Potato pancakes, smoked eel, poached eggs and horseradish
These rich potato pancakes by Jeremy Lee are topped with smoked eel, bacon, poached eggs, horseradish cream and chives. They are comforting, indulgent and come together very quickly. The batter, smoked eel, horseradish cream and chives can also all be prepared earlier in the day.
This recipe is taken from Cooking: Simply and Well, for One Or Many by Jeremy Lee (HarperCollins, £30) Photography: Elena Heatherwick
Jeremy says: "Given the recipe for these pancakes by his mother, La Mère Blanc, Georges Blanc, having become famous at his restaurant in Vonnas near Lyon, published it in his book Ma Cuisine des Saisons. Originally cooked like blinis, as fame grew so did their stature, the individual blini pan becoming as famous in kitchen shops as the pancakes themselves in kitchens. I loved best the version Alastair Little cooked at his restaurant in Soho, kindling an abiding love of smoked eel, although a discreet veil should be drawn over his opinion of Mr Blanc."
Ingredients
Metric
Imperial
- 450g of floury potatoes, such as King Edward
- 95g of self-raising flour
- 150ml of double cream
- 150ml of full-fat milk
- salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 5 whole eggs, room temperature, plus 2 whites
- 350g of smoked eel fillet
- 2 rashers of streaky bacon, unsmoked
- 2 tbsp of sunflower oil
- 150g of horseradish cream
- 1 bunch of chives, very finely chopped
Method
Peel the potatoes, rinse well and cut into even-sized pieces. Place these in a steamer over a gentle heat until fully cooked. Put the potatoes, hot from the steamer, into a food processor with the flour, cream, milk, a pinch of salt and black pepper, 3 whole eggs and 2 egg whites and beat vigorously until smooth. Decant the batter into a container, cover and refrigerate for at least an hour
- 450g of floury potatoes, such as King Edward
- 95g of self-raising flour
- 150ml of double cream
- 150ml of full-fat milk
- salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 3 whole eggs, room temperature, plus 2 whites
Cut the fillet of eel into 1cm-thick slices and sit them on a plate to one side
- 350g of smoked eel fillet
While the batter chills, heat the oven to 160°C/gas mark 3. Lay the rashers of bacon on a wire rack over a baking tray (or in a grill tray) and bake in the oven until crisp, roughly 12 minutes. Lower the oven to 120°C/gas mark 1/2 to keep the bacon warm
- 2 rashers of streaky bacon, unsmoked
Bring a pan of water to the boil. Add a pinch of salt and gently poach the remaining 2 eggs for 3–4 minutes, until the white is firm and the yolk runny. Place these in a dish and keep warm in the oven
- salt
- 2 whole eggs, room temperature
Heat a non-stick frying pan roughly 19cm in diameter over a moderate heat. Lightly oil the pan, then pour in a large ladle of batter and cook for around 2 minutes, until puffed at the edges. Carefully flip and cook on the other side until brown. Remove to a warm dish in the oven and repeat for the other pancake
- 2 tbsp of sunflower oil
Place each pancake on a plate, lay on the pieces of smoked eel and add a spoonful of horseradish cream. On this sit a warm poached egg, the rashers of bacon and finally a scattering of chives
- 150g of horseradish cream
- 1 bunch of chives, very finely chopped
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