This golden-topped fish pie is pure comfort food, with tender pieces of fish folded through a creamy, herb-flecked sauce and finished with crisp, flaky puff pastry. Warming, nourishing, and deeply satisfying, it’s the kind of cosy meal that’s perfect for cooler evenings or feeding a hungry table.
Serves 6
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil (EVO)
1 onion, finely chopped
1 celery stick, finely chopped
50g butter, cubed
50g Girolomoni organic '00' flour
500ml full fat milk
3 Tbsp crème fraiche
1 Tbsp Sabato dill and almond pesto
2 Tbsp Pons capers, drained
3 Tbsp flat-leaf parsley, chopped
Sal de Añana spring salt
Black pepper, freshly ground
800g skinless white fleshed fish fillets, cut in chunks
500g flaky puff pastry, thawed and pre-rolled
1 egg, lightly beaten, for glaze
Heat EVO in a large pot, add the onion and celery and cook over medium heat for 5-8 minutes until softened but not browned.
Add the butter to melt, then stir in the flour, and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Gradually whisk in the milk to make a smooth sauce then simmer, stirring until the sauce has thickened. Remove pot from the heat and stir in the crème fraiche, pesto, capers and parsley. Season well. Fold the fish pieces into the sauce then transfer mixture to a 1.5L capacity ovenproof pie dish.
Unroll the puff pastry and use a 6cm round pastry cutter to cut out circles. Brush the tops of each circle with beaten egg, and place them over the top of the pie, overlapping so that they look like fish scales. Press the edges firmly onto the rim of the pie dish. Chill the pie for an hour in the refrigerator, or in the freezer for 20 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 170°C fan-bake. Brush the pastry with a second layer of beaten egg.
Bake for 40-45 minutes or until the pastry is golden and crisp, and the sauce is bubbling hot. Leave to rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Match with: Kumeu River Estate Chardonnay
Recipe by Julie Le Clerc.
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