Blanquette de Poisson

Dinner

France's most comforting white stew gets a brilliant two-fish twist. Flaky cod and rich salmon replace the traditional veal in this creamy, herb-laden blanquette that's been warming French souls for centuries.

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 5 minutes mins

Servings 4

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Ingredients  

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For the Fish and Vegetables

• 400 gr cod fillets
• 400 gr salmon fillets
• 300 gr mushrooms
• 300 gr carrots
• 200 gr onion
• 2 bay leaf
• 2 sprigs thyme
• 1 handful parsley

For the Sauce

• 60 gr unsalted butter
• 60 gr plain flour
• 200 ml dry white wine
• 500 ml fish stock
• 200 ml Double cream
• 2 egg yolks
• 20 ml lemon juice
• 1 handful parsley
• salt and black pepper

Equipment

• 1 dutch oven
• 1 sieve
• 1 whisk
• mixing bowl

Instructions

1. 1. Prepare the aromatic base

   Melt half the butter in your casserole dish over medium heat. Chuck in the carrots and baby onions, give them a light seasoning with salt and white pepper. Cook gently for 5-6 minutes until they start to soften, don't let them colour though. This step is to coax out sweet flavours. They should look glossy and smell lovely. Add the bay leaves, thyme, and parsley stalks.
2. 2. Add the mushrooms and wine

   Add in the mushrooms and cook for another 3-4 minutes until they start weeping their juices. Pour in the white wine and let it bubble away for 2 minutes, you want to cook off the harsh alcohol but keep the wine's brightness. The smell should be properly divine at this point! Add the fish stock and bring to a gentle simmer. Not a rolling boil, more like barely bubbling.

   The mushrooms are doing their thing here, releasing all those earthy flavours. And that wine? Choose something you'd actually drink. Life's too short for cooking wine that tastes like disappointment.
3. 3. Gently poach the fish

   Season both the cod and salmon chunks with salt and white pepper. Add the cod first and poach for 3-4 minutes, then add in the salmon pieces. Cod needs slightly longer than salmon, which can go from perfect to overcooked in moments. Cover and continue poaching very gently for another 6-7 minutes until both fish flake easily but still hold their shape. When done, carefully lift everything out with a slotted spoon and keep it warm in a serving dish.

   Right, this is where people usually panic. Don't. The fish will tell you when it's ready, it'll flake easily but still look like fish, not fish paste. Salmon is particularly delicate, so treat it accordingly.
4. 4. Make the roux

   Strain that cooking liquid through a fine sieve. Wipe out your casserole dish and melt the remaining butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and cook for 2-3 minutes, whisking constantly. You're making a white roux. Don't let it brown or you'll lose that clean flavour that makes blanquette special.

   The roux is the foundation of your sauce.
5. 5. Build the sauce

   Gradually whisk in that strained liquid, bit by bit, whisking like your life depends on it to prevent lumps. It'll look worryingly thin at first, then suddenly thicken. This is the French technique, the transformation from liquid to sauce happens almost instantly.

   If you get lumps, don't despair. Pass it through a sieve and carry on. Even French grandmothers have lumpy days.
6. 6. The liaison

   Whisk the egg yolks with the double cream in a small bowl until smooth. This is the liaison, the bit that transforms good sauce into sublime sauce. Gradually whisk a few spoonfuls of the warm sauce into the egg mixture to warm it up (stops the eggs scrambling), then whisk this back into the main sauce. Heat gently for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly. The sauce should thicken to coat the back of a spoon.

   This is the moment of truth. Take your time, warm those eggs gradually, and whatever you do, don't let it boil or you'll have very expensive scrambled eggs.
7. 7. Bring it together

   Add the lemon juice and taste for seasoning. Gently return the fish and vegetables to the sauce, being extra careful not to break up the delicate pieces. The salmon will be particularly fragile now. Warm through very gently for 2-3 minutes, just long enough to heat everything without overcooking. Stir in the fresh parsley and serve immediately.

   And there you have it! You have made your own French blanquette!

Notes

• Use centre-cut salmon fillets rather than tail pieces, which can be thin and overcook easily. The natural oils in salmon will enrich the sauce beautifully.
• The combination of cod and salmon creates an incredibly rich cooking liquid. If anything, you might want to use slightly less cream than you would with a single fish to let the natural fish flavours shine.
• This reheats brilliantly the next day, though be even more gentle with the heat to prevent the fish breaking up further.

About this recipe

Right, so blanquette didn’t start with fish at all, but with veal. You can walk into any neighbourhood bistro from Lille to Marseille, and you’ll find “Blanquette de Veau” on the menu.

The technique dates back to medieval monastery kitchens, where monks perfected gentle white sauce cooking during Lent. By the 18th century, it had become the signature dish of French bourgeois cooking, refined enough for special occasions, homely enough for family dinners. The name comes from ‘blanc’ (white), referring to that pristine, pale sauce that requires patience, skill, and an understanding that the best flavours come from gentle coaxing, not aggressive heat.

From aristocratic tables to bistro staples
So originally, blanquette was posh food. Veal was expensive, butter and cream were luxury ingredients, and the technique demanded skill. But French cooking’s democratic spirit meant it gradually moved from aristocratic kitchens to middle-class tables, then into the bistros and brasseries that fed working France. By the 19th century, every decent cook knew how to make proper blanquette, and it became the benchmark of French culinary competence.

The dish survived both world wars, adapted to rationing, and emerged stronger. Post-war France embraced blanquette de veau as a symbol of returning prosperity and domestic comfort.

The coastal revolution
French fishing families along the Atlantic coast watched inland relatives making blanquette de veau and thought, “We can do that with fish.” They had the technique, that gentle liaison, that careful balance of flavours, but instead of expensive veal, they used whatever the boats brought home.

As pescatarians ourselves, we’ve discovered the Blanquette de Poisson and we can’t get enough of it! The gentle poaching preserves delicate textures, the white sauce complements rather than masks seafood flavours, and that crucial liaison creates the same silky richness that makes the original so compelling.