Cod Mornay Recipe Rick Stein

COD, CAULIFLOWER & CHORIZO MORNAY

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Bring a large pan of water to the boil and blanch the cauliflower for 3-4 mins until al dente. Drain and set aside.
• Heat a non-stick frying pan and cook the chorizo for a couple of mins to brown, then remove from the pan with a slotted spoon, leaving the oil behind. Melt the butter in the pan, then add the flour to make a roux. Pour in the milk gradually, whisking constantly, until smooth. Add the Gruyère, stir until melted, then season.
• Put the cauliflower in a baking dish (or divide between individual dishes) with the chorizo and cod. Spoon over the cheese sauce and sprinkle with the breadcrumbs and parsley. Bake for 30-40 mins until the top is golden.

COD MORNAY

Steps:

• Add a little vegetable oil to a large frying pan and throw in the chopped shallots. Cook for 10-15 five minutes or until they're nice and soft; you don't want them to colour just soften.
• Now add the spinach and season with salt, pepper and a pinch of nutmeg - it will look like you have far too much spinach but trust me once it wilts, it'll be fine. Keep the spinach moving about in the pan and once it's wilted (a minute or two) turn off the heat and leave to one side.
• In another (much smaller frying pan) heat up the 250ml of milk and then put the cod in along with a bay leaf and the peppercorns; you'll know when the cod is cooked as it will begin to show signs of flaking.
• Don't overcook the fish as it's going into the oven. Remove the cod from the milk, but keep the milk for making the sauce.
• Put the cod onto a plate and use a fork to break it up. It will naturally fall into flakes quite easily. Don't mush it up, keep those flakes of cod looking good!
• Now peel and very thinly slice (2mm) seriously they need to be thin or they won't cook, so it's best to use a mandolin slicer.
• Lay the potatoes in a shallow dish with a little water and cover with cling film, make a couple of holes and pop it into the microwave for about 1 minute.
• Give the potatoes a stir and back into the microwave for another minute or so - the exact time will depend on your microwave and how thinly you sliced those potatoes. They need to be pretty much cooked as they won't have time to cook properly once they are in the oven.
• *Time to make the sauce - see below*
• In a medium-sized saucepan add the butter and once it's melted add the flour.
• Cook for a minute or so whilst stirring with a wooden spoon, if you don't cook the flour your sauce will taste floury and will be lumpy.
• Add the milk you reserved earlier when you poached the cod, add it a little at a time stirring all the while.
• Now add the mustard and the 220ml of milk, stirring continuously on the heat until the sauce bubbles and begins to thicken.
• Add a pinch of salt and turn down to a simmer and cook for around 5 minutes - you will need to keep stirring.
• Remove the sauce from the heat, find the 3 peppercorns and discard.
• Stir in the grated Gruyere cheese until you have a nice thick but smooth sauce. If you really need to you can add a tiny bit more milk.
• To finish the cod mornay, butter a 10-inch gratin dish or similar.
• Do a layer of potatoes and season lightly with salt and pepper, then add the spinach followed by the rest of the potatoes.
• Now add the fish and top with the rest of the sauce.
• Sprinkle the top with the panko crumbs and add a handful of Cheddar cheese.
• Bake on the middle shelf of your preheated oven for about 40 minutes, check that everything is piping hot and serve with some nice peas.