Fish on Friday

Fish on Friday? Well, on Good Friday at least. Need to have something waiting in the fridge after a long day of Easter egg hunting, general rowdiness and ferry riding on Good Friday? Put a fish pie in the fridge before you leave.

I didn’t have fish pie growing up. We had chowder, which has pretty much the same list of ingredients. We had finnan haddie, smoked haddock poached in fish which we ate with mashed potatoes. Again, pretty much the same ingredients as a basic fish pie. Although, it was one of the few meals which I would choke down in anger and disgust. Maybe, if we had fish pie at our house, I wouldn’t love it so much now which would be a shame because it is my quintessential comfort food.

I didn’t discover fish pie until after I met Stephen. Actually, it was after I met Stephen’s mum. My mother-in-law used to make some of the best fish pie I have ever eaten. The best thing about arriving at Glebe farm on a Friday was that, almost inevitably, there would be fish pie for supper. She made it really simply and with some cracked pepper, coarsely ground salt and steamed vegetables, it was divine.

It isn’t always that way. It is, in my experience, pretty much always good though. Sometimes, it is a little more posh. Sometimes, it is a little more egg and potato than it is fish. Sometimes, it has sliced potatoes instead of mash. Sometimes, it is less creamy and more cheesy. Sometimes, it is the perfect mix of fish and shellfish, creaminess and potatoey goodness.

I never use a recipe to make fish pie and it is with no small amount of trial and error that I am now happy with how I make it. It isn’t ever exactly the same as the time before; it depends on what we have to put in it. So, I am going to explain the basics, link to a couple of recipes and encourage you to play around and discover, for those who haven’t, and rediscover, for those who have eaten this your whole lives, the most perfect Good Friday, or any Friday supper.

You start with some fish and/or shellfish. Smoked haddock, preferably undyed, fresh haddock and salmon work really well. Hardboiled eggs are, for some, absolutely necessary. White sauce, or bechamel, is to my mind, pretty important although I have made it with a vegetabley, tomatoey base and it was pretty good - Jamie Oliver’s Fantastic Fish Pie doesn’t have a creamy sauce and could be made really quickly.

You also need some sort of potato topping - I often use mashed potatoes with celeriac which lightens it up a bit. Nigella uses sliced potatoes on top and calls it fish gratin. The recipe, from Nigella’s Christmas, can be found here.

The rest is really up to what you prefer, how much time you want to spend and how posh you want to make it. Lobster and scallops are decadent in fish pie but may be a bit over the top for a family supper. A handful of chopped spinach usually make its way into a fish pie made at our house. Leeks and fennel or celery poached with the fish add a nice flavour and texture to the pie. 

For classic English fish cookery, most would turn to Rick Stein. His version of a more classic fish pie is a good place to start. Where the recipe uses cod, I would substitute haddock. Use a recipe as a starting point. Add some chopped fresh dill or a handful of your children’s favourite veg. Or, go all out and make it rich and decadent with seafood for a special occasion.

Just enjoy it, and not just on Fridays.