Happy new year! As of Jan. 1, I became the official corporate chef of BC Egg, the marketing board that represents BC Egg Farmers.
And in that capacity, I am proud to share my first official recipe for them with you: West Coast Cauliflower Kedgeree.
“What is a Kedgeree?” you may be wondering.
It is a curried rice dish from the U.K. and is classically made with smoked haddock and boiled eggs.
I have replaced the traditional rice with cauliflower rice and used smoked salmon instead of the haddock, to give it more of a West Coast flare.
If you have never had cauliflower rice before, you are in for a treat.
Cauliflower rice is created by grating the florets of the cauliflower, with a cheese grater, into almost rice shaped granules.
The great thing about this is that it is more nutritious than rice (perfect for your new year’s resolution), and you can barely notice that it is not rice in the finished dish.
The best advice I can give you when making cauliflower rice is to use a large skillet.
The grated cauliflower has a lot of moisture and you will want that to evaporate over higher heat to prevent it from becoming mushy.
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West Coast Cauliflower Kedgeree
makes 7 cups
4 large BC eggs, hardboiled, cooled
1 large head of cauliflower
2 tablespoons of avocado oil, or canola oil
1 medium onion, diced small
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
3 teaspoons curry powder
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
1 cup frozen peas
175 grams smoked salmon, broken into bite sized chunks
Chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
Lemon wedges, for serving
Peel the hardboiled eggs and cut them into quarters. Set aside.
Rice the cauliflower by grating the florets with a cheese grater, or by pulsing in a food processor to transform into rice looking granules, about 6 cups. Set aside.
Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the oil, then the onion, garlic, ginger, curry powder, salt, turmeric and pepper. Stir to combine and cook until soft and fragrant, approximately 2 to 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the frozen peas and cook for another minute.
Turn the heat to medium-high and add the reserved cauliflower rice from step 2.
Cook while stirring constantly for approximately 3 to 4 minutes.
It is important to use a large skillet over higher heat so that the cauliflower granules stay more separate and don’t become mushy (the larger pan and higher heat will evaporate any moisture that comes out of the cauliflower).
Turn off the heat and stir in the chunks of smoked salmon. Portion into dishes while garnishing equally with the quartered eggs and some parsley.
Serve with lemon wedges.
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Chef Dez is a food columnist and culinary instructor in the Fraser Valley. Visit him at www.chefdez.com. Send questions to dez@chefdez.com or to P.O. Box 2674, Abbotsford, B.C. V2T 6R4