Caryl’s Recipe Collection – Fish Kedgeree

My Story…

When I was a little girl, our usual Saturday afternoon outing was to Cape Town Harbour to see what was going on with the catch of the day. There were concrete stalls with wooden planks to clean the fish on by the ‘fishwives’. They were very cheerful folk, usual women with lovely gap-tooth smiles, and always a hearty greeting.

My dad, who loved fish, and also a good bargain, would barter with them to get a good price for a snoek or yellowtail. He then drove home to my mom who he presented with his prize as proudly as if he had caught it himself…!!

The fish, whichever it was, was of course delicious and my mom knew just how to fry it in a good batter or grill in butter and lemon.

What was over, including the lovely soft flesh on the fishes’ head, was used in Kedgeree, a very old-fashioned dish which my Mom made often, or a pie, etc. No one could afford to throw anything away then as the food was a precious commodity so soon after World War 2.

So, as you can see, this is a very old-fashioned dish which my mom made often when we were children. She was a proud mom of 5 children who were always hungry…! So, you can make Kedgeree any way you wish with what fish is handy, even a can of salmon or pilchards are very tasty.

Kedgeree can be served with a white sauce on the side. Add more hardboiled eggs as you wish. Remember to make it nice and hot, piled in a dish with eggs and chopped parsley on top!

My Recipe – Old Fashioned Fish Kedgeree

1. 2 cups cooked rice
2. 2 cups cold cooked fish (can be canned fish)
3. 3 hard-boiled eggs
4. 4 tablespoons butter
5. Salt & pepper
6. Cayenne pepper
7. 1 medium onion diced
8. Fresh parsley

Method

1. Melt the butter in a pan and lightly brown the onion
2. Add the flaked fish, rice, and seasoning
3. Top with the sliced eggs and chopped parsley
4. Mix well together and serve warm.
5. Sprinkle parsley on top.
6. Lovely with salad as a light supper

Rowan recommends you enjoy with our Esona Chardonnay. It also goes with our Frankly My Dear Rosé