Breton Cotriade with Hake

📝 Ingredients

• 800 g waxy potatoes
• 2 leeks (about 150 g each)
• 2 onions + 2 garlic cloves
• 15 g lightly salted butter
• 1 vegetable stock cube + 1.2 l hot water
• 1 tsp dried thyme + 2 bay leaves
• 400 g frozen hake fillets, thawed
• 500 g mussels (about 30)
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard + 1 tbsp red wine vinegar + 2 tbsp rapeseed oil (for the dressing)
• 4 slices country bread (about 40 g each)
• Salt, black pepper

🍴 Utensils

• Large casserole dish with lid
• Paring knife
• Chopping board
• Bowl
• Whisk or fork
• Toaster

📖 Steps

1. Peel the potatoes and cut into large 4 cm chunks. Split the leeks in half lengthways, rinse between the layers to remove any grit, then slice into 1 cm pieces. Slice the onions and crush the garlic.
2. Scrub the mussels under cold water and pull off their beards. Discard any that are broken or stay open after a sharp tap on the work surface. Keep them in the fridge until cooking.
3. Melt the butter in the large pot over a medium heat. Add the onions and leeks and sweat for 8 minutes, stirring, until soft and translucent but not coloured.
4. Add the potatoes, garlic, thyme, bay leaf and stock (cube dissolved in 1.2 l hot water): the vegetables should be just covered. Bring to the boil, then cook at a gentle simmer for 18 to 20 minutes, until a knife slides easily into the potatoes.
5. Meanwhile, make the dressing: whisk the mustard and vinegar in the bowl, drizzle in the oil, then add 2 tbsp of stock taken from the pot. Season with pepper. Toast the slices of bread.
6. Cut the hake into large 5 cm pieces, season lightly with salt and gently lay them on top of the potatoes, with the mussels on top. Cover and cook at a gentle simmer for 6 to 8 minutes, without stirring so the fish doesn't break up.
7. Check it's cooked: the hake should be pearly white and flake apart, and the mussels should have opened (discard any that remain closed). Remove the bay leaves and adjust the seasoning of the broth.
8. Serve the Breton way: a slice of toasted bread in the bottom of each soup plate, drizzled with hot broth, then the potatoes, leeks, fish and mussels, with the dressing on the side to spoon over the fish.