Kedgeree is a dish swiped from Indian culture during the days of the British Raj. It appears to be derived from an Indian dish, khichri, which was made with onions, rice and lentils. In England, in its purest form, kedgeree is a curried rice combined with smoked haddock and egg and it became quite the breakfast item for the upper classes in the Victorian Age. Think of our friends at Downton Abbey enjoying an early morning gallop through the dewey countryside, returning to a chafing dish of Kedgeree whipped up by dear Mrs Patmore, to be devoured alongside deviled kidneys, toast and lashings of tea.
And while kedgeree’s roots stand squarely in tradition, it is happy to oblige a myriad of modern options — including eating it for dinner, not just breakfast. Over the years I have fine tuned mine to just the way I like it. I use coconut rice which adds a delicious richness and complements the curry beautifully. I love lots of peas, mushrooms (depending on who’s eating it), parsley, chives and a generous squeeze of lemon, even a little lemon zest if you so fancy. But any of these can be left out or substituted for other ingredients: asparagus would be nice or cilantro perhaps.
As for the fish, smoked haddock can be hard to find, but smoked salmon is an excellent substitution as is smoked trout (Trader Joe’s has a good one) but to be honest, even smoked fish isn’t entirely necessary— use regular salmon or a white fish.
Even the method of cooking the eggs can be varied. You can hard boil half a dozen or so, chop them up and mix them in with the rice (traditional), but these days I’m more inclined to serve the kedgeree with either a soft boiled (seven minute) egg or a poached egg which I love for the runny yolk.
Kedgeree
- jasmine or basmati rice, well rinsed – 2 cups
- coconut milk – 1 can
- chicken stock – 1 cup
- salt – 1 teaspoon
- onion – 1, chopped
- garlic – 3-4 cloves, minced
- curry powder – 1 tablespoon
- cumin – 1 teaspoon
- garam masala – 1/2 teaspoon
- peas – 8 ounces, cooked
- chives – 2-3 tablespoons, chopped
- parsley – 2-3 tablespoons, chopped
- juice of half a lemon
- smoked salmon – 4-6 ounces, flaked into chunks
- eggs – 6-8, cooked the way you like them
- Combine the rice, coconut milk, chicken stock and 1 teaspoon of salt in an oven proof dish, giving it a good stir to mix well. Place in a 400˚F oven and bake, covered, for 40 minutes.
- Meanwhile, sauté the onion over medium heat for a few minutes until translucent.
- Add the garlic and sauté for about 30 seconds before adding the curry powder, cumin and garam masala. Sauté for 1-2 minutes so the spices become fragrant. The mixture will be very dry.
- When the rice comes out of the oven, add the spiced onions to it and mix until well combined.
- Stir in the peas, chives, parsley, juice of the lemon and finally the salmon, mixing gently.
- If you’re using chopped boiled eggs you can mix this in here too. Otherwise serve on plates and top with soft boiled or poached eggs.