🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Cullen, Moray Firth coast, Scotland
Cullen skinkScottish smoked haddock soup
A thick Scottish soup from the town of Cullen made of smoked haddock, potatoes, onion and milk (often with a little cream or butter), with part of the potato mashed in to thicken it.
Origin and history
Cullen skink comes from the town of Cullen on the Moray Firth. 'Skink' is an old Scots word for a broth made from beef shin, and Moray Speyside links it to a Gaelic word for essence. In the early 1890s, many northern families could no longer afford beef and turned to fish; Cullen's smoked haddock then shaped the dish into its modern form. The town holds an annual Cullen Skink World Championship.
Make it at home
- Makes
- 4 servings
- Total time
- 50 min
- Hands-on
- 35 min
Ingredients
- 500 g1.1 lb undyed smoked haddock fillets, skin on; Finnan haddie if available
- 800 ml3 1/3 cups whole milk
- 150 ml2/3 cup water
- 1 bay leaf
- 30 g2 tbsp butter
- 1 large onion, finely diced
- 600 g1.3 lb floury potatoes, peeled, cut in 2 cm (3/4 in) pieces
- 75 ml1/3 cup double (heavy) cream, optional but common
- 1 small bunch chives or flat-leaf parsley, chopped
- to taste black pepper and salt, go easy on salt; the haddock is salty
Method
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1. Lay the haddock skin-side down in a wide pan with the milk, water and bay leaf. Heat to a bare tremble and poach for 6 to 8 minutes, until the flesh flakes. Do not boil.
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2. Lift out the fish, strain and keep the milk. Remove the skin and any bones and flake the fish.
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3. Melt the butter in the pot and soften the onion for 8 to 10 minutes without browning.
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4. Add the potatoes and the strained milk. Simmer for 15 to 18 minutes, until the potatoes are tender.
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5. Mash roughly half the potatoes in the pot with a fork or potato masher, leaving the rest in chunks, so the soup turns thick and creamy.
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6. Add the flaked haddock and the cream and warm for 2 to 3 minutes. Season with pepper and a little salt if needed.
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7. Serve with herbs on top and crusty bread or oatcakes.
Notes
- Undyed, naturally smoked haddock gives the best flavour; dyed yellow fish works but tastes sharper. Finnan haddie is the traditional smoked haddock.
- A leek (about 150 g) is often softened with the onion, as in the Live Breathe Scotland recipe. The recipe on the Moray Speyside championship page uses margarine, part-boiled potatoes and a little cornflour paste to thicken instead of mashing potato; mashing part of the potato, as here, is the other common route.
- Do not boil after adding the cream or the milk may split.
- Not a chowder: there is no salt pork or bacon. It is related to chowders by the fish, potato and milk.
- Keeps 2 days in the refrigerator; reheat gently. You can make it ahead without the cream and stir that in when reheating.
Adapted from Live Breathe Scotland, Traditional Cullen Skink and Moray Speyside, Cullen Skink World Championship.
At the festivals
Served at 1 festival in United Kingdom.
Earlier editions
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March 17, 2024
🇬🇧 Cullen, United Kingdom
Cullen Skink World Championships