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Scrambled Eggs with Findon Haddock
Skin and bone a pound piece smoked Findon haddock, then cut it in quarter-inch pieces, plunge into a pint boiling water, boil for eight minutes and drain on sieve. Crack eight fresh eggs in a bowl, add a half gill milk, half teaspoon salt, two saltspoons pepper, and beat up with a fork for one minute. Heat a tablespoon melted butter in a sautoire, drop in the eggs and cook for six minutes, frequently mixing meanwhile, add the fish, stir well for a minute, pour into a deep dish and serve.
A Victorian breakfast dish that works well today, provided you treat the salt and the timings with some suspicion. Finnan haddie is already seasoned by the cure, and eggs held over heat for six minutes are no longer scrambled eggs.
- Findon haddockThis is Finnan haddie, cold-smoked haddock; the name is usually traced to Findon, near Aberdeen, though Findhorn on the Moray Firth is also claimed. Sold in whole split sides or fillets. Undyed smoked haddock is the closest substitute; the bright yellow dyed fillets are generally more lightly cured and blander.
- Archaic measuresA gill is half a cup, so a half gill of milk is 1/4 cup. A saltspoon is a quarter teaspoon, making "two saltspoons pepper" about 1/2 teaspoon — assertive but plausible for eight eggs.
- SautoireA straight-sided shallow pan, wider than a saucepan. Any wide nonstick or well-seasoned skillet works; the width matters more than the shape because it lets the curds form evenly.
- Hold back the saltThe cure already seasons the fish, and how much salt it carries varies by supplier. Season the eggs lightly, combine with the fish, then taste before adding more.
- Cook the fish gentlyEight minutes at a rolling boil will toughen and shred cured haddock. Poach the diced fish in barely simmering water or milk for three to four minutes, until it flakes, then drain well so no liquid loosens the eggs.
- Six minutes is too longOver medium-low heat, eight eggs set into soft curds in three to four minutes with constant stirring. Pull the pan while the eggs still look slightly underdone — residual heat and the warm fish finish them.
- Yield and servingEight eggs and a pound of fish serve four generously as a breakfast or supper dish. Buttered toast suits it, and chopped parsley or chives if you like.
Finnan haddie takes its name from Findon, a fishing village south of Aberdeen (though Findhorn on the Moray Firth is also claimed as the source), where haddock were split, brined and cold-smoked, traditionally over peat. Improved rail transport helped carry the cured fish south, and it became a fixture of the British breakfast table.