How to Make Fish Pie?

Fish pie is a quick and very inexpensive one-pot meal option. The pie is made with a variety of fish (usually, they will charge you less than the market price). In addition to sautéed leeks and parsley, the fish is poached in a mixture of fish stock and milk before being topped with a light layer of mashed potatoes and baking till golden brown. Feel free to use whichever fish you have on hand for the pie, or ask your fishmonger for various fish scraps.

Finding distinctive and delicious recipes is difficult for fish and fitness enthusiasts. However, this recipe for the fish pie is so delicious that it will all your cravings at once and help you stick to your plan. You won’t be able to resist this pie because it is made with haddock and codfish and is so decadent and velvety—a delicious mixture of butter’s rich flavor and cheddar cheese’s creaminess.

What is Fish Pie?

A typical British meal is fish pie, commonly referred to as fisherman’s pie. Cook’s Illustrated claims that the dish was probably developed as a lenten dish that used leftover fish. Eel and carp pies were among the recipes in John Murrell’s 1615 A New Booke of Cookie that asked for scraps. ‘s 1889 Jessup Whitehead The cook is instructed to poach the fish, then drain it and top it with cream before baking, according to The Steward’s Handbook and Guide to Party Catering.

A white sauce or cheddar cheese sauce created with the milk the fish was poached in is typically used to top the fresh and smoked fish (such as cod, haddock, salmon, or halibut) or seafood that is used in the pie.
An additional component that is frequently used is hard-boiled eggs.
Sometimes the sauce is flavored with parsley or chives. It is baked in the oven in a deep dish but typically lacks the shortcrust or puff pastry shell typical of most savory pies (e.g., steak and kidney pie).

Here is the best fish pie recipe:

Ingredients

1 cup fish stock
1 cup milk
12 ounces fish, skin and bones removed, cut into bite-sized chunks
One bay leaf
2 ounces (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter
One medium leek, white part only, washed thoroughly and finely sliced
2 ounces all-purpose flour (a little less than 1/2 cup)
One tablespoon of finely chopped fresh parsley
Salt, to taste
Dash ground black pepper, or to taste
5 1/2 cups mashed potatoes (warm and creamy)
A handful of grated cheddar cheese, optional

Steps to follow

Here are the steps to follow:

Gather the ingredients. Preheat the oven to 355 F/180 C.
Pour the fish stock and milk into a large saucepan and bring a gentle simmer.
Add the fish pieces and bay leaf and poach for 5 minutes.
Remove the fish pieces with a slotted spoon and set them aside. Reserve the liquid in the pot.
Melt the butter in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Add the sliced leek and cook for 5 minutes until the leek is soft.
While still hot, add the flour and stir well with a wooden spoon for 2 minutes.
Pour the fish poaching liquid into the pan and stir again. Raise the temperature and cook for 3 minutes until the sauce is slightly thickened.
Turn off the heat, remove the bay leaf, and add the poached fish and chopped parsley—season with salt and pepper.
Spoon the fish mixture into an ovenproof dish. Cover with a thick layer of mashed potatoes and fluff them with a fork. For a more professional look, you can pipe the mashed potatoes using a piping bag with a large nozzle.
Sprinkle with the grated cheese if used.
The meal should cook for 20 to 30 minutes in the center of a preheated oven or until the sauce is boiling underneath the potatoes. Serve right away and delight.

Tips

When feasible, use fresh, in-season fish, but you may also use frozen as long as you thaw it first to prevent water from getting into the bottom of the casserole dish. A watery fish pie can result from using fish that hasn’t been fully defrosted.
Pick non-oily, meaty fish like cod, salmon, smoked haddock, and coley (also known as pollock), a cod substitute.
Either purchase a single variety of fish or combine other fish, including shrimp or prawns.
In a 2- to 2-1/2-quart baking dish, bake the pie.

Recipe Variations

Crushed potato chips or panko crumbs can be added as a final garnish to give the pie a bit of bite.
Add some freshly chopped dill or chives, some grated nutmeg, or both to the sauce to give it more flavor.
FChop 3 or 4 hard-boiled, peeled eggs. Before covering with the mashed potatoes, scatter the chopped eggs over the sauce mixture. Or fish pie, boiled eggs are frequently incorporated.
Wine can give the sauce a distinct flavor. Add roughly 1/3 cup of dry white wine to the leek mixture before adding the poaching liquid.

How to Reheat Fish Pie?

Here are the different ways to reheat fish pie:

Reheating Fish Pie in the Oven

350°F (180°C) should be the oven’s temperature. Slices should be heated in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes (30-40 minutes for a whole pie). Before covering the oven-safe dish with foil, let the fish pie reach room temperature. Remove the foil to crisp the top during the last few minutes of heating. You may also include some fresh cheese to give the dish some life.

In the oven, reheat fish pie as follows:

Set the oven’s temperature to 350°F (180°C).
Transferring your fish pie to an oven-safe dish after it has warmed to room temperature Pie will heat more quickly, even if it is at room temperature.
Use aluminum foil to cover the dish.
Place in the oven to warm individual servings for 10-15 minutes or the entire pie for 30-40 minutes. Give yourself up to twice as long to make frozen fish pies.
For the final few minutes, take off the foil to create a crispy cheese topping (add fresh cheese for extra zing).
Before taking the pie out of the oven, ensure the center has heated through.
Use a knife to check if the pie has been heated through.
Feel how hot the metal is when you insert it into the dish and remove it. Your fish pie is prepared if the surface is warm to the touch.
If you’re pressed for time, you can heat the fish pie in the microwave for 30 to 60 seconds.
This will speed up the heating of the pie (but make sure your dish is microwave-safe; don’t use foil!).

Microwave-Based Fish Pie Reheating

Put your fish pie on a plate that can be used in a microwave. Check the temperature and reheat the pie for 30 seconds when it reaches the appropriate temperature. Reheating is advised for 30 seconds at 50% power. Take the pie out of the microwave once it has heated through, and if preferred, crisp the top under the broiler.

Reheat fish pie in the microwave as follows:

Your fish pie should be placed on a microwave-safe plate or in a lidless microwave-safe container.
The pie should be microwaved.
Thirty seconds of reheating at 50% power are recommended.
Once the pie has reached the desired temperature, check the temperature and reheat for an additional 30 seconds.
Remove the pie from the microwave when it is hot.
Under the broiler, crisp the top if desired.
Before serving, give the pie a minute to rest.
To guarantee uniform heating, only reheat a few pie chunks at a time in the microwave.
I advise using only 50% of the power because the fish is fragile and prone to overcooking, and this will offer you greater control over the warming procedure.

Reheating Fish Pie in a Skillet

Warm up a skillet with a thin layer of oil over low heat. After taking it out of the fridge, place the fish pie in the skillet. After adding a splash of stock or water, cover the pan with a lid. The mixture might need to be stirred to warm evenly. Reheat the pie for around four to five minutes.

Reheat fish pie in a skillet by lightly smearing it with oil.
Set the skillet’s heat to medium-low.
When the skillet is heated, remove the fish pie from the refrigerator and put it inside. A pie that has been refrigerated will be more stable and portable than a pie served at room temperature.
Add a splash of water or stock (unless the sauce is already watery).
Put a lid on the pan.
For four to five minutes, reheat the pie.
The fish can be cooked without burning if the heat is kept low.
You don’t want to cook it any further; reheat it.
To heat the mixture more quickly, you can whisk the potato and fill it together, but the finished product might resemble baby food.

How to Store Fish Pie?

Here are the steps to store fish pie:

Refrigerate leftover fish pie in a covered container for up to 3 days.
The whole pie or leftover pie may be frozen in the baking dish or another container. To freeze the pie, cover the baking dish or container tightly with foil and freeze for up to 3 months.
Defrost the frozen fish pie in the refrigerator overnight. Cover the pie with foil and bake it in a preheated 375 F oven for about 30 to 45 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.

Conclusion

In addition to being wholesome and assisting your family in enjoying a balanced and varied diet, fish pie also serves a decent helping of home comforts and frequently a little nostalgia. A filling supper is a seafood bake with fluffy, creamy mashed potatoes. The white fish fillet and smoked haddock combine in this simple fish pie to form a delectable dish. Add a lot of cheese to the top of your pie if you want to be very decadent. It will have a more golden and crisp finish as a result.