Poached smoked haddock:

1: Check the smoked haddock for any tiny pin bones. Bring the milk to the boil in a wide-based saucepan.

2: Carefully lay the smoked haddock in the pan, ensuring it is covered by the milk. Place a lid on the pan, turn off the heat and leave the fish to poach in the residual heat for about 10 minutes.

3: Once the haddock is cooked, remove it from the milk and gently flake the fish into a tray lined with greaseproof paper. Cover the tray with cling film and place in the fridge until ready to serve.

4: Pass the milk through a fine chinois into a clean saucepan and keep to one side.

 

Smoked fish béchamel:

5: Bring the smoked haddock poaching liquor to a gentle simmer.

6: In a separate pan over a medium-low heat, melt the butter. Stir in the flour to make a roux and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Gradually ladle in the warm poaching liquor, stirring as you do so to keep the sauce smooth.

7: Cook gently over a very low heat for 20 minutes.

8: Pass the sauce through a fine chinois and cover the surface with a piece of baking parchment or cling film to prevent a skin forming. Set aside until needed. (You won’t need all of the fish béchamel but you can freeze the rest.)

 

Omelette glaze:

9: Gently warm the béchamel in a saucepan then pour into a bowl and whisk in the hollandaise and egg yolks.

10: Season with salt and pepper to taste and pass through a chinois into a warm jug or bowl. Keep warm to stop the glaze from splitting.

 

To assemble & cook the omelette:

11: Crack the eggs into a jug blender and blend briefly to combine. Pass through a chinois into a measuring jug.

12: Place 4 individual omelette pans (we use Staub) over a low heat.

13: Take the smoked haddock from the fridge, remove the cling film and lay on a grill tray. Warm under the salamander or grill.

14: To each omelette pan, add 1 tbsp butter and heat until melted and foaming. Pour the blended egg into the pans, dividing it equally. Using a spatula, gently move the egg around in the pans until they start to firm up. Remove from the heat; you want the eggs to be slightly loose, as they will continue to cook off the heat.

15: Season the omelettes with salt and pepper and sprinkle the grated Parmesan over their surfaces. Divide the laked smoked haddock between the omelettes, then spoon on the glaze to cover the fish and extend to the edge of the pans. If the glaze spills over the side of the pan, wipe it away, as this will burn on the side when blowtorching.

16: To finish, wave a cook’s blowtorch over the surface of the omelettes to caramelise the glaze. Allow the glaze to become quite dark, as the bitterness will balance out the richness of all the other ingredients.