Smoked haddock with steamed greens and poached egg

Working in central London and not getting home until late means I’m always on the lookout for quick midweek meals that are convenient and aren’t going to send my blood glucose sky rocketing (so long gnocchi and pesto..). This one is a winner as it doesn’t take too long to prepare, is completely carb free and is extremely tasty.

I tend to bake fish fillets in a foil parcel to keep them moist and to stop the house getting too stinky but you could whack them under the grill or fry them off with the spring onion to make this even quicker.

The cheeky poached egg is a delicious accompaniment to the smoked haddock. As the fish doesn’t take very long to cook preparation is key here: make sure you have 2 pans of boiling water at the ready – one for steaming the veg and the other for poaching the eggs.

You need to poach the eggs for 3 minutes and it’s best to start this once the veg have finished steaming so you have enough time to lay the greens and fish on the plates while the eggs are cooking. Ideally you want a runny yolk over the haddock … Mmmm delish!

Ingredients (Serves 2)

2 smoked haddock fillets
5 spring onions, washed and sliced
2 eggs
Broccoli
A generous handful of petit pois
1/2 a packet of sugar snap peas
1 packet of sliced runner beans
1/2 a lemon, cut into thin slices
A small handful of parsley, washed and finely chopped

Method

Preheat the oven to 160 and start to bring a pan of water to the boil for steaming the veg later, plus a smaller pan of water for poaching the eggs (or you can boil the water in the kettle to save time).
Make a foil packet for the fish fillets, lay them in there, drizzle a little lemon over them and lay the slices on top. Sprinkle the Spring onions over the top, season with pepper and add to the oven for about 15 minutes in total.
When the fish has been on for about 5 minutes, begin steaming your veg: start with the broccoli and steam for 3-4 minutes, then add the runner beans, steam for a further minute, then add the peas and the sugar snap peas and steam for 5-6 minutes.
Just before the veg is due to finish, make sure your egg pan is ready: bring a pan of water to the boil, adding a splash of white wine vinegar and a pinch of salt. Once the water is boiling turn the hob right down to the lowest heat. Gently crack your eggs into the pan (the water should cover the egg) and poach them for three minutes.
If you’ve timed it right your fish and veg should be done by now. Sprinkle the parsley over the veg and stir through. While the eggs are poaching make a bed of the steamed veg on a plate and lay the haddock fillets on top with the spring onions (you can chuck the lemon slices).
Once the egg is poached serve on top of the haddock and season with a little pepper (the smoked haddock is quite salty so I tend to leave out the salt).