Fish Pie

Fish pie is a comforting classic of English cooking: fish folded into a creamy béchamel, topped with mashed potato baked golden.

Fish base

1. Rinse the hake (700 g fish fillet), pat it dry, and cut it into roughly 3 cm cubes.

2. In a pot melt the butter (40 g), stir in the flour (3 tablespoons wheat flour), and fry, stirring, for 1-2 minutes, so the raw flour taste cooks off.

3. Gradually pour in the milk (400 ml), and keep stirring until you get a lump-free, thickening béchamel.

4. Fold in the green peas (150 g) and the diced hard-boiled egg (3), then the fish cubes and the chopped parsley. Season with salt and pepper, and smooth it into a buttered ovenproof dish.

Mashed potato for the top

5. Cook the peeled potatoes (800 g) tender in salted water, drain them, and mash them creamy with the butter (30 g).

6. Smooth the mash evenly over the fish base, and sprinkle over the grated Trappista cheese (80 g).

7. Bake in a preheated oven at 200 °C for 25-30 minutes, until golden.

Tip: Draw a wavy pattern into the top of the mash with a fork – the edges of the furrows brown nicely and turn crisp.