Simple Cod Gratin with Béarnaise Sauce Topping : Rick Stein

Do Friday's and fish go together for you? They certainly can for me ... especially when it's this delicious recipe! Below is a lovely dish from Rick Stein, pictured here, it featured in his wonderful BBC TV series 'Rick Stein's Long Weekends' in which he embarks on a series of culinary long weekends in search of food excellence.

Simple Cod Gratin with Béarnaise Sauce Topping

Ingredients:

Serves Four
2 leeks, sliced
2 carrots, sliced
1 onion, chopped
40g/1½oz. butter, plus extra for greasing
600g/1lb 5oz cod loin, skinned and cut into 3cm/1in chunks
2 tbsp. plain flour
50ml/2fl oz. dry white wine
salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the béarnaise sauce:
70ml/2½fl oz. white wine vinegar
2 shallots, finely chopped
2 sprigs fresh tarragon, plus 1 tsp freshly chopped
1 bay leaf
6 peppercorns
4 free-range egg yolks
300g/10½oz unsalted butter

Method:
1. Gently fry the leeks, carrots and onion in the butter until softened and starting to caramelise. Add the cod and flour and stir over the heat for a minute or two. Stir in the wine and cook for another minute to allow the sauce to thicken a little. Season with salt and pepper.

2. For the béarnaise sauce, gently heat the vinegar in a saucepan. Add the shallots, tarragon sprigs, bay leaf and peppercorns. Heat gently over a medium heat until the volume of liquid has reduced by at least half. Strain and set aside until cooled.

3. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4 and butter a shallow ovenproof dish.

4. Beat the egg yolks with a teaspoon of water. Stir the mixture into the strained, cooled vinegar and pour into a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Whisk constantly until the sauce has increased in volume and is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

5. Melt the unsalted butter in a saucepan. Remove the bowl from the heat and slowly pour in the melted butter in a steady stream, whisking continuously, until the mixture has thickened and is smooth. Fold in the chopped tarragon and season to taste with salt and pepper.

6. Spoon the cod and vegetable mixture into the ovenproof dish. Pour over the béarnaise sauce and bake for 15-20 minutes.

maybe a glass of white wine !

Please see original recipe here

You will find a variety of articles and recipe ideas within this blog. Please note, not all may be suitable for you. If you may have any food allergies, or underlying health issues these must always be taken into account. If you are a diabetic and not sure how certain foods may affect your blood sugars, test is best, i.e. use your meter.

All the best Jan