OLD ENGLISH FISH PIE
When the Shelbys took over management of the Eden Club from Italian gangster Darby Sabini in season 2, we think they might have put this hearty British dish on the menu.
Serves 6
- 50g (1¾oz) butter
- 1 large leek, roughly chopped
- 50g (1¾oz) plain flour
- 600ml (20fl oz) full-fat milk
- 4 blocks of frozen spinach
- ½tsp English mustard
- A handful of flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked and chopped
- 4 tarragon sprigs, leaves picked and roughly chopped
- 300g (10½oz) skinless, boneless salmon fillet, cut in 3-4cm dice
- 1 large skinless, boneless smoked haddock fillet (about 250g/9oz), cut in 3-4cm dice
- 200g (7oz) skinless, boneless whiting, cod or other white fish fillet, cut in 3-4cm dice
- 200g (7oz) cooked, peeled baby prawns
- 4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and roughly chopped
- Steamed greens, to serve
Tommy Shelby, played by Cillian Murphy, is the main protagonist in Peaky Blinders series
For the topping
- 1kg (2lb 4oz) potatoes (suchas maris piper), peeled and chopped into 4-5cm chunks
- 75g (2¾oz) butter
- 3 spring onions, chopped
- 150ml (5fl oz) full-fat milk
- Salt and ground black pepper
- 100g (3½oz) panko breadcrumbs
- 50g (1¾oz) Cheddar, grated
First, start the topping. Boil the potatoes in a pan of salted water for 20 minutes, or until tender. Drain in a colander and leave to steam dry. Meanwhile, melt the butter in the same pan over a medium heat.
Add the spring onions and milk and bring the milk to a simmer. Remove from the heat and tip in the potatoes.
Season with salt and pepper and mash until smooth. Set aside. For the filling, melt the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat.
Add the leek and fry for 5-7 minutes, until soft. Stir in the flour and, once it’s incorporated, add the milk, a little at a time, beating with a wooden spoon.
When you have added all the milk and have a silky-smooth sauce, stir in the frozen spinach, and the mustard, parsley and tarragon. Leave to one side.
Preheat your oven to 190°C/ fan 170°C/gas 5. Place the diced salmon, smoked haddock and white fish in the base of a 25 x 30cm oven dish. Sprinkle the prawns and eggs over. Pour the sauce over, making sure the fish is completely covered.
Spoon the mash over the top and smooth out the surface into an even layer, then run a fork through it to create some lumps and bumps. Sprinkle with the breadcrumbs and the grated cheese and bake for about 40 minutes, until the fish is cooked through, the sauce is bubbling and the top is golden and crisp.
Serve with steamed seasonal green vegetables.
RACK OF LAMB WITH A MUSTARD & WHISKEY GLAZE & CAPER SAUCE
In the 1920s, when Peaky Blinders is mostly set, chefs were more likely to serve up hogget or mutton at the dinner table. But this recipe uses a prime cut of lamb – the ‘best end’ with its more subtle flavour, and more fitting for Thomas Shelby’s rising fortunes and move to country mansion Arrow House in season 3. Eat it pink to keep the texture perfectly tender.
Serves 6
- 2tbsp olive oil
- 3 racks of lamb, French trimmed (from larger supermarkets or ask your butcher to do this)
- Salt and ground black pepper
- 3 rosemary sprigs, leaves picked and chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 2tbsp Irish whiskey
- 1tbsp runny honey
- 2tbsp wholegrain mustard
To serve
Steamed green beans, buttery peas and rosemary roasted potatoes
For the sauce
- A knob of butter
- 2¹/3tbsp plain flour
- 300ml (10fl oz) lamb stock
- 150ml (5fl oz) double cream
- 2tbsp capers
- 1tsp mint sauce
Preheat your oven to 200°C/fan 180°C/gas 6. Place a large frying pan over a high heat. Rub the olive oil all over the lamb and season generously with salt and pepper.
Ada Shelby, played by Sophie Rundle, is the younger sister of Tommy Shelby
Seal the lamb in the hot frying pan until browned all over (the ends, too!) – the darker it is, the better for flavour. Remove the lamb from the pan and place the racks into a roasting tin.
In a bowl, mix the rosemary with the garlic, whiskey, honey and mustard to create a marinade. Brush the marinade all over the lamb. Roast the lamb in the oven for 10-12 minutes.
Remove from the oven and leave it to rest for 10 minutes. While the lamb is resting, make the sauce.
Melt the butter in a small saucepan over a medium heat. Stir in the flour, then add half the lamb stock. Stir until smooth. Add the remaining stock, stir to combine, then bring the liquid to a simmer.
Add the cream, capers and mint sauce and season to taste. Pour the sauce into a warm jug.
Once the lamb has rested, carve it, serving 3 cutlets (half a rack) per person. Pour the caper sauce over and serve with a bowl of steamed green beans, buttery peas and rosemary potatoes.
GENTLEMAN’S PUDDING WITH RASPBERRY JAM & CUSTARD
A dessert fit to follow the fish pie at the Eden Club – though there was nothing gentlemanly about the way the Peaky Blinders ousted the Italians. If you don’t fancy brandy in your custard, whiskey or spiced rum would work too.
Serves 6
- 150g (5½oz) butter, at room temperature, plus extra for greasing
- 6tbsp caster sugar
- 3 eggs
- 150g (5½oz) self-raising flour, sifted
- Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
- 3tbsp raspberry jam
- A couple of handfuls of fresh raspberries or a few spoonfuls of jam, to serve (optional)
For the custard
- 4 egg yolks
- 2tbsp caster sugar
- 1tsp vanilla extract
- 3½tbsp full-fat milk
- 3-4tbsp brandy
Upturn a ramekin and place it in the bottom of a large saucepan with a lid. This is going to be your steamer.
Using an electric hand whisk, beat the butter and sugar together until light and pale – almost mousse-like. Add 1 egg and 1tbsp of the flour and whisk again.
Add a second egg and another tbsp of flour, whisk, then add the last egg and another tbsp of flour and whisk again. Fold in the last of the flour and add the lemon zest. Now stir in the jam – just enough so you have a ripple effect.
Pour the batter into a 1-litre pudding bowl, greased with butter. Cover the top with a disc of baking paper so the paper overhangs the sides of the bowl and secure it round the rim with string.
Place the pudding into the pan, on top of the ramekin. Pour in cold water so that it comes almost to the base of the pudding bowl and place the pan over a low heat with the lid on.
Steam for about 1 hour, until cooked through (check the water level from time to time and top up with boiling water if the pan looks dry).
Once the pudding has been steaming for about 50 minutes, start the custard. Place the egg yolks, sugar and vanilla into a heat-resistant bowl set over a pan of simmering water.
Make sure the water does not come into contact with the base of the bowl. Whisk the egg mixture over the water until it’s light, fluffy and thickened (about 5 minutes).
Whisk in the milk and then the brandy until combined. Remove the bowl from the heat and pour the custard into a jug.
Remove the pudding bowl from the pan, untie the string and remove the baking paper. Place a serving plate on top of the bowl, and, protecting your hands with a towel, invert the pudding onto the plate.
Serve with the custard and a few fresh raspberries or spoonfuls of jam, too, if you like.
TOAD IN THE HOLE
Zero-waste food for a thrifty family table, meat cooked in batter was the perfect way to make small quantities of expensive ingredients go further (and to use up any meat left over from other meals). In this recipe, which might have been served up at the Shelbys’ childhood home on Watery Lane, the toads are given a twist – wrapped in bacon. Herby, rich gravy to pour over the dish is a must.
Serves 4
- 8 good-quality pork sausages
- 8 rashers of smoked streaky bacon
- 1 large red onion, thickly sliced
- 2tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 rosemary sprigs, leaves picked
- Steamed greens (peas and runner beans would be good), to serve
For the batter
- 175g (6oz) plain flour
- 1tsp salt
- 3 eggs
- 250ml (9fl oz) full-fat milk
- 8 sage leaves, roughly chopped
For the gravy
- 20g (¾oz) butter
- 1 small onion, sliced
- 1tsp light brown soft sugar
- 1tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1tbsp plain flour
- 300ml (10fl oz) chicken stock
- 3 thyme sprigs, leaves picked
- Salt and ground black pepper
Preheat your oven to 200°C/fan 180°C/gas 6. To make the batter, simply mix all the batter ingredients together in a bowl until smooth, then leave the bowl somewhere warm for the batter to rest.
Wrap each sausage in a rasher of streaky bacon. Place the wrapped sausages into a 20-22cm oven dish with the red onion, sprinkle in the vegetable oil and toss everything together.
Bake for about 15-20 minutes, until the bacon starts to crisp. Pour the batter into the dish, scatter with the rosemary leaves and bake for a further 30-35 minutes (without opening the oven door for at least the first 25 minutes), until the batter is puffed up, crisp and golden.
While the toad in the hole is baking, make the gravy. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over a gentle heat.
Add the onion and fry for about 7-10 minutes, until softened. Add the sugar and cook for a further 2-3 minutes, until the onion starts to brown. Pour in the vinegar and cook for 1 minute, then stir in the flour.
Pour in the chicken stock, stir and add the thyme leaves.
Simmer the gravy for 15 minutes, until it is thickened and glossy. Season with salt and ground black pepper, to taste.
Turn off the heat and set the gravy aside to keep warm until the toad in the hole is ready. Serve together with buttered steamed greens on the side.
BAKED TROUT WITH RICE, FENNEL & LEMON
Oysters, herring, mussels, cockles, sprats and eel were the catch that most working-class families like the Shelbys would have been eating in the early 20th century. But if you had your eyes set on social climbing, serving up trout like this would definitely have made a statement.
Serves 2
- 2 skin-on, filleted whole rainbow trout (each about 250g/9oz), washed and patted dry with kitchen paper
- Salt and ground black pepper
- 30g (1oz) cooked white rice
- Finely grated zest of 1 small lemon
- 1 small fennel bulb, cored and finely chopped
- 50g (1¾oz) frozen peas
- A handful of flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked and chopped
- 5-6 dill fronds, chopped
- 100ml (3½fl oz) dry white wine
- A knob of butter, softened
- Steamed greens (such as samphire or green beans) and lemon wedges, to serve
Preheat your oven to 190°C/fan 170°C/gas 5 and line a shallow roasting tin with baking paper. Find some kitchen string.
Place one half of each fish fillet, skin-side down, on the lined roasting tin and season each with salt and pepper.
Tip the rice into a small mixing bowl and add the lemon zest, fennel, peas and herbs. Season and mix well.
Divide the rice mixture between the two fillet halves, gently pressing it over the surface of the fish to coat. Place the second half of each fillet on top of the first, sandwiching the rice mixture in between.
Tie string around the fillets to secure them together, then pour the wine around the fish. Brush the fish with the softened butter, season and bake for 15 minutes, until cooked through.
Serve with steamed greens and lemon wedges for squeezing over.
FRIED CHEESE & ALE SANDWICHES
This chunky, full-on, heavyweight fried cheese sandwich might have been the kind of meal served alongside a beer in the Shelby-owned Garrison pub.
Makes 2
- A knob of butter
- 40g (1½oz) plain flour
- 100ml (3½fl oz) ale, at room temperature
- 100ml (3½fl oz) full-fat milk
- 1tsp English mustard
- 2tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 100g (3½oz) mature Cheddar, grated
- ¼tsp ground black pepper
- ¼ of a bunch of chives, chopped
- 4 slices of crusty white bloomer
- A handful of spinach leaves
- 2 eggs, beaten
- Vegetable oil, for frying
- Gherkins, to serve
Melt the butter in a small saucepan over a low heat. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute, stirring continuously.
Keep stirring and slowly add the ale. Once the ale is fully incorporated, add the milk, mustard and Worcestershire sauce and stir to combine to a smooth, thick sauce.
Add the Cheddar, black pepper and chives, stirring to melt the cheese into the sauce.
The Official Peaky Blinders Cookbook will be published by White Lion on Tuesday, £14.99. To order a copy for £13.49 go to mailshop.co.uk/books or call 020 3176 2937. Free UK delivery on orders over £20. Offer price valid until 19/03/2022.
Once the cheese has melted, remove the pan from the heat and leave the sauce to cool. It will be quite thick, but that’s what you’re after.
Generously spread two slices of the bread with the cheese sauce, add a layer of spinach leaves to one slice and place the second slice, cheese sauce down, on top, gently pressing the sandwich together.
Heat a large, non-stick frying pan over a medium heat, and pour the beaten egg into a wide, shallow bowl. Dip the sandwich into the egg, wait a few minutes, then turn it over and leave the other side to soak briefly in the egg, too.
Add a little vegetable oil to the frying pan and fry the sandwich for about 6-7 minutes, until golden on the underside. Carefully flip it over using a spatula and cook on the other side for a further 4-5 minutes, until that side is golden, too.
Don’t worry if some of the cheese sauce oozes out.
Remove the toasted sandwich from the pan, slice it in half and serve it straight away with a few gherkins on the side – and, of course, a glass of ale. Repeat with the remaining slices of bread and filling. Cheers!
Peaky Blinders, Sunday, 9pm, BBC1.
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