Fish Pies
- Cooking time: Less than 60 minutes
- Cuisine: American
- Type: Seafood-Fish
Ingredients
- 500g white fish fillets, such as deep sea perch, ling or snapper
- 900ml low-fat milk
- 1 bay leaf
- 250g hot-smoked salmon, cut into bite-size pieces
- 90g unsalted butter
- 1 leek, thinly sliced
- 90g plain flour
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
- ¼ tsp grated fresh nutmeg
- ½ tsp mustard powder
- 3 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and quartered
- 2 tbsp chopped dill
- 2 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 2 sheets puff pastry
- 1 egg yolk, beaten with 2 tsp water
Preparation method
1 Preheat oven to 190°C (170°C fan) and butter 6 individual pie dishes.
2 Place fish fillets in a frypan, cover with milk and add bay leaf. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and poach over low heat until fish is just cooked, about 4-8mins, depending on thickness. Strain milk into a jug and set aside. Discard bay leaf. Break cooked fish into bite-size pieces, removing any bones, and set aside in a bowl, together with the smoked salmon.
3 Heat butter in a frypan over moderate heat. Add leek and cook for 5mins or until soft. Stir in flour, cayenne, nutmeg and mustard, and cook a further 1min. Remove from heat and stir in milk all at once. Return to heat and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Simmer for 2-3mins. Add eggs, herbs and fish, and season to taste. Distribute mixture evenly among pie dishes.
4 Cut 6 squares pastry, slightly larger than top of pie dishes. Press on top of pies and crimp edges to seal. Make 2 slits in top of each pie and brush with egg mixture. Place pie dishes on a baking tray and bake for 30-40mins, or until pastry is golden and filling is bubbling.
