Cullen skink

Last updated
Cullen skink
Cullen Skink.JPG
Cullen skink, served with bread
Type Soup
Course Starter
Place of origin Scotland
Region or state Cullen
Serving temperature Hot
Main ingredientsSmoked haddock (finnan haddie), potatoes and onions

Cullen skink is a thick Scottish soup made of smoked haddock, potatoes, and onions. An authentic Cullen skink will use finnan haddie, but it may be prepared with any other undyed smoked haddock. Sometimes ocean perch or salmon are used in the soup.

Contents

This soup is a local speciality from the town of Cullen in Moray on the northeast coast of Scotland. It is often served as a starter at formal Scottish dinners but is also widely served as an everyday dish across the northeast of Scotland.[ citation needed ]

Local recipes for Cullen skink have several slight variations, such as the use of milk instead of water or the addition of single cream. Other variations include mashing the potatoes to make the soup thicker.[ citation needed ] Cullen skink is traditionally served with bread or oatcakes crumbled through it for added texture. [1]

It has been described as "smokier and more assertive than American chowder, heartier than classical French bisque". [2]

Cullen skink appears in many traditional Scottish cookery books and restaurant and hotel menus throughout Scotland, the rest of the UK and abroad. In 2012 a Guardian columnist described the dish as "the milky fish soup which has surely replaced your haggises and porridges as Scotland's signature dish". [3]

Etymology

Skink is a Scots word for a shin, knuckle, or hough of beef, which has developed the secondary meaning of a soup, especially one made from these. The word skink is ultimately derived from the Middle Dutch schenke "shin, hough" [4] (cognate with the English word shank and German Schenkel, 'thigh', [5] and Schinken, 'ham' [6] ).

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burns supper</span> Celebration of the life and poetry of Robert Burns (1759-1796)

A Burns supper is a celebration of the life and poetry of the poet Robert Burns, the author of many Scots poems. The suppers are normally held on or near the poet's birthday, 25 January, known as Burns Night also called Robert Burns Day or Rabbie Burns Day. However, in principle, celebrations may be held at any other time of the year. Burns suppers are held all around the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chowder</span> Category of soups

Chowder is a thick soup prepared with milk or cream, a roux, and seafood or vegetables. Oyster crackers or saltines may accompany chowders as a side item, and cracker pieces may be dropped atop the dish. Clam chowder from New England is typically made with chopped clams and diced potatoes, in a mixed cream and milk base, often with a small amount of butter. Other common chowders include seafood chowder, which often consists of fish, clams, and other types of shellfish; lamb or veal chowder made with barley; corn chowder, which uses corn instead of clams; various fish chowders; and potato chowder, which is often made with cheese. Fish, corn, and clam chowders are popular in North America, especially Atlantic Canada and New England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oatmeal</span> Preparation of oat groats

Oatmeal is a preparation of oats that have been de-husked, steamed, and flattened, or a coarse flour of hulled oat grains (groats) that have either been milled (ground), rolled, or steel-cut. Ground oats are also called white oats. Steel-cut oats are known as coarse oatmeal, Irish oatmeal, or pinhead oats. Rolled oats were traditionally thick old-fashioned oats, but they can be made thinner or smaller and may be categorized as quick oatmeal or instant oatmeal depending on the cooking time required, which is determined by the size of the oats and the amount of precooking.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goulash</span> Hungarian meat and vegetable stew

Goulash is a soup or stew of meat and vegetables seasoned with paprika and other spices. Originating in Hungary, goulash is a common meal predominantly eaten in Central Europe but also in other parts of Europe. It is one of the national dishes of Hungary and a symbol of the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haddock</span> Species of fish

The haddock is a saltwater ray-finned fish from the family Gadidae, the true cods. It is the only species in the monotypic genus Melanogrammus. It is found in the North Atlantic Ocean and associated seas, where it is an important species for fisheries, especially in northern Europe, where it is marketed fresh, frozen and smoked; smoked varieties include the Finnan haddie and the Arbroath smokie. Other smoked versions include long boneless, the fileted side of larger haddock smoked in oak chips with the skin left on the fillet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kedgeree</span> Fish and rice-based dish

Kedgeree is a dish consisting of cooked, flaked fish, boiled rice, parsley, hard-boiled eggs, curry powder, lemon juice, salt, butter or cream, and occasionally sultanas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clam chowder</span> Soup containing clams and broth or milk

Clam chowder is any of several chowder soups in American cuisine containing clams. In addition to clams, common ingredients include diced potatoes, salt pork, and onions. Other vegetables are not typically used. It is believed that clams were used in chowder because of the relative ease of harvesting them. Clam chowder is usually served with saltine crackers or small, hexagonal oyster crackers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Farl</span> Scottish and Irish three-cornered flatbreads and cakes

A farl is any of various quadrant-shaped flatbreads and cakes, traditionally made by cutting a round into four pieces. In Ulster, the term generally refers to soda bread and, less commonly, potato bread, which are also ingredients of an Ulster fry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ossobuco</span> Italian dish from Lombard region

Ossobuco or osso buco is a specialty of Lombard cuisine of cross-cut veal shanks braised with vegetables, white wine and broth. It is often garnished with gremolata and traditionally served with either risotto alla milanese or polenta, depending on the regional variation. The marrow from the hole in the bone is a prized delicacy and the defining feature of the dish.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corn chowder</span> Creamy corn soup from the United States

Corn chowder is a chowder soup prepared using corn as a primary ingredient. Basic corn chowder is commonly made of corn, onion, celery, milk or cream, and butter. Additional ingredients sometimes used include potatoes or squash, salt pork, fish, seafood and chicken. In the United States, recipes for corn chowder date to at least as early as 1884. Corn chowder is mass-produced as a canned food in the U.S.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fishcake</span> Fried minced or ground seafood

A fishcake is a culinary dish consisting of filleted fish or other seafood minced or ground, mixed with a starchy ingredient, and fried until golden.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scottish cuisine</span> Culinary traditions of Scotland

Scottish cuisine encompasses the cooking styles, traditions and recipes associated with Scotland. It has distinctive attributes and recipes of its own, but also shares much with other British and wider European cuisine as a result of local, regional, and continental influences — both ancient and modern.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Finnan haddie</span> Smoked haddock

A Finnan haddie is a haddock that has been cured with the smoke of green wood or peat. They are usually said to have originated in Findon, a fishing village south of Aberdeen, though an alternative tradition traces them to Findhorn in Moray.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oatcake</span> Oat flatbread like a cracker or biscuit

An oatcake is a type of flatbread similar to a cracker or biscuit, or in some versions takes the form of a pancake. They are prepared with oatmeal as the primary ingredient, and sometimes include plain or wholemeal flour as well. Oatcakes are cooked on a griddle or baked in an oven.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Soup</span> Primarily liquid food

Soup is a primarily liquid food, generally served warm or hot, that is made by combining ingredients of meat or vegetables with stock, milk, or water. Hot soups are additionally characterized by boiling or simmering solid ingredients in liquids in a pot until the flavors are extracted, forming a broth. Soups are similar to stews, and in some cases there may not be a clear distinction between the two; however, soups generally have more liquid (broth) than stews.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prawn soup</span>

Prawn soup, also referred to as shrimp soup, is a soup dish prepared using freshwater or saltwater prawns as a primary ingredient. Several varieties of the dish exist in various areas of the world, including Penang prawn mee in Malaysia, Peruvian chupe de camarones, Thai kaeng som kung and Mexican caldo de camarones. Prawn and shrimp soup can be prepared as a broth- or stock-based soup, as a cream-based soup, or as a chowder. In the United States, cream of shrimp soup is mass-produced and distributed canned or frozen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cod as food</span> Gadidae fishes in human nutrition and cooking

Cod and other cod-like fish have been widely used as food through history. Other cod-like fish come from the same family (Gadidae) that cod belong to, such as haddock, pollock, and whiting.

References

  1. Harris, Stephen (2024-09-20). "Cullen skink with oatcakes recipe". The Telegraph. ISSN   0307-1235 . Retrieved 2024-10-18.
  2. Felicity Cloake, "How to cook perfect cullen skink", The Guardian , 5 January 2012.
  3. Scott Murray, "John O'Groats: a new start for the end of the road", The Guardian , 31 August 2012.
  4. Robinson, M. (ed) The Concise Scots Dictionary, Aberdeen University Press 1985
  5. Oxford Dictionary: Shank
  6. Wiktionary: Schinken