James Martin’s fish pie recipe is so quick and easy it is perfect for a midweek supper. I suggest serving this supper recipe in a fabulous oven to table dish to save on the washing up.
Tip: To make the parsley sauce use a plastic balloon whisk as if a metal one may cause it to go lumpy, plus add the milk slowly and whisk the milk fully in before adding any more.
To save time buy the fish prepared for the pie.
Ingredients
Parsley Sauce:
- 85g butter
- 40g flour
- 570 ml of milk
- 150 ml of cream
- A bunch of fresh parsley finely chopped
Fish Pie:
- 225g white fish
- 450g salmon fillets
- Juice from a lemon
- 4 hard-boiled eggs
- 900g potatoes
- 140g baby spinach leaves
- 55g butter
- 150 ml single cream
- A pinch of salt and white pepper
- A little grated nutmeg
Method
- Pre-heat the oven to 200C, 400F, Gas 6
- Peel and dice the potatoes and cook in boiling salt water until soft.
- Take the potatoes off the boil and drain.
- Add cream, butter and a pinch of nutmeg and mash until smooth and creamy, season and set to one side until required.
- Check for any fine bones in the fish with your fingers, and remove any skin.
- To make the white sauce melt the butter over a low heat then stir in the flour to form a roux and cook slowly for about 3 minutes, keep stirring so the roux doesn’t brown.
- In another pan heat the milk and cream to simmering point.
- Slowly pour a little milk mixture into the “roux” and whisking until blended. Repeat until all the milk is combined into a fine sauce. Bring the sauce to a simmer and then cook over low heat for 6 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the chopped parsley and set to one side.
- Butter an ovenproof dish.
- Cut the raw fish into pieces and lay in the dish, season lightly and add a splash of lemon juice.
- Top with the washed spinach.
- Pour the parsley sauce evenly over the top.
- Shell and quarter the boiled eggs and place evenly over the sauce.
- Top with the mashed potato.
- Bake for 40 minutes by which time the top should be crisp and brown and the fish perfectly cooked in its own sauce.
- Serve with fresh or frozen garden peas.
Enjoy! Norah X