Curried fish cakes with spinach and poached egg

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This delightful curried fish cake recipe is served with a perfectly poached egg and some simple buttered spinach for an intriguing twist on a classic. The mellow, heady korma spices from the Patak's Korma Spice Pot meld perfectly with the smoked haddock, and the addition of coriander brings plenty of freshness to the dish.

First published in 2017

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

Curried fish cakes

To serve

Method

1
Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4
2
To begin, pierce the baking potatoes all over and place them in the oven for an hour to an hour and a half, until they feel soft to the touch – use a tea towel when testing this! Leave the potatoes to cool
3
Next, place a wide saucepan onto the hob and pour in the milk, sliced onion, chilli, bay leaf and peppercorns. Bring to a bare simmer and leave to gently bubble away for 10 minutes
4
Place the smoked haddock in the milk, you may need to slice the fillet up so it fits snugly in the pan. Gently poach for 8–10 minutes, until it begins to flake. Remove the fish from the poaching liquor and leave to cool
5
Cut the potatoes in half and scoop the flesh into a bowl (the skins can be saved for stuffing in other dishes, so don’t throw them away). Mash the potato up with a fork to loosen and fluff up, then add the flakes of haddock, peeling them away from the skin
6
Add the korma paste, chopped coriander, lemon zest and cayenne pepper and fold everything together, being careful not to mix too vigorously. You want to keep some of the flakes intact. If your mixture seems a little bit dry, you could add a tablespoon of the milk used to cook the fish to loosen, but do err on the side of caution
7
Check for seasoning, then portion out into 8 balls and flatten into fishcakes. Place on a plate, cover with cling film and leave in the fridge for at least an hour to firm up
8
When you are ready to cook, place a large frying pan on the hob over a medium heat, drizzle in a healthy glug of oil and then add the fishcakes. Fry them off for 10 minutes, flipping occasionally, until the outside becomes crisp and golden (you may have to do this in batches, so it is worthwhile preheating your oven so you can keep them warm)
9
To cook the spinach, simply place it into a large saucepan on the hob over a medium heat and stir to encourage the leaves to wilt. This should only take a couple of minutes. Squeeze out any excess water when done and add a drop of the leftover lemon juice to taste
10
To poach the eggs, place a wide saucepan on the hob filled with boiled water from the kettle. Bring to a gentle simmer and then stir to create whirlpool. Crack your eggs in swiftly. The motion of the water should help them spin and form. Set the timer for 2 minutes, then swiftly hoist them back out and place on a tray lined with kitchen paper to soak up and excess water
11
To serve, spoon a portion of the spinach on each plate and place two fish cakes on top. Add a poached egg to the side and lightly dust with some smoked paprika. Finish with a scattering of red chilli

Danny is a food adventurer, home grower, supper club host and writer of the entertaining and quirky epicurean blog, Food Urchin.

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