Cullen Skink Recipe with Leeks

Cullen Skink is a classic Scottish dish. It's a hearty thick fish soup or chowder traditionally made with smoked haddock, milk, and potatoes, also known as Smoked Haddock Chowder. In this version, I've added leeks. It's lovely and thick with a creamy texture and a real depth of flavour.

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This Cullen Skink recipe is hearty and warning. You can serve it as a starter but I often serve this to my family as the main course, with fresh crusty bread as it's so filling (and I have teenage boys!). For a slight variation, check out my Smoked Haddock and Prawn Chowder or my easy Kedgeree recipe for another great way to use Smoked Haddock.

Why is Cullen Skink so called?

Cullen Skink comes from the Scottish town of Cullen in Moray on the northeast coast of Scotland. The name 'Skink' originally came from a local Scottish stew made from the shin of beef. When beef became scarce, people started eating a lot more Smoked haddock, which was readily available. The name 'Skink' however stuck and has for a long time been used as the name of this dish.

Ingredients

Gather your ingredients. You don't need to remove the skin from the fish as we can do this once it is cooked. Do make sure there are no bones!

• Smoked Haddock. Use dyed or undyed. They both taste the same. Traditionally smoked fish took on a slight yellow colour from the smoke. Today, this is usually an industrialised process and the yellow colour is added afterwards to resemble the traditional version.
• Potatoes. Most varieties will work well in this recipe. I recommend using a variety that will mash well (ie. with a higher starch content) as we will mash half the potatoes to thicken the soup. Try Maris Piper, King Edwards or Desiree or in the US, Russets or Yukon Gold.

See recipe card for quantities.

Instructions

Put the haddock into a large pan and cover with cold water. Add the bay leaf and gently bring to a boil. Once it is boiling, the fish should be cooked. Check the fish, give it another minute if necessary. Transfer the fish to a plate to cool down, take the pan off the heat but keep the water.

Meanwhile, add the olive oil to a second large pan with the onion and leeks and gently fry for 5 minutes over low-medium heat until they are softened.

Add the potato chunks and 300ml of the haddock water, with the bay leaf, and simmer for about 10 minutes until the potato is tender. Remove the bay leaf when the potato is cooked.

Remove the skin from the haddock and flake it into chunks.

You now need to mash together half the haddock with half the potato, leek, and onion mixture to thicken the soup. Either transfer half to a food processor and blitz it or mash it together in the pan.

Put everything back into the large pan and add the milk. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and bring back to a simmer. Try not to let it boil as the milk may separate. Serve with chopped parsley or chives sprinkled over the top of each portion and warm crusty bread.

Hint: I like to put half the soup through a blender to make it nice and thick. If you want to thicken it up, even more, you can add a little cream.

Substitutions

If you can't find smoked haddock, you can substitute another smoked fish such as smoked cod or Basa. Smoked Basa is widely available and is often cheaper than Smoked Haddock. It's the smokiness of the fish that gives the Cullen skink its flavour.

If you want a richer version, substitute some of the milk for cream.

What to Serve with Cullen Skink

Traditionally, Cullen Skink is served with freshly baked crusty bread and some chopped chives or parsley. This is all you need as the soup already contains fish, potato, and vegetables.

Sustainability

When shopping for fish, look for the Marine Stewardship Council logo. This label tells us that the fish has been sourced responsibly. The Marine Stewardship Council constantly monitors fish stocks to help preserve fish stocks for future generations. The Good Fish Guide will give you the latest information on fish stocks.

As always, try to buy vegetables lose without any plastic. If you need to, you can take your re-usable bags for vegetables to the shop. Buying from local sources will reduce the carbon footprint as well as help support your local economy.

Storage

You can keep Cullen Skink in the fridge for up to 2 days. It can also be frozen for up to 3 months. Defrost it in the fridge overnight and reheat on a gentle heat until piping hot.

📖 Recipe

Cullen Skink Recipe with Leeks

REALMEALDEAL

Cullen Skink is a traditional Scottish thick soup or chowder, hailing from the Scottish town of Cullen in Moray on the north east coast of Scotland. Made from smoked haddock, potatoes and onions. Thick, hearty and full of flavour, just perfect for a cold day.

4.92 from 12 votes

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Prep Time 10 mins

Cook Time 30 mins

Total Time 40 mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine British

Servings (Adjustable) 4

Calories 467 kcal

Ingredients

 

MetricUS Customary

 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 500 g smoked haddock skin on, bones removed
• ▢ 1 bay leaf organic
• ▢ 2 tablespoon olive oil organic, fairtrade
• ▢ 1 onion organic, peeled and finely chopped
• ▢ 2 large leeks organic, washed sliced 1cm slices
• ▢ 1 dash salt
• ▢ 1 dash black pepper organic, fairtrade, freshly ground
• ▢ 500 g potatoes organic, peeled diced 1cm chunks
• ▢ 500 ml milk organic
• ▢ 4 teaspoon fresh parsley or chives organic, chopped, (optional)
• ▢ 4 crusty bread rolls to serve (optional)

Instructions

 

• Put the haddock into a large pan and cover with cold water. Add the bay leaf and gently bring it to the boil. Once it is boiling, the fish should be cooked. Check the fish, give it another minute if necessary. Transfer the fish to a plate to cool down, take the pan off the heat but keep the water.
  500 g smoked haddock, 1 bay leaf
• Meanwhile, add the olive oil to a second large pan with the onion and leeks and gently fry for 5 minutes over a low-medium heat until they are softened.
  2 tablespoon olive oil, 1 onion, 2 large leeks
• Add the potato chunks and 300ml of the haddock water, with the bay leaf, and simmer for about 10 minutes until the potato is tender. Remove the bay leaf when the potato is cooked.
  500 g potatoes
• Remove the skin from the haddock and flake it into chunks.
• You now need to mash together half the haddock with half the potato, leek and onion mixture in order to thicken the soup, so either transfer half to a food processor and blitz it or mash it together in the pan.
• Put everything into the large pan and add the milk. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and bring back to a simmer. Try not to let it boil as the milk may separate. Everything is cooked so it just needs heating through until it is piping hot. Serve with chopped parsley or chives sprinkled over the top of each portion and warm crusty bread.
  1 dash salt, 1 dash black pepper, 500 ml milk, 4 teaspoon fresh parsley or chives, 4 crusty bread rolls

Notes

The nutritional information is an estimate and is for the soup only and doesn't include any bread.

Ingredients

• Smoked Haddock. Use dyed or undyed. They both taste the same. Traditionally smoked fish took on a slight yellow colour from the smoke. Today, this is usually an industrialised process and the yellow colour is added afterwards to resemble the traditional version.
• Potatoes. Most varieties will work well in this recipe. Use a variety that will mash well (ie. with a higher starch content) as potatoes thicken the soup. Try Maris Piper, King Edwards or Desiree or in the US, Russets or Yukon Gold.

Substitutions

You can substitute another smoked fish such as smoked cod or Basa for the Smoked Haddock. Smoked Basa is widely available and is often cheaper than Smoked Haddock. It's the smokiness of the fish that gives the Cullen skink its flavour.
If you want a richer version, substitute some of the milk for cream.

Storage

You can keep Cullen Skink in the fridge for up to 2 days. It can also be frozen for up to 3 months. When reheating the soup, be careful not to let it boil as the milk may separate. Keep it on a simmer. If it seems too thick, you can add a little milk.

Nutrition per serving

Calories: 467kcalCarbohydrates: 48gProtein: 40gFat: 13gSaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 109mgSodium: 1051mgPotassium: 1479mgFiber: 6gSugar: 13gVitamin A: 2435IUVitamin C: 42mgCalcium: 299mgIron: 6mg

The Nutritional Values are computer generated estimates based on industry standards and are provided as a helpful guide only.

Average Carbon Emissions

Author REALMEALDEAL

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