The Ultimate Fish Pie Recipes

FANTASTIC FISH PIE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 230°C/450°F/gas 8.
• Peel and dice the potatoes into 2.5cm chunks, then put into boiling salted water and bring back to the boil for 2 minutes.
• Carefully add the eggs to the pan and cook for a further 8 minutes, or until hard-boiled, by which time the potatoes should also be cooked.
• At the same time, steam the spinach in a colander above the pan. This will only take a minute. When the spinach is done, remove from the colander and gently squeeze out any excess moisture.
• Drain the potatoes in the colander. Remove the eggs, cool under cold water, then peel and quarter them. Place to one side.
• Peel and finely chop the onion, then peel, halve and finely chop the carrot.
• In a separate pan, slowly fry the onion and carrot in a little oil for about 5 minutes, then add the double cream and bring just to the boil.
• Remove from the heat and finely grate in 2 good handfuls of cheese, then squeeze in the lemon juice and stir through the mustard.
• Pick and finely chop the parsley and stir into the cream mixture.
• Slice the fish into strips then place in an earthenware dish with the spinach and eggs and mix together, pouring over the creamy vegetable sauce.
• The cooked potatoes should be drained and mashed - add a bit of oil, sea salt, black pepper and a touch of nutmeg (if using). Spread on top of the fish. Don't bother piping it to make it look pretty - it's a homely hearty thing.
• Place in the oven for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are golden.
• Serve with some nice peas or greens, not forgetting your baked beans and tomato ketchup. Tacky but tasty, and that's what I like.

THE ULTIMATE FISH PIES

Steps:

• Make the mash for the topping first. Place the potatoes in a large pan of cold, salted water, bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes or until cooked through. Drain, then mince with a potato ricer or mash finely. Mix in the milk, followed by the egg yolks and butter, then season and set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 180°C/fan160°C/gas 4. Place 500ml milk into a saucepan and bring to a very gentle simmer. Add the hake and slowly poach for 4 minutes. Remove the fish, thickly flake, and reserve the milk.
• Make the herb sauce by melting the butter in a medium saucepan over a moderate heat. Whisk in the flour and cook for a couple of minutes. Add 250ml of the reserved poaching milk (discard the rest) and whisk well. Stir in the stock, nutmeg and season to taste with salt and coarsely ground black pepper.
• Cook over a low heat until thickened, then remove from the heat, mix in the herbs and fold in the hake, prawns and smoked salmon.
• Divide the mixture between 4 x 400ml pie dishes then dollop the mash on top. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes, until golden brown and piping hot.

THE ULTIMATE FISH PIE

Steps:

• For the potato topping, place the potatoes in a large pan of boiling salted water and cook for 15-20 minutes, or until tender. Drain the potatoes well and mash them with a potato masher or ricer along with salt, white pepper and butter, to taste. Stir in the gruyere and set aside the potatoes, keeping them warm. For the poaching broth, place the fish stock, vermouth, onion, fennel, carrot, celery, bay leaf and saffron in a large pan and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for five minutes. For the fish, place the white fish, smoked haddock, salmon and prawns into the broth and poach for three minutes. Using a slotted spoon, gently remove the fish from the pan and set aside. Pour the broth through a sieve into a clean pan, discarding the vegetables and herbs. Bring the broth back to the boil and simmer until reduced by half. For the parsley sauce, heat the butter and flour together in a pan over a low heat, stirring to make a paste. Add the reduced broth a ladleful at a time and keep whisking until smooth. Add the milk and the parsley, bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for ten minutes. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. To finish the sauce, add the double cream to the pan and season, to taste, with salt and white pepper. To assemble the pie, butter a casserole dish generously and flake the set-aside fish, discarding any skin and bones. Lay the fish in the casserole dish and pour about half of the parsley sauce on top (reserve the remainder of the sauce to use as a pouring sauce on the finished pie). Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and add the spinach to the pan. Blanch for a minute until the spinach has wilted. Drain well. Slice the hard-boiled eggs and lay on top of the fish, followed by the blanched spinach. Cover with the mashed potatoes. In a small bowl, mix together the ciabatta crumbs and the parmesan. Sprinkle the cheese breadcrumbs on top of the pie. Place in the preheated oven and bake for about 20-25 minutes, or until the top is golden-brown. Reheat the parsley sauce and serve the pie hot with the remaining parsley sauce poured over.