Cullen Skink - A Dreamy Scottish Soup
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- Опубліковано 8 лют 2025
- I decided to take down my website, so here’s the recipe instead thank you and sorry for the confusion
Cullen Skink
Unsalted butter 1 tbsp
Vegetable oil 1 tbsp
White onion 1 medium
Leek 1/3
Potatoes 200g - 7oz
Smoked haddock 250g - 9oz
Milk 250ml - 0.4 pints 8.5 fl oz -
Double cream 100ml - 2.1 pints - 3.4 fl oz
Water 250ml - 0.4 pints - 8.5 fl oz
Bay leaves 2
Pepper corns 1 tsp
Parsley 1 tbsp
Salt and pepper to taste
A very Scottish soup, Cullen skink, creamy smoked haddock, potato and onion broth. From the fishing village of Cullen in Morayshire North Scotland comes Cullen Skink, very similar to the North American Chowder it uses un-dyed smoked haddock also known as finnan haddie.
Cullen skink is ideal if you're celebrating Burns night, St Andrews day or the very rare occasion that the Scott's actually beat England at anything LOL (joking don't get triggered)
I hope you enjoy my Cullen Skink recipe
check out my first novel. www.amazon.co....
Cullen Skink
Unsalted butter 1 tbsp
Vegetable oil 1 tbsp
White onion 1 medium
Leek 1/3
Potatoes 200g - 7oz
Smoked haddock 250g - 9oz
Milk 250ml - 0.4 pints 8.5 fl oz -
Double cream 100ml - 2.1 pints - 3.4 fl oz
Water 250ml - 0.4 pints - 8.5 fl oz
Bay leaves 2
Pepper corns 1 tsp
Parsley 1 tbsp
Salt and pepper to taste
One of my favourite things! But smoked haddock is so smeging expensive!!!
Looks fantastic
Great dish to sit by the fire with a glass of wine..
Another winner Uncle Matt! You are amazing!
I love it when Autumn finally arrives, I do miss the extra daylight but the cooler weather changes my apatite completely. Although my next video is quiche??? Not very seasonal I guess
For anyone who has never tried this - please do. Most tasty soup ever 👌🏻
Thank you
Looks absolutely Amazing and delicious
Looking forward to autumn weather now, so I can make this soup!
It felt like autumn today 🌧️
what a very amazing recipe.. it looks sooo yummy.. thanks for sharing sir.. stay safe always
One of my favourite haddock fish! yummy soup perfect for the cold weather first like👌❤️
thank you
Healthy and delicious soup, thanks for sharing
Drooling over this!! Love the fresh fish! This is something my Swedish in-laws would LOVE. Definitely saving this!
Nice video sir.
I'm Scottish and originally from Peterhead - Europe's largest white fish port and not too far from Cullen.
I adore this soup but have never been able to persuade my (now adult) children to try it.
I use single cream but purist cooks claim there's no need for any cream at all.
They're probably right but who doesn't like a wee indulgence now and again! 😁
Thanks again for posting - just subscribed. 👍🏼
Thank you very much, tell your kids it's a trendy American chowder, they'll go for that maybe?
@@unclemattscookerylessons Good call! 😆
I come from Germany and I tried both: Clam Chowder in New England and Cullen Skink in Scotland. The dishes are rather similar and both are delicious! Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Just made this for a girl on the first date. Let's just say she wants to come back😂. Keep doing the Lord's work uncle Matt. Love from 🇦🇺
I love that, fingers crossed I played a small part in a beautiful relationship
I have heard of this soup, but I've never had it! It does look like chowder and I already know we would love this. That fish was beautifully cooked. Amazing recipe and video, Matt!
Chowder is great but this takes it up a few levels.
Beautiful dish Matt, perfect for this time of the year lovely and comforting and warming; this is a great Scottish soup! I’ve now subscribed for more content, thanks so much! 🥘😍👌🏻😎😋
I have heard of this soup before but never tried it. Thank you for showing me how it's made, looks so delicious.
I may have over done it with the double cream, suggest using a lighter cream or just all milk, Although my lady loved it as it was.
This is completely new to me healthy but delicious..
Big thumbs up!
My favorite soup dish. Healthy soup~~ Wow, I really want to eat it. I see you well. ❤️❤️❤️
That looks nice love smoked Haddock i'll give that a try, atb John.
Another great video my friend. Love this!!
I’ve never had this before but chowder is a holiday must at my house! Looks great Uncle Matt!!
it is basically chowder really, and I really like the name
Hello Matt it’s Denis
I found this on serious eats and thought you’d like to see it I’m sure you have done it but it’s always good to see something new
Cheers!
e Brits get a bad rap for their cuisine, and in some cases rightfully so-the beef cooked until gray and the gravy-made-from-granules that I ate every Sunday while staying in England were not the height of culinary greatness- but dang if there aren't a lot of things they do better than almost anyone else. I'm talking savory pies, fried fish, Yorkshire puddings, and roasted potatoes. The British method of roasting potatoes is one that I've taken a strong liking to. It's simple, and it produces amazing results. Boil chunks of potato until they're just tender, toss them none-too-gently with fat (ideally beef drippings) to rough up their surface, then roast them until they're crisp and crackling The boiling and roughing-up steps are the real keys. They create a thin slurry of mashed potato that clings to the surface of the potato chunks, which ends up crisping beautifully in the oven as the potatoes roast. This year, I decided to reexamine the method from the ground up with the idea of completely maximizing that crisp-to-creamy contrast in each chunk of roast potato, testing and retesting every variable, from cut size to potato type to boiling and roasting methods. The result is this recipe, which I firmly and un-humbly believe will deliver the greatest roast potatoes you've ever tasted: incredibly crisp and crunchy on the outside, with centers that are creamy and packed with potato flavor. This time around, I wanted to maximize the contrast between the center and the exterior even more, so I decided to leave the potatoes in really large chunks. A full quarter of a potato each. That means each chunk turns into a two-biter, but it makes it easier to crisp them up. For variety, I tried the three most common supermarket types: russet, Yukon Gold, and red Russets get the crispest crusts and roast up a pale golden brown. Their interiors are fluffy and mild Yukon Golds roast a little darker owing to their lower starch content and higher sugar content. This leads to more flavor, but it also means a slightly less crisp crust. Their interiors are nice and creamy, with plenty of flavor.
Red potatoes roast up very dark because of their very low starch content, but have difficulty getting crisp. They come out of the oven crunchy, but soon lose that crunch, turning soft and tender. In my previous roast potato recipe, I recommended adding a splash of vinegar to the water for the initial boil. The idea is to control the breakdown of pectin, the cellular glue that holds vegetables together. Think of it as the mortar between bricks.
Pectin begins to break down at around 183°F (84°C), but its breakdown is also greatly affected by the relative pH of the cooking medium. The lower the pH (i.e., the more acidic), the less it breaks down. Conversely, the higher the pH (i.e., the more alkaline), the faster it breaks down. As it turned out, the potatoes boiled in alkaline water were actually superior to those boiled in vinegary water. Because the chunks are so large, falling apart is not as big of a problem as it is with smaller potatoes. Meanwhile, the alkaline water helps the exteriors of the potatoes break down more, creating much more of the starchy slurry that leads to an extra-crisp exterior. About a half teaspoon of baking soda for two quarts of water was the right amount I recommend starting potatoes in cold water and bringing them up to a boil. This helps ensure that the exteriors don't turn to mush before the insides have a chance to cook through. It's especially true for larger chunks of potato, because heat can take a good deal of time to travel through to the core.
But here we've got a whole different ball game. We actually want the exteriors to break down more than the centers. That means starting the potatoes in already-boiling water. I made sure to salt the water well (about an ounce of kosher salt for two quarts of water) to season the potatoes as they cooked. found that roasting the potatoes nice and hot, at 450°F (230°C), was ideal, though with convection turned on, they came out even better. (When using convection, I dropped the temperature down to 400°F (200°C) to prevent the edges from singeing At the start, the potatoes are a little delicate, and trying to shake them or move them too early can result in the bottoms sticking to the sheet pan.
But roasting them without any moving at all leads to uneven cooking. I found that if I left them alone for the first 20 minutes or so, I could then use a thin metal spatula (or my fingertips) to pry them up off the pan and give them a flip. From there, they take another 30 minutes or so, with the occasional flip and shake in the middle. I like to let them get nice and dark to maximize that contrast between crisp exterior and creamy center. decided to heat up the solid aromatics (minced garlic and rosemary are my favorites) in some olive oil, cooking them just until the garlic started to turn golden, then strain it, separating the infused oil from the solids. That way, you can use the flavored oil to toss with the potatoes, building in plenty of flavor, and add back the garlic and rosemary (along with some minced fresh parsley) at the end. Best of both worlds.
Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon (4g) baking soda
4 pounds (about 2 kg) russet or Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into quarters, sixths, or eighths, depending on size (see note)
5 tablespoons (75ml) extra-virgin olive oil, duck fat, goose fat, or beef fat
Small handful picked fresh rosemary leaves, finely chopped
3 medium cloves garlic, minced
Freshly ground black pepper
Adjust oven rack to center position and preheat oven to 450°F (230°C) (or 400°F (200°C) if using convection). Heat 2 quarts (2L) water in a large pot over high heat until boiling. Add 2 tablespoons kosher salt (about 1 ounce; 25g), baking soda, and potatoes and stir. Return to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook until a knife meets little resistance when inserted into a potato chunk, about 10 minutes after returning to a boil. Meanwhile, combine olive oil, duck fat, or beef fat with rosemary, garlic, and a few grinds of black pepper in a small saucepan and heat over medium heat. Cook, stirring and shaking pan constantly, until garlic just begins to turn golden, about 3 minutes. Immediately strain oil through a fine-mesh strainer set in a large bowl. Set garlic/rosemary mixture aside and reserve separately. When potatoes are cooked, drain carefully and let them rest in the pot for about 30 seconds to allow excess moisture to evaporate. Transfer to bowl with infused oil, season to taste with a little more salt and pepper, and toss to coat, shaking bowl roughly, until a thick layer of mashed potato-like paste has built up on the potato chunks Transfer potatoes to a large rimmed baking sheet and separate them, spreading them out evenly. Transfer to oven and roast, without moving, for 20 minutes. Using a thin, flexible metal spatula to release any stuck potatoes, shake pan and turn potatoes. Continue roasting until potatoes are deep brown and crisp all over, turning and shaking them a few times during cooking, 30 to 40 minutes longer. Transfer potatoes to a large bowl and add garlic/rosemary mixture and minced parsley. Toss to coat and season with more salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.
Ta ta for now
bloody hell Dennis, I think that's the longest comment I've ever had!
Re British food, I make you right we are truly awful at some things and superb at others. I did make a roast potato video a few years back and I used the baking soda method which really does help to fluff up the exterior to create that super crunchy texture while leaving that soft fluffy centre.
As a bit of a dunce I can't get my head around the science of it all but you do seem to have figured that stuff out.
Back to the reason why our culinary repertoire is lacking compared to our French and Italian cousins, I think it's this simple.
While they were busy working out new ways to torture a duck to make it more tasty and making love with their faces, we were building the greatest empire that ever existed.
Food for us was something of a utility to provide enough energy to assert our dominance of the planet (no shame or apologies from me for that)
Just a theory mate but I reckon I got it right?
I'm sure that comment might get me in trouble but I'm past caring about that.
OMG Uncle Matt, you are a tease....you know I'm on a diet.. Good to see the lucky 13 arrive. Cheers and stay safe. 🥣
Excellent recipe. I am going to make right away. I make a similar soup from Finland, the Lohikeitto, made with fresh salmon and pretty much the same ingredients of this Scottish soup. Thanks very much
You're very welcome 😁
Your Cullen Skink looks so delicious Chef Matt. I love it and I'm certain that my Glaswegian parents would love it too!!! I'd definitely be going for the heavy cream by the way. I'll be checking out your new website straight immediately!
Thanks Patrick, I'm still clumsily working on the website, but it's taking shape
@@unclemattscookerylessons It looks great to me Chef! I've left some feedback on there👍
Somewhere in the house I have Keith Floyd's 1988 book 'Floyd on Britain and Ireland', the first Cullen Skink I ever cooked. Seem to recall it's very traditional and same as your take on it here. Absolutely delicious!
Thanks for that Keith Floyd was a rock star, deeply flawed man but I used to love his TV shows
Just got home from work at the restaurant and Uncle Matt is in my feed!, nice...
Excellent video Matt. I know I keep saying this but, the production (filming, editing, etc.) is really good, impressive work.
I and my family on both sides are from the coast of Maine, USA. My family are a long lived people (I am almost 60 and I knew my great grandparents well on both sides and their ways of living.) They would make something this. Our 'New England Chowders' are very similar.
"Historically" (before refrigeration), these type of 'soups' were made here in the winter from ingredients stored in "the root cellar"; potatoes, onions, salt pork, salt preserved fish (perhaps, fresh clams or 'winter flounder', if available), and cow's milk products, milk, cream and butter.
'delicately' flavored fish like haddock, cod or hake were/and are not usually smoked here. Other than the somewhat 'middle ground' of trout and salmon, stronger flavored 'oily-er' fish like mackerel or alewives are consumed fresh in the summer or are salt preserved and 'smoked' for later use.
It's fascinating to hear about how our grandparents lived at cooked, they were dominated by the seasons (which I think is preferable (we have too much choice all year round) They also learnt how to be frugal with ingredients, something that I've never had to do?
@Uncle Matt's Cookery Lessons
True, I have a lot of respect for my great grandparents' generation.
A traditional dish we make here is called "New England boiled dinner". Everything in it can be stored over the winter. "corned" (salted and herb brined) beef, potatoes, turnips, onions, and cabbage. It is served with liberal amounts of butter and pepper.
Another dish is New England or Boston baked beans and steamed brown bread. It is made by layering salt pork, white or "Navy" beans (soaked overnight), onions, various dried spices like mustard, allspice and ginger into a "bean crock" then adding molasses and water. The brown bread is made with various whole grain flours and molasses. I remember my great grandparents doing this: The beans would be made in the morning (traditionally on Saturday).. They would have a hole dug in the ground in which they would build a hardwood fire (usually maple wood). When the fire died down to coals (charcoal), the bean crock would be buried in the coals and ash for 6 or 7 hours. (The beans would acquire a slight 'smoky' taste from the firewood.) When the beans were almost done, they would set a tripod over the pit and hang a covered pot with some water in it. Add more wood to the fire and bring it to a boil. The batter for the brown bread would be poured into cans or tins, put in the pot and covered to steam. When done, the bread would be sliced and fried in butter in a cast iron skillet over the fire until crispy. "the adults" would 'wash it all down' with beer. It might sound like uninteresting rustic food but it tastes amazing. There is still a company making both of these products commercially in Portland, Maine since 1913. It is called B&M Baked Beans. Although, I find their bean recipe a bit to sweet for my taste, the canned brown bread is excellent. (Baked beans, butter fried brown bread, eggs over easy and smoked bacon or ham makes for one hell of a hearty and delicious breakfast.)
and salad...
It looks so yummy...sending my love...hope to see your love..
One of the world’s great soup dishes imho.
Only Scots would name a soup that spells similar to skunk lol. This is completely new to me, thanks for showing me a totally different style of soup Matt. The milk poaching technique is so interesting, love the texture it produces. Really authentic cooking method here, you've recreated it properly as always. Great stuff.
my good lady polished it off before I got a second helping? I personally would use less cream next time, or add a squeeze of lemon to lighten it up but it was a comforting soup.
The history component is always one of my favourite parts
Thanks Sonali, i didn't set out to do that but it's kinda evolved that way, I'm not the best researcher though, a but on wiki and maybe a couple other google searches really.
But I'm glad you like it x
Every time I land in Edinburgh or Glasgow, I’m off to get a bowl of Cullen Skink. It’s just not found where I live now.
Another great classic 👨🍳
Looks really good support for you.
Nice. I'm tempted to make it for the morrow, ye ken!
My wife made the potato and bacon bits dish, (Tartiflette) . We got into a 'do'. I showed her your vid and she pulls out Geno de Campo recipe and gets cream instead of creme fresh. Well that's when I knew my wife does have favourites! Well so do I. I sent her out again for the creme fresh. I did allow her to use panchetta though. Very nice.
My wife is an Aussie but of Italian heritage by the by, hence the panchetta and Geno favouritism.
Geno is so cute and the ladies do seem to love is rather put on accent me thinks? Dinner isn't worth falling out over though Roger, and pancetta is great.
@@unclemattscookerylessons Wow Matt. Not just a man with his finger on the pulse conjoined with culinary skills and excellent tutorial ability but also a councillor in the affairs of the heart. 😉🤣
Is there possibly a third you tube channel planned? Dear Matt,.....
Right. Off to buy some smoked haddock. 👍🏻
@@rogermiller4929 you're welcome mate
look delicious. Thank recipe
Never had it before. Looks delicious
thanks Dwight
How many bowls will I need using this recipe? Looks wonderful. 🇨🇦🐟
this made 2 to 3 decent portions, it was quite rich however so you could always stretch it out with some more milk?
Looks great. Ever since it was in an episode of Monarch of the Glen I thought it would be a great advocate for Scotland. You can be sure from the ingredients it wasn't a dish often made by the common folk. Fish yes, but cream seems hardly likely. With the Clearances I often wonder how many were happy to have any fish to add protein to thier bannocks or oatmeal, whether porridge or oatcakes.
Your presentation as ever was excellent and suitable warning well placed to warn people off the luminescent yellow version of smoked haddock. Would you consider doing a video on line caught mackerel to make into a pate or other tasty dish?
PS. No mention of your new website...Ooops
I think the local working classes would have made this with water or maybe some milk, the cream I'm sure you're right is a later addition.
I love mackerel and cannot believe that I haven't used it yet in a video, it is great soused, grilled smoked and so on. Consider it now on the list Conor.
The website link is in the description, I tried linking it on the end screen but youtube wouldn't allow it?
Thanks for your comment Conor
@@unclemattscookerylessons Hey Matt, Marinated mackerel cooked over a wood fired grill is quite good... Quick and easy way is to clean and butterfly them, leaving the skin on. Marinate them in "italian style dressing" (US style "italian dressing" or anything like that) for a few hours then grill them, skin side down until done.
It actually was a common folk dish, they just didn't use a lot of the expensive ingredients then.
amazing recipe my friend! Looks very delicious! Thank you for this wonderful share! let's support each other -like
Woww that looks delicious🤤🤤🤤♥️
God bless your channel
I love cullen skink!❤
It is very nice indeed
interesting video, thanks
Haddock, white or smoked, plenty milk, salt n pepper, that is how my mother made it. A slice or 2 of buttered bread for dipping. Never once did we ever have anything else in it and was especially made if any of us were ill with a bug/cold etc.
Soup is definitely medicine for me, usually chicken for me, ny lady has to have tomato soup.
I often have hot bovril when I'm not well
@@unclemattscookerylessons Funny enough, it was always Heinz Tomato soup i ate with bread, if i could swallow it when i had tonsillitis as a kid. I used to get so bad the poison off my tonsils would paralyze me so my wee mither had to feed me :/ I am phobic about being put under, hence why i never had them removed ughh!!!
@@Tsokaweosteri oh Amber seems we both suffered with tosills I used to get tonsillitis at least 6 times a year and had mine out when I was about 12, so sorry that you have that phobia as I'm happier without those poisonous thingys now.
@@unclemattscookerylessons Omg how strange is that loll. Good that you were able to have them taken out and i take it they never grew back?. I used to get it approx 3 times a year, lost a lot of schooling as it could last a month, thankfully made up for lost time later. Though i very rarely have tonsillitis now my tonsils still cause me problems in the form of Sleep Apnea :O I couldn't believe it loll The sleep specialist told me what was causing the sleep apnea before he even touched me or looked at my tonsils. He could actually tell just by looking at that area of my neck that i suffered from enlarged tonsils hahaha!!! crazy. I used to also get Whooping Cough once or twice a year. My siblings tell me now that they can't believe am still here, cheery buggers lolll
Strange choice to start slagging Scotland in a video about traditional Scottish cuisine 😂
Other than that, great recipe, I’m trying this tonight!
The British always rag on each other,it's just banter. Ask a Scotsman about the English. Hope you enjoy the soup it's lovely
@@unclemattscookerylessons I am a Scotsman, (a female one) I suppose you’re right I would have plenty to say if asked 😭 thank you, I already did it and it turned out alright. Maybe should’ve got more fish. Thanks for the video!
Scottish Special Soup creamy Cullen Skinks is delicious.
thank you so much x
It’s Morayshire Matt, Mornayshire is a saucy French department. 🤓
As soon as I said it I knew Gareth but thought I'd let it go rather than doing another voice over. Thought I'd gotten away with it too???
@@unclemattscookerylessons Not with the "King of the Miss-placed Apostrophe" following you. But seriously, I prefer smoked fish to...well fish, actually, Thanks for a wonderful recipe.
Just to be clear very few of us in Scotland deep fry anything
I like deep fried food btw. We had Frickles in Edinburgh a few years back, lovely
Please, in future leave list of ingredients on screen for a fraction longer! Thank you in advance!
I used to leave a few seconds longer but cut that back because i paste the recipe in the description, can you pause the screen when the recipe shows?
Also i just started a website unclemattscookerylessons. com i have lots of recipes there, hope you check it out.
Uncle Matt's Cookery Lessons oh I know know that you have a copy in the description! Yes I attempted to take a screen shot but managed it on the third go I think! For some reason I am unable to click on the option to read more, I want to read the rest of your comment!!!
@@betweenthechannels4720 sorry to hear that, what I'm really hoping is to encourage people to have a look at my website where i have the recipes, plus some other bits and bobs and maybe one day merchandise etc.
But the link to the website will be in the description and if you cannot expand the comments I dont know what to do.
You did say that you managed to pause the video to write down the recipe on the 3rd attempt, so at least there is that option.
If you are interested in making a note of the website it's unclemattscookerylessons.com I understand that thats not ideal for all but I dont really want to leave the recipe on screen for any longer, sorry x
Uncle Matt's Cookery Lessons found the website! Struggled to find smoked haddock that wasn't dyed! So I abandoned the whole thing and bought smoked kippers instead...
No sound😢
I just checked and there was sound.
Hey uncle Matt
This is looking so delicious n tempting recepi, thanks for sharing this amazing recipe, watched fully n would you be kind to visit our kitchen if u r interested in Malaysian Chinese food and stay safe n connected my dear friend, hope to c more exciting recipes from yr channel 🤩🤩🤩
Aye but the Scottish soups win every time. .
my name is cullen
Hi Cullen x
When was the last time England beat Scotland at rugby?? Cheeky bar stewad!! LOL!!
It's been a while mate
Central Time Zone- Nortb America: btw: tech team / btw/ Thanks 🙏: again: thanks 🙏/ San Angelo- SJT
For the record- thank you 😊: again: thank you 😊
You are very welcome x
I must try this looks gorgeous. Had it from a tin once i think it was Baxsters tasteless.