Smoked Haddock Chowder

Smoked haddock is the ingredient du jour recently and I've been looking for different ways to use it. I've found recipes for risotto, gratin and this one for a chowder. Not something that I've ever really had before a few years ago. I would probably never have served it up as a main, thinking, 'it's soup, that's not a proper meal!'. I had to take this back a few years ago when I was fed it by my friend Emily. It may be a soup, but it's so filling and so tasty.

The fish with potatoes, sweetcorn, leek and milk is a lovely delicate flavour combination which has started me thinking about what else it could go into. The soup is great, but what about a quiche or even a smoked haddock version of a croque-monsieur?

Anyway, what more can you say about soup? Here's the recipe:

Smoked Haddock Chowder

Serves two

approx 40g of butter
1 large leeks, thinly sliced
a sprinkle of dried thyme
1/2 can of sweetcorn
a handful of new potatoes, cut into bite-sized chunks
a couple of undyed smoked haddock fillets
milk, enough to cover the fish
a splash of vegetable stock
2 bay leaves
a sprinkling of black peppercorns
a good handful fresh flatleaf parsley, roughly chopped

In a deep pan, heat the butter until melted, add the leeks with the thyme and cover with a circle of wet greaseproof paper big enough to tuck down a little over the leeks. Cover with a lid so no steam escapes, and cook gently for about ten minutes. Add the potatoes to the pot. Replace the greaseproof paper and the lid and continue to cook for a further ten minutes.

Meanwhile, place the smoked haddock fillets in another shallow pan and pour in the milk, enough to just cover the fish. Add a bay leaf or two and a sprinkling of peppercorns. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook the fish for eight minutes or so, being careful not to overcook it.

Lift the lid of the pan containing the leeks and remove the greaseproof paper. Test the potatoes with a point of a knife. If they're still hard add the stock and some of the milk to the pan and simmer the potatoes a little more until their tender. Once the potatoes are cooked add the flaked haddock to the pan with the rest of the milk, making sure that you don't add the bay leaves or peppercorns. Season. Bring to a simmer and finish with a good sprinkling of chopped parsley before taking the pan to the table for the food to be served into bowls.