This is a quintessential Scottish dish that’s great as part of a celebratory meal or as a wholesome, comforting soup on a winter’s night. It has a sense of occasion, using luxury, rich, indulgent ingredients, but is relatively easy and cheap to produce. I make a thick, velvety soup base, then cook extra leeks and potatoes for a chunky texture, used as a garnish along with the fish.
It’s my all-time favourite soup, which I never tire of preparing. This recipe makes a little extra — I always find I’m looking in the fridge for a portion the day after. You will need a good blender to ensure the soup is silky smooth.
For the soup and garnish
Ingredients
Pair of Arbroath smokies
2 litres whole milk
100g butter
200g sliced white onion
200g sliced white of leek, plus 200g more for garnish
4 cloves of garlic
600g potatoes, peeled, washed and sliced, plus 400g peeled and cut into rough 3cm cubes
200ml fish stock
1 tbsp salt
Juice of 1 lemon
Chopped chives
Method
1. Remove the skin from the smokies, setting aside for later, and carefully pick the flesh from the bones. Set the flesh aside and add the bones to a stock pot with the milk. Bring to the boil, then remove from the heat to infuse the milk with the smoked bones and skin. After 15-20 min strain, reserving the liquid, and discard the bones.
2. Melt the butter over a medium-high heat and add the onion, 200g of the leek, the garlic and salt. Sweat for 6-8 min, until soft, then add the 600g sliced potatoes.
Advertisement
3. Cook for another 2 min, then add the fish stock and the infused smoked milk. Bring to a simmer, then cook until the potatoes are very soft. Blitz with a hand blender until smooth and strain through a sieve. Adjust the seasoning with salt and lemon juice.
4. To make the potato, leek and fish garnish, cook the 400g potato chunks in salted boiling water until al dente; drain and keep warm. Cook the remaining 200g leek in a little butter until soft, add to the potatoes, then add in the fish.
For the cornbread
You will need a cast-iron pan roughly 20cm in diameter. You can use a regular oven-proof pan if you don’t have a cast-iron one.
Ingredients
125g plain flour
125g yellow cornmeal
1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
1 tbsp salt
5g dried pepper dulse seaweed
375ml buttermilk
115g melted butter
150g Isle of Mull cheddar, grated
Method
1. Preheat your oven to 190C/gas 5. Mix the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and dried seaweed in a mixing bowl. Add in the buttermilk, melted butter and cheddar, and mix thoroughly.
Advertisement
2. Heat the cast-iron or oven-proof dish in the oven with a knob of butter until hot. Carefully remove from the oven and pour in the batter until it reaches ¾ of the way up the pan. Return to the oven and bake for 15-20 min, until golden brown. Turn onto a chopping board and cut into triangles.
To serve
Warm the soup and divide the potato, leek and fish garnish between 4 bowls. Ladle over the hot soup, and sprinkle with chopped chives. Enjoy with the cornbread on the side.
