Homemade Fish Pie

Ingredients

For the filling

• 500g salmon fillet
• 500g white smoked fish fillets e.g. smokes haddock
• 180g pack of uncooked peeled prawns (optional)
• 1 cup of frozen peas
• I bay leaf
• 1 pint of full fat milk
• 4 tbsp cornflour, mixed with a little water to the consistency of milk
• 300g parmesan cheese
• Bunch of flat leaf parsley, chopped
• Half a pack of fresh dill, chopped
• Salt & pepper to taste

For the cheesy topping

• 1 ½kg potatoes (ideally Maris Piper), cut into even-sized pieces
• 50g butter
• 100g mature cheddar, coarsely grated
• Salt & pepper to taste

Method

• Place the milk in a large saucepan with the fish fillets and the bay leaf and heat on a low heat until the fish is just poached.
• Using a colander, strain the milk from the fish into a smaller saucepan. Leave the fish to one side to cool.
• Heat the milk until hot and whisk in the cornflour mixture to create a thick sauce. It’s important to add enough cornflour to create a super thick sauce as the liquid from the fish will slacken the sauce during baking.
• Add the parmesan, chopped herbs and season according to taste.
• Discard the bay leaf, and any fish skin, and flake the flesh into the sauce (removing any bones) and stir in the peas and prawns (if using).
• Divide the mixture between 6 mini oven proof dishes, or once large oven proof dish if you prefer (make sure there’s enough room for the mash topping!)
• Boil the potatoes in a large pan with salted water until soft. Mash the potatoes and add the butter plus a drop of cream if you have it. Season and add half the cheese.
• Spoon the potato topping over the fish mixture, pat down with a fork and cover with the remaining cheese. These can be placed in the fridge until you are ready to bake them for up to 24hrs.
• Place the pie(s) on a baking sheet and bake in a pre-heated oven at 200C or 180C fan for 30 minutes until golden brown.