 tbsp chopped green herbs (parsley, chervil, basil, chives)

olive oil for frying

For the fish

4 x 120g fillets undyed smoked haddock

splash of olive oil

10g unsalted butter

squeeze of lemon

4 poached eggs (cooked as you prefer, and kept in cold water)

Maldon salt

freshly ground black pepper

Micro greens or watercress, to garnish

First, make the hollandaise sauce. Put the vinegar, white wine, peppercorns, shallot and two tablespoons of water in a small pan, bring to the boil and simmer gently until the liquid is reduced to about three tablespoons.

In a metal bowl, placed over hot (but not boiling) water, whisk the egg yolks and strained vinegar liquid to the ribbon stage, which means it's sufficiently thick to leave a trail in the mix when drizzled from the whisk. The egg should reach 76C for it to be sterilised. If it does not reach this temperature, it is more likely to split when the butter is added, but get it too hot and the egg will scramble.

Remove the bowl from the heat, but do not set it on a cold surface. Ensure the clarified butter is just above blood heat (ie warm to the touch), otherwise it will curdle the eggs. Ladle the butter very gradually into the eggs, ensuring each helping is incorporated before adding the next, and gently whisk. The sauce should emulsify and become thick enough to sit without spreading too much.

Season well with salt, pepper, cayenne and lemon juice to taste. When ready, serve immediately, or make just before the meal and keep in a warmed wide-mouthed Thermos flask.

Next make the pancakes. Place the mashed potatoes in a bowl, beat in the eggs and fold in the flour. Heat the milk with the cream but do not boil. Add most of the hot cream and milk to the potatoes and stir. The amount needed will change depending on the type of potatoes and size of eggs. You're looking for a dropping consistency so add more milk or cream if necessary. Fold in the spring onions and chopped herbs, taste and season. Cover and set aside. This mix will hold for a couple of hours if you are not cooking from start to finish.

To cook the pancakes, use either two ovenproof blini pans or a larger ovenproof 20cm frying pan. We use blini pans, but if making a single larger pancake, allow an extra ten minutes in the oven and flip the pancake over after 15 minutes to make sure it's cooked through. Slice to serve.

Preheat the oven to 180C/gas 4. Heat the pans over a medium heat and add a tablespoon of oil. Ladle some of the mixture into the pans to produce a cake about 10cm across and 5mm thick. (I find a 70ml ladle is the perfect amount.) Cook for about two minutes until bubbles start to appear around the edges. Place the pan in the oven for eight to ten minutes to cook through and colour. Remove from the oven, flip over and leave for a minute before turning out the pancakes on to a baking sheet lined with non-stick baking parchment. Repeat the process until you have enough pancakes plus a couple of spares. You can make the pancakes ahead, wrap in foil and reheat for five minutes in the oven.

For the fish, place an ovenproof frying pan over a medium heat and warm. Add the oil and butter. When foaming, add the haddock and leave to caramelise on one side for two to three minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish. Turn over and place the pan in the oven for about two to three minutes until just cooked. Take care not to overcook the fish.

While the fish is in the oven, put the poached eggs in boiling water for two minutes, drain and put to the side (or cook from fresh). Remove the fish from the oven and squeeze over some lemon juice. Place a pancake on each of four warmed plates, top with a piece of haddock then a poached egg. Coat with the hollandaise, garnish with a few salad leaves and serve immediately.

Critical points

These potato pancakes are a doddle to make. Just make sure your potatoes aren't too cold or you'll never be able to mix the ingredients. The consistency should be quite solid, so don't add too much milk and cream in the first instance. You don't want the mixture sliding all over and you want a nice thick pancake. When it comes out of the oven the pancake should be nicely browned and cooked right through.

To make the clarified butter, put 500g unsalted butter in a small saucepan and melt, but do not let it boil and burn. The butter will separate, the milky solids sinking to the bottom and the oil floating to the surface. Either pour off the oil and use, or pour the whole lot into a jug and set in the fridge, then just lift off the crust of clarified butter and re-melt to use.

The trick with hollandaise is to keep the mixture at a constant temperature and to add the melted clarified butter gradually, whisking gently all the while. If the surface stays oily and the sauce is not emulsifying, add a spoonful of hot water to correct.