Fish Pie Recipe

Easy Fish Pie

This easy Fish Pie is one of my favourite comfort food recipes. The filling consists of delicate fish fillets, prawns and sliced hard boiled eggs in a creamy white sauce. It is covered with buttery mashed potato and topped with a sprinkle of tangy mature cheese. The milk that is used to cook the fish then forms the basis of the sauce which means that there is a double hit of flavour. If I make this for my family, I feel that I am doing full-on food-related nurturing!

There are a few steps involved in making the pie but they are all very simple and they can be done in parallel. For example, you can prepare the potatoes and the eggs while the fish is cooking. I find it quite therapeutic to put this pie together ready for a family supper or lunch. I will sometimes make it on the day that we are planning to eat it. However, quite often, I will make it a day ahead and re-heat it which means that it can be on the table within half an hour.

Another brilliant aspect of this pie is that all you need to accompany it is a green vegetable, steamed beans or peas, or maybe some carrots. You need nothing else as the pie includes both filling and potato. This is great if you are entertaining as you can spend time with your guests.

What you need to know about this Fish Pie Recipe

  • You can use any kind of fish to make this recipe. I like to use a combination of different kinds but you can just use one kind if you prefer. Good options are salmon or any kind of white fish (cod, haddock, hake, pollack). If you don’t want to add prawns, you can just increase the quantify of fish.
  • Whatever kind of fish you use, you must use ensure that it is filleted. You do not want any bones lurking in your pie. It is worth checking the fillets to make sure that all the bones have been removed before cooking the fish (step 2).
  • I include hard boiled eggs in my fish pie. I do this because my mother added them to her fish pie and because I love the combination of egg and fish. However, I understand that not everyone is a boiled egg fan. If you don’t like them, it is fine to leave them out.
  • You can freeze the pie once it has been assembled (step 10) and keep it for three months. Make sure that you assemble your pie in a freezer-proof container. Allow the pie to cool to room temperature. Wrap the whole container in cling-film or foil and freeze. When you want to use it, allow it to defrost in the fridge and then take it out and allow it to reach room temperature. You can then remove the wrapping and heat in the oven for 30 minutes.

Step-by-step recipe

Place fish fillets in an oven-proof dish

Add chopped onion, bay leaves and pepper to the milk

Pour the milk over the fish fillets and cook for 15 minutes. Remove the cooked fish and retain the flavoured milk to make the sauce.

Hard boil the eggs.

Put the cooked fish fillets and hard boiled eggs into the oven-proof dish.

Make the white sauce using the retained milk. Add the prawns and then pour the sauce over the fish and eggs.

Cover with mashed potato and top with grated cheese.

Cook for 15 minutes (or 30 minutes if reheating from room temperature).

Other simple suppers

I am always on the look-out for simple supper or lunch recipes. I need things that are easy to make and can, if required, be made in advance. In addition to this Fish Pie recipe, I also have a few others that I make regularly.

I love easy stew recipes, particularly if they have a bit of an exotic twist, and often make Lemon Chicken with Olives and Moroccan Seafood Stew.   Both of these are very simple but taste delicious.  They are great week-night recipes but also are good if you are entertaining.

I also have a huge repertoire of pasta recipes including Smoked Salmon Pasta and Mushroom and Chestnut Pasta plus a few easy sauces such as Mint Pesto and basic Tomato Sauce.

Another good option for a simple supper is a savoury tart. These can be eaten hot or at room temperature and are easily portioned.  Some of my favourites include Onion Tart,  Carrot and Coriander Tart and Beetroot Tart.

Other seafood recipes

If you love seafood, you might like some of my other recipes.

Easy Fish Pie recipe

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Fish Pie

Fish Pie Recipe

  • Author: Tastebotanical
  • Prep Time: 45
  • Cook Time: 15
  • Total Time: 1 hour
  • Yield: Serves 8
  • Category: Pie
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: English

Description

This easy Fish Pie combines fish fillets, prawns and hard boiled egg slices in a creamy white sauce.  It is covered with mashed potato and topped with a sprinkle of tangy cheese.


Ingredients

Scale
  • 900 g (2 lb) fish fillets (cod, haddock, salmon etc)
  • 425 ml (3/4 pint) milk
  • 1 small onion
  • 1 bay leaf
  • Salt and pepper
  • 5 eggs (optional)
  • 25 g (1 oz) butter
  • 25 g (1 oz) plain flour
  • 165 g (6 oz) raw peeled prawns
  • 675 g (1 1/2 lb) potatoes
  • A little butter and milk
  • A little hard cheese (eg cheddar)

Instructions

  1. Heat your oven to 180 C, 400 F or Gas Mark 4.
  2. Put the raw fish fillets into a large oven-proof dish.   Pour over the milk.  Peel and roughly chop the onion and add this to the dish together with the bay leaf.  Season with salt and pepper.   
  3. Put the dish in the oven for 15 minutes until the fish fillets are cooked.   
  4. Remove the dish from the oven.  Leave the cooked fish in the dish.  If any of the fillets had skin on them, this can now be easily removed.  Strain the milk into a measuring jug and set it aside.  Discard the onion pieces and bay leaf.
  5. If you are using eggs, place the raw eggs in a small saucepan and cover with cold water.  Bring to the boil and then simmer for 6 minutes.   Remove the eggs from the pan and immediately place them in a pan of cold water to stop the cooking process.    When the eggs are cool enough to handle, remove the shells, slice the eggs and place them in the oven-proof dish with the cooked fish.
  6. Melt the butter in a small saucepan.  Add the flour and stir to combine.  Cook gently for 2 minutes.  Remove from the heat and gradually add the milk in which the fish was cooked.   Then return the pan to the heat and simmer until the sauce starts to thicken.  This will take around 5 minutes.
  7. Put the raw prawns into the saucepan of sauce and cook for 3 minutes until they turn pink.
  8. Pour the sauce containing the prawns over the cooked fish and egg slices.   
  9. Make the topping by peeling the potatoes and chopping into large chunks.  Put the potato pieces into a saucepan of cold water with a pinch of salt.   Bring to the boil and then simmer for 25 minutes.  Drain the cooked potatoes and mash them with a knob of butter and a little milk.
  10.  Spread the mashed potatoes over the fish mixture.  Top with a few small knobs of butter and a little grated cheese.
  11. Put the pie in the oven and cook for 15 minutes until the top is golden brown.    If you assemble the pie in advance, you will need to re-heat it for around 30 minutes from room temperature.

Keywords: fish, pie

This recipe has been shared on #CookBlogShare with Lost in Food and #FiestaFriday with Fiesta Friday

Vegetarian Mince Pies

Vegetarian Mince Pies - a Christmas recipe

Vegetarian Mince Pies – crisp flaky golden pastry and rich fruity brandy-infused mincemeat and all ready in just over half an hour. Your kitchen will be filled with delicious seasonal baking aromas and you will be able to offer everyone, veggies and meat-eaters, a warm pie fresh from the oven. If you want to get into the Christmas baking vibe, without doing anything too complicated or time consuming, then this is your go-to recipe.

In a world where there is a proliferation of good-quality ready-made Mince Pies, I think it is still worth making your own as it is an easy short-cut to seasonal baking bliss without too much effort. At this time of the year, spending an hour or so making these beauties, ignoring the cold outside, is just what I want to do. This is the perfect, no-fuss Christmas recipe!

Vegetarian Mince Pies - a Christmas recipe

What you need to know about this recipe

This is my manifesto for Mince Pie making heaven.

  • I think home-made Mincemeat is best and I have a recipe on this blog. However, you do need to make it in advance and, frankly, you may not have either the time or inclination to do this. Using shop-bought mincemeat is absolutely fine but try and go for one that is good quality. If you are using shop-bought mincemeat, you can add a teaspoon of brandy or port to the mixture, which will really lift the flavour, or a squeeze of fresh lemon juice if you don’t want to use alcohol. Adding some grated orange or lemon peel is also good.
  • Whether you are using home-made or shop-bought mincemeat, you can add an additional hidden treat to your pies. I will sometimes add the following to each pie, on top of the mincemeat filling, before putting on the pastry lid: a chunk of marzipan, a few dried cranberries, a piece of dark chocolate, a glace cherry or a lump of cheese.
  • Again, I think home-made pastry is best. It has a buttery crispness which even good quality ready-made pastry doesn’t seem to have. It is also really easy to make your own pastry. However, again, you may not have the time or inclination to make your own. If you want to use shop-bought pastry, that is fine. Just make sure you get a brand that is “all butter” as it will generally taste better.
  • You can go for different shaped “lids” for you pies but, honestly, stars are best. It is Christmas after all and you can’t get much more festive than a star!
  • When you are baking your pies, make sure that the door to your kitchen is open so the smell of baking and alcohol-infused fruit spreads throughout your house.
How to eat your mince pies

Without a doubt, mince pies are best eaten warm. If you are not eating them immediately, you can re-heat them by popping them in the oven at 180 C, 350 F or Gas Mark 4 for five minutes. You can eat them on their own. You can eat them with whipped or pouring cream (if you must). I eat mine with a lump of strong cheese (extra mature cheddar) and a glass of Pedro Ximenez sherry, if I can. Try it before you judge.

Vegetarian Mince Pies - a Christmas recipe
Other festive sauces and accompaniments

I think that no festive meal is complete without some warm and fragrant Mince Pies made with home-made vegetarian Mincemeat. They are the perfect Christmas recipe! Another of my Christmas baking recipes, which goes very well with Mince Pies, is my Cinnamon Biscuits (Cookies) flavoured with cranberries and tangerine.

Having the right sauces and accompaniments can take a festive meal to the next level. If you are preparing a special festive meal for Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year you might like to try some of my other recipes for drinks, snacks, accompaniments and desserts. They are very easy and are a great way to create a celebratory festive feast!

How to make vegetarian Mince Pies

Vegetarian Mince Pies

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Vegetarian Mince Pies

Vegetarian Mince Pies

  • Author: Tastebotanical
  • Prep Time: 15
  • Cook Time: 20
  • Total Time: 35 minutes
  • Yield: 12 large pies 1x
  • Category: Pies
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: English

Description

These easy Vegetarian Mince Pies combine crisp buttery pastry with rich, brandy-infused dried fruit.  They are the taste of Christmas!


Ingredients

Scale

For the pastry:

  • 275 g plain flour
  • 125 g fat (I use a mix of half butter and half Trex as I think this makes the lightest pastry)
  • Salt
  • A little water

For the filling:

  • 1 large jar of mincemeat – see my easy Vegetarian Mincemeat recipe or use good quality shop-bought
  • A little milk and caster sugar

Vegetarian Mince Pies


Instructions

  1. Set you oven to 180 C, 350 F or Gas Mark 4.
  2. Make the pastry. Put the flour in a bowl.  Add the fat and combine –  either by “rubbing in” by hand or processing – until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add a little cold water (2-3 tbsp) and shape the mixture into a dough.  
  3. If you have time, allow your pastry dough to rest for half an hour, wrapped in cling film, as this will make the resulting pastry more tender.  If you do not have the time, don’t worry!
  4. Roll out the pastry on a floured surface so that it is as thin as possible.
  5. Using a round pastry cutter which is slightly larger than the depressions in your pie tin cut circles from your pastry.  I use a 7.5 cm diameter pastry cutter which is fairly standard.
  6. Place a circle in each of the depressions in your pie tin.
  7. Put 2 teaspoons of mincemeat onto each pastry circle.
  8. Using a star shaped pastry cutter, cut stars from the remainder of the pastry. Place them on top of each mound of mincemeat.
  9. Paint the top of each star with a little milk using a pastry brush.  Sprinkle with caster sugar.  This will make the top of the pies golden and crunchy.  (Some people add beaten egg instead but I always think it is a waste of an egg as you don’t need very much of it!)
  10. Put the pies in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes.  They will be done when the pastry is golden.
  11. Remove the  pies from the tin immediately and place on a cooling rack.

Vegetarian Mince Pies

Vegetarian Mince Pies

 


Notes

  • This quantity of pastry and mincemeat makes approximately 12 large pies.  It will vary according to how thin you roll your pastry and the size of the depressions in you pie tin.
  • This recipe is vegetarian (as long as you use vegetarian Mincemeat)

Keywords: Mince Pies, Christmas, baking

This recipe has been shared on #CookBlogShare with Lost in Food  and #FiestaFriday with Fiesta Friday and Jhuls at The Not So Creative Cook and #BakingCrumbs with Apply to Face Blog

Mushroom and Chestnut Pies

Vegetarian Mushroom and Chestnut Pies
Mushroom and Chestnut Pies

Mushroom and Chestnut Pies

These Mushroom and Chestnut Pies make a fantastic vegetarian main course at an autumn or winter dinner.   I often make them for Sunday lunch when I usually serve both vegetarian and non-vegetarian guests.  The non-vegetarians get a roast and the vegetarians get the Mushroom and Chestnut Pies.  They both go well with the same accompaniments – roast potatoes, cauliflower in white sauce, buttered carrots, parsnips – which makes things easy!

What makes these pies particularly good is the combination of the mushrooms and the chestnuts.   The chestnuts add a sweetness which goes very well with the bosky savouriness of the mushrooms.   Also, I think there is something special and celebratory about dishes that include crisp flaky pastry.   These pies are part of my traditional Christmas Day dinner when I serve both vegetarians and  non-vegetarians.

Mushroom and Chestnut Pies

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Vegetarian Mushroom and Chestnut Pies

Mushroom and Chestnut Pies

  • Author: Tastebotanical
  • Prep Time: 10
  • Cook Time: 50
  • Total Time: 1 hour
  • Yield: Serves 6
  • Category: Pies
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: English

Description

These Mushroom and Chestnut pies are the perfect autumn main course combining savoury mushrooms and sweet chestnuts wrapped in crisp buttery pastry.


Ingredients

Scale
  • 25 g butter and 1 teaspoon oil (or 2 tsp if vegan)
  • 1 onion
  • 1 bulb of fennel
  • 2 sticks of celery
  • Salt and pepper
  • 250 g mushrooms
  • 1 garlic clove
  • Several sprigs of fresh thyme (or one teaspoon of dried thyme)
  • 180 g of peeled, whole chestnuts
  • 500 g packet of puff pastry
  • 1 egg

Instructions

  1. Heat the butter and oil in a large heavy-based pan
  2. Peel and chop the onion, fennel and celery. Add the vegetables to the pan and season with salt and pepper.
  3. Cook very gently for around 30 minutes until the vegetables are soft and sweet. Slow cooking caramelises the natural sugars in the vegetables and greatly improves the flavour of the dish.
  4. Slice the mushrooms and add them to the pan together with the peeled and crushed garlic clove. Cook for a further five minutes.
  5. If using fresh thyme, remove the leaves from the woody stems. Add the thyme to the vegetable mixture.
  6. Roughly chop the chestnuts and add them to the vegetable mixture. Cook for a further five minutes.
  7. Roll out the puff pastry to a thickness of approximately half a centimetre.  Cut circles from the pastry.  Either use a pastry cutter or cut around a small saucer or plate.
  8. Break and lightly whisk the egg.  Use a pastry brush to paint egg around the circumference of one of the pastry circles.    Place a spoonful of the mushroom and chestnut mixture in the centre of the circle and then fold the pastry circle in half to form a semi-circular pie.   Paint some more of the egg over the top of the pie. Repeat for the rest of the pastry circles.
  9. Place the pies on a baking sheet and bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.

Keywords: vegetarian, mushroom, chestnut, pies

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