Fish Pie

Fish Pie is a springtime luxury. I know at first blush it sounds like you won’t like it but I know you will. It’s delicious. This recipe is based on one by Gizzi Erskine. The base is a pea puree, topped with poached fish, then quail eggs and a rich herby sauce finished with mashed potatoes and a little parmesan. We have it for Easter or Mother’s Day. It is so delicious in fact that two Easters ago our miniature dachshund Donna used her bodyweight to push a chair out from under the breakfast table all the way across the room until it hit the island in the kitchen. She then hopped onto the chair, and up on the island and ate the whole pie. Fish pie brings out the inner Donna in all of us.

IMG-6656.jpg

Fish Pie

Fish Pie
Yield: Feeds 6 hungry people
Author:

A springtime luxury that is worth the work

Time

  • Prep: 30 minutes
  • Cook: 1 1/2 hours
  • Total: 2 hours

Ingredients

  • 1lb bag of frozen peas
  • 1 TB minced tarragon
  • 1 TB minced mint
  • 1 ¾ cups heavy cream
  • 1lb salmon
  • 1lb cod
  • 1lb haddock
  • 12 king prawns, deveined and shells removed
  • 1 32oz bottle of whole milk
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 large yellow onion, roughly chopped
  • 12 quail eggs
  • 4 TB butter
  • 3 TB plain flour
  • ½ cup white cheddar cheese, freshly grated
  • 2 TB parsley, finely chopped
  • 2 TB dill, finely chopped
  • 6 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
  • ½ cup panko
  • ¾ cup parmesan, freshly grated

Recipe

  1. Boil peas in a pot of salted water for 3 mins until just cooked. Drain and combine peas, mint, tarragon, salt and pepper and ¼ cup of the cream in a blender. Pulse a few times and then spread the pea mixture along the bottom of your casserole dish.
  2. Place the fish and prawns in a deep pot. Submerge in the milk. Add your bay leaves, onion and salt and pepper to the pot and bring to a boil. Once boiling cut the heat entirely and leave the fish to poach in the hot milk for 30 mins. Once fish is done, reserve 2 ½ cups of the poaching milk and strain out the fish. Gently flake the fish into the casserole dish on top of the peas.
  3. Hard boil the quail eggs. Set a pot of water on to boil. Add the quail eggs and boil for 3½ mins. Immediately transfer to an ice bath to stop the cooking. Once cool, peel the eggs. This is the worst part of the whole shebang. Evenly tuck the quail eggs into the fish mixture.
  4. Next is the sauce. Melt the butter in a pan over medium low heat. Whisk in the flour until you get a thick even paste and cook for 30 seconds more. Reduce heat to low. Carefully pour in your 2 ½ cups of reserved milk and whisk whisk whisk until the flour roux is mixed in. Cook for 3-5 more mins until sauce is thickened and no lumps remain. Mix in cheddar and herbs. Cook for 2 mins more. Pour over the fish and egg mixture.
  5. Boil the potatoes in a large pot of salted water for 25 mins or so. Drain and then mash with a fork. Add remaining cream – do this bit by bit – you might not need all 1 ½ remaining cups. Spread evenly over the fish. Sprinkle with parmesan and panko.
  6. When you’re ready to eat bake for 30-40 mins on 400 or until the top is golden brown and the whole pie is heated through. Enjoy like Donna and eat your whole weight in it.
Dinner, LunchMary Bell ClementComment