Some days you just want comfort food and there are not many recipes more comforting than a good fish pie. I have been making this version of fish pie for years and have made it for many different people – it always goes down well with adults and children alike!
Now, fish pie is not necessarily the easiest or quickest of recipes, but I have tried to make mine as simple and straightforward as possible…I use a box of fish pie mix from the supermarket to save all that fiddly and messy boning, skinning and flaking. I poach the fish in milk and then I make a very simple white sauce and some cheesy mashed potato. Then it’s just a case of putting it all together and baking it in the oven.
To further simplify you could use pre-cooked fish, a shop bought white sauce and even, if you were feeling really cheaty, shop-bought mashed potatoes. (Promise I won’t judge 🙂 ) You could also leave the onions and carrots out of the white sauce…but I actually find it easier to make a white sauce like this (the flour doesn’t clump together) and much tastier!
You will notice I don’t use hard boiled eggs or prawns…the truth is I don’t much like hard boiled eggs and I find prawns tend to get overcooked in a fish pie. But if they are a key part of fish pie for you, by all means chuck them in when you are mixing the white sauce and fish together.
I like to serve my fish pie with some vegetables – usually some combination of green beans, cabbage, broccoli, peas and sweetcorn, sometimes all five! Wine-wise I like to pair this with a French or Chilean Chardonnay.
Easy Peasy Fish Pie
Ingredients
- 750 g potatoes peeled and chopped into 2cm cubes (ish!)
- 390 g Fish Pie Mix I used Tesco Fish Pie Mix
- 500 ml milk
- Salt and pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion diced
- 1 large carrot or 2 small ones, diced
- 20 g butter
- 50 g cheddar cheese grated
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
- Vegetables to serve - e.g. peas/sweetcorn/cabbage/broccoli/green beans
Instructions
- Put the peeled and chopped potatoes into a saucepan and cover with boiling water. Add about half a teaspoon of salt and bring to the boil, lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes or until the potatoes are done.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 200C. Tip the fish pie mix into a wide, shallow ovenproof dish and pour over the milk. Season and put the dish uncovered into the warming oven for 10 minutes.
- While the potatoes and fish are cooking, drizzle about 1 tablespoon of olive oil into another saucepan. Add in the chopped onion and carrot, cover and cook on a low heat for about 5 minutes until soft but not brown. Turn off.
- When the fish has been in the oven for 10 minutes, remove from the oven and set aside.
- When the potatoes are done, drain and mash with some salt and pepper, butter, about two thirds of the cheese and about 3 tablespoons of the fish poaching liquid.
- Turn the onions and carrots back on, uncovered, until they start to hiss. Sprinkle them with 1 tablespoon of flour and stir to combine. Pour in the rest of the fish poaching milk (leave the fish in the ovenproof dish) and stir vigorously. It should quickly resemble a white sauce. Add the parsley to this mixture and turn off.
- To assemble, pour the white sauce and vegetable mixture over the fish and stir everything together. Spread the mashed potatoes over the top using a fork to rough the surface. Pop the fish pie in the oven for 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes remove the pie from the oven and sprinkle over the remaining cheese. Cook for a further 5-10 minutes or until the pie is golden brown and bubbling.
- Serve with vegetables and a glass of Chardonnay!
Jenny Davies says
Love the sound of this! I find making fish pie a real trial with all the different processes, but I like the flavoursome additions to yours – carrot, onion, cheese in the mash and using the fish poaching milk in the mash is just genius. I shall give your method an go and see how I get on!
Eb Gargano says
I have been working on this version for years and I’m really pleased with it now. It’s really flavoursome and so easy to do. A little bit more time-consuming than most of my recipes but so worth it. Do let me know how you get on if you try it. Eb x
Kate - gluten free alchemist says
I haven’t eaten fish pie for ages. You’ve just reminded me how good it is…..
Eb Gargano says
It is very good, isn’t it? Perfect comfort food! Eb x
Alison says
I love fish pie. Yours looks really tasty and quick. Using the fish poaching milk and cheese in the mash is a great idea
Eb Gargano says
Thank you, Alison – the poaching milk and the cheese makes the mash taste AMAZING – I have been know to take a spoon to the pan the mash was in and have a good old ‘test’ after the fish pie has gone into the oven – quality control you understand! Eb x
Cydney says
It’s funny i made a fish pie yesterday and mine always end up so sloppy (delicious, but sloppy). So this recipe has popped up perfectly for next time. This sounds so easy, will deffo be pinning this for later 😀
Thanks for sharing!
– Cydney
#brilliantblogposts
Eb Gargano says
Well, delicious is the most important thing. 🙂 Do let me know if you try my recipe…I’d love to know how you get on 🙂 Eb x
Angela / Only Crumbs Remain says
I love the sound of this Eb, although I primarily eat as a vegetarian (having turned vegi over 20 years ago and living with Mr E who is a strict vegetarian), I do now very occasionally eat a small amount of chicken and fish when I’m cooking for myself (for dietary reasons) and this sounds gorgeous. I know my parents would love this too – I might suggest making this with them when I next see them. I love the forked pattern on top, it reminds me of how my mum finishes her similar dishes 🙂
Angela x
Eb Gargano says
Aw, glad you like the sound of it Angela 🙂 I’d love to know how you get on with it if you do make it with your parents 🙂 I’m a big fan of traditional rustic style cooking and generally avoiding extra faff where possible. I’ve seen lots of fish pies with beautifully piped mash and they look gorgeous but somehow a fish pie seems more right to me with something more rustic on top – that and getting out the piping bag doesn’t quite fit with the easy peasy ethos!! Glad you like it 🙂 Eb x
Kirsty Hijacked By Twins says
You cannot beat a good old fish pie. It is a firm favourite here. Thank you for sharing with #CookBlogShare x
Eb Gargano says
Exactly! Great crowd-pleaser isn’t it? My kids love it. Thanks for commenting 🙂 Eb x
Debbie says
Hi Eb, your fish pie recipe is so simple. I don’t make it often as the recipe I use is a bit faffy. Ready prepared fish pie mix sounds perfect! If only we got it here!
xx
Eb Gargano says
Thank you, Debbie. I aim to make all my recipes as easy peasy as possible – I don’t believe great tasting food has to be complicated or faffy! Shame you can’t get fish pie mix, though – perhaps a kind fishmonger would make one up for you??? Thank you so much for commenting and sharing on Twitter 🙂 Eb x
Debbie says
We are lucky in the fact we can buy fresh fish straight off the little boats in the harbour, but they’d probably laugh their socks off if I asked for pie mix. Next time I’m shopping I’m going to have a good route round in the freezer, it maybe something I ‘ve just not noticed before.
xx
Eb Gargano says
Oh getting fish fresh off the boat must be AMAZING – but yes I can imagine the fishermen laughing heartily at the idea of fish pie mix 🙂 Hope you find some at the supermarket – it does make whipping up a fish pie so much quicker and less fiddly 🙂 Let me know how you get on! Eb x
shikira says
Thanks for the generous tips – really makes all the difference as to what methods you opt for. I always aim to cook from scratch, yet those who are parents/work long hours ect, ideal that they can buy ‘instant mash’ for instance. I don’t have children nor work yet love the idea of comfort food that is affordable to my low-budget yet simultaneously nutritional and very TASTE-TASTIC!.
For this gorgeous recipe I had to go without onions and peas. only had frozen Carrots and Green Beans. No Creme-Fresh, just (packets) cheese sauce. Followed your fabulous instructions, with some tweaks here:
I add hot Paprika spice, all-ground spice and some cloves to the fish whilst cooking in milk – my partner doesn’t like any fish (apart from Cod), no sea-foods apart from this, so buy supermarket (basics fillet fish) for £2.50 – you get 7/8 fish in a frozen pack that taste barely of anything overwhelmingly fishy…..where the spices make all the difference and cheese sauce.
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Shikira! Love your tweaks – so happy you enjoyed it!! Eb 🙂
Jan says
Having actually cooked this tonight, and followed the recipe to the letter, i’m Sorry to report it came out runny (though tasty). Not sure what to tweak next time – more flour or less milk?
Eb Gargano says
Oh, I am sorry Jan. I can’t understand what went wrong here as, if anything, I suffer from the opposite problem! I guess small variations in flour/potatoes/different pan sizes etc. are to blame! I would definitely suggest you reduce the milk slightly (maybe 350- 400ml, depending on quite how runny this turned out for you) and that will almost certainly improve matters. I’m glad to hear it was still tasty – hopefully it will be just the right consistency second time round too – let me know how you get on! Eb 🙂
Alexleigh says
This looks like a brilliant easy way of making fish pie thankyou so much for sharing this am making it tonight so I hope it’s as good as it looks x
Eb Gargano says
Yay – so happy you like the recipe. Let me know how it goes! Eb 🙂
ashok says
Thanks For Sharing this amazing recipe. My family loved it. I will be sharing this recipe with my friends. Hope the will like it.
Eb Gargano says
Aw, yay – so pleased you liked it 😀 Thanks for this lovely review! Eb 🙂