Just because we’re in Dorset doesn’t mean we can’t celebrate Burns Night with our Scottish friends! Whether you’ve got Scottish ancestry or perhaps you want to sample some cuisine from north of the border – either way, here’s a recipe for Cullen Skink – a staple at Burns Night suppers.
Ingredients:
50g butter
1 tbsp vegetable oil
3 onions, diced
1 celery stick, diced
2 leeks, diced
1 bay leaf
½ lemon, juiced
5 dashes of hot sauce
1 fish stock cube
800g potatoes, peeled and diced
4 smoked haddock fillets, de-boned
500ml cream (single or double, depending on your preference)
You can grab the most important ingredient – the haddock from fishmongers all over Dorset. Try one of these options. You can find your potatoes and other veg from one of these places and get local cream from here. You can even find Dorset made sauces here.
Method:
Heat the butter and oil together in a large saucepan and once hot, stir in the onions, celery and leeks and sweat for around 15 minutes until translucent. The longer you sweat the veg for, the sweeter the final product will be, so for something less sweet, sweat for a max of 10 minutes. Just make sure to stir frequently to avoid burning.
Add the bay leaf, lemon juice, hot sauce and salt and pepper to taste and then crumble in the fish stock cube and cook for a further five minutes.
Add the potatoes and cook for 10 minutes and add 1 ltr boiling water so the veg is completely covered then simmer over a medium heat until the potatoes are soft.
Add the haddock and reduce the heat cooking for five minutes until it starts to break up. Pour in the cream and season to taste.
Simmer over a low heat for around 10 minutes to allow the soup to thicken up and then serve in bowls. If you like, you can serve with a sprinkling of fresh chives.
