Preparation
- Melt the butter in a pan (about 20 cm in diameter) and soften the onion over medium heat for about 5 minutes without letting it brown.
- Stir in the cardamom, turmeric, cinnamon stick and bay leaves and cook for 1 minute, then add the rice and stir until every grain is coated in the spiced butter.
- Pour in the stock and ½ tsp salt, bring to the boil, stir once, put the lid on tightly and cook the rice over the lowest heat for 12 minutes.
- Meanwhile, bring water to the boil in a wide pan, poach the haddock in it for about 4 minutes until just cooked, lift it out and let it cool slightly. Boil the eggs for 8 minutes until hard.
- Remove the skin and bones from the fish and flake it; cool the eggs under cold water, peel and roughly chop them.
- Take off the lid, fish out the bay leaves, cinnamon stick and cardamom if you wish, and gently fold the fish, eggs and peas into the rice with a fork. Cover and heat for another 2 to 3 minutes until the fish is warmed through.
- Fold in almost all of the parsley, season with salt and pepper and serve with the remaining parsley and the lemon wedges.
Drink with it
White wine · excellent match
Lightly oaked Chardonnay or dry Riesling
Smoked haddock and butter call for acidity and a little roundness; the citrus notes of the wine echo the lemon wedges, and the mild spices do not disturb it.
Which wine pairs with food? A simple approach to choosingSparkling wine · excellent match
Champagne or Crémant brut
Kedgeree is a British breakfast and brunch dish: acidity and bubbles clear butter, egg and smoke from the palate.
Sparkling wine, Champagne, and Prosecco: what's the difference?Mellow whisky · good match
Mild Speyside or Irish whiskey, neat or with a little water
Soft malt and honey sweetness support the gentle smoke of the haddock and the butter; the dish has no heat that the alcohol would amplify.
Whisky with food: cheese, chocolate, and savory dishesSmoky whisky · good match
Lightly peated single malt, with a splash of water
A hint of peat picks up the smoke of the fish; heavily peated Islays, by contrast, would drown the mild rice dish.
Why Does Whisky Taste Smoky? Peat, Simply ExplainedPale lager · good match
Helles or Pils
Carbonation and mild bitterness cut through the butter and leave the fish in the foreground.
Pils or Helles: What's the Difference?
Why it pairs well
Whisky with fish is unusual; a soft, malty, honey-sweet whisky does go well with gently smoked haddock in buttery rice, just not as well as white wine or Champagne.