Semi-humble Fish Pie

Fish pies, traditional and otherwise, are a varied lot. There are elegant lobster pot pies, frozen fish pies from the supermarket, and "stargazey" pies with rings of cold eyed fish faces to challenge even the hungriest diners.( You can see a scary picture of one, below.) This fish pie is none of these. It is humble, but not entirely so, because, at least in my book, nothing with shrimps in it can be counted as ordinary. Still, frozen shrimps have become very reasonable, and these days I usually have a 2 lb bag in the freezer that I can dip into at will.

I made a fish pie because I had some leftover mashed potatoes, a frozen tilapia fillet, and those shrimps, and because if I had another meal of leftover brisket, in any incarnation, I was going to be too bored to lift my fork. So I put the rest of the meat in the freezer, and constructed this nursery-ish dinner, and it all worked out quite well. It is not very demanding, if you happen to have the makings around, and it is a tasty, comforting treat. In my view, it should be served very steamingly, scaldingly hot, and eaten with a spoon. Actually, it's great stuff.

I made mine in a small crock, but you could make a big, full-sized pie, or bitty ones in ramekins for a starter. Thie amount will serve 2, if you make it in medium sized bowls:
You Need:

a fish filet, about 1/4 lb. (I used frozen tilapia)
8-10 good sized shrimps, peeled, deveined, and cut in chunks
handful mushrooms, cut in quarters
1/2 cup fennel bulb, chopped
carrots, peeled and sliced thinly
1 1/2 cups milk
2 tbsps butter
2 tbsps flour
a bay leaf
salt
pepper
freshly grated nutmeg
enough mashed potatoes to generouslycover your 2 serving crocks
paprika
small amount panko (opt)
fresh grated parmesan or gruyere

Put all the ingredients, up to and including the milk in a small pan. Bring to a boil, then turn down heat and simmer until the fish and shrimp are just done.

With a slotted spoon, move shrimp and fish and veg to the 2 crocks, flaking the fish into chunks. Heat the butter in a clean pan, whisk in flour, and add the hot milk, whisking to make it smooth. Cook over a medium heat, whisking, until it is nice and thick. Season with salt, pepper, and plenty of grated nutmeg.

Pour over crocks, leaving space at the top for the potato topping. spread potatoes over neatly, sealing the edges well. sprinkle with paprika, panko (if desired), and a bit of grated cheese. Bake until top is browned, and filling begins to bubble. (Varies wildly with size of baking dish, mine took 1/2 hour.)

The stargazey pie photo is from a UK Website called About Food. There is a -yikes-recipe. You probably don't want to know why the fish heads are arranged that way, but if you do, you can find out there.

Comments

[Tanna]

For some reason I'm always tempted to try fish pie and always lose my nerve when it comes to doing it. Yours looks really wonderful.

[Julie]

I remember reading about stargazey pies in Laurie Colwin. Yuck!

Your fishpie however sounds very good and looks lovely in its little ramekin.

[Lynn D.]

I really can't believe this! Last night I made a fish pie with cod, fennel, spinach and mashed potatoes and I baked it in my green Le Creuset! It was absolutely delicious and comforting on a very cold night. This morning we microwaved the leftovers for breakfast on a very cold morning. I recommend a splash of white wine in the sauce. I'm excited about making this again with variations

[lindy]

Tanna-Really easy and really good, I really think you'd like it.
Julie-This isn't the best stargazey photo in the world, but I'm not sure I'd want to post a clearer one. Yet there is a strange fascination.....
Lynn-I thought about the white wine, too (of course), but I would have had to open a new bottle. I should have, and I could have had some with my pie. Do you think we were, you know, separated at birth or something?
I was surprised at how delicious it was. I like the idea of spinach in it, too-or leeks?

[Rebecca]

You know how you have happy food memories and unhappy ones? One of the latter involves a fish pie, when I was a child and had never eaten such a thing and our family was staying in the home of family friends and expecting a good dinner, only to be given a salmon pie. I do remember that it involved canned salmon, white sauce, and peas, and there was no way I was choking it down.

Your fish pie sounds like another kind of animal entirely, and might just override that childhood trauma!

[lindy]

Rebecca-It is even possible that the traumatic pie of the past would seem different now. I have always been an omnivore, but many children automatically dislike all things in sauces, or mixed together.
My daughter was among them, but that formerly fussy eater now eats all sorts of strange things she wouldn't have liked as a kid. I do think small children have very different (perhaps more sensitive and twingey) tastes than adults. They seem more inclined to be suspicious of their food, too. Perhaps this is a survival mechanism?

[Heath]

Your little green Le Creuset is so lovely. I'm exactly that beautiful shade of grass green with envy - I have no Le Creuset.

[Hypnotherapy London]

This looks really good and not too hard. I love your Le Cresuet, it makes the pie look even better