Smoked Fish Pie in Shortcrust Pastry

This smoked fish pie in shortcrust pastry is made with smoked haddock and white fish, hearty potatoes, and flavorful veg in a creamy white sauce all enveloped in flaky shortcrust pastry.

I was majorly craving a smoky, savory and creamy fish pie. It's been firmly lodged in mind since we visited Scotland last year and ate cullen skink, Scottish smoked fish chowder.

This pie has that sort of vibe - a creamy, hearty and smoky fish stew - only in pie form, wrapped up in tender and flaky pastry. What's not to love right?

Even though I was craving this pie, when I made the first cut into it I was blown away by how good it smells. And each time I ate it thereafter, again the smell was simply mouthwatering.

It takes a bit of prep since you need to make the pie and the filling. But the result is worth the effort and also makes a very nice dish for entertaining. Or forget sharing and just eat it all yourself...

Quick Summary

• Make the pie dough by rapidly pulsing the ingredients in a food processor until they hold together;
• Roll out the bottom of the pie and blind bake it;
• While the bottom is baking refrigerate the rest of the dough, and make the filling;
• To make the filling you'll saute mirepoix in butter until reduced, then add flour to make a roux along with milk and fish stock to make a sauce;
• Add the seasoning and potatoes to the sauce and cook until they're fork tender;
• Allow the filling to cool and add the diced fish and peas;
• Fill the pie and top it. Decorate with any excess dough if you like.
• Eggwash and cut a vent hole then bake.

Jump to:

• Quick Summary
• Ingredients
• Equipment
• Instructions
• Serving Suggestion
• Related
• Recipe
• Comments

Ingredients

smoked fish and potato filling ingredients

• Smoked haddock or other smoked fish: Smoked haddock has a light but firm texture and pronounced smoky flavor that makes it perfect for fish pies and chowders.
• White fish filet (not smoked): The mix of smoked fish and white fish makes for a nice flavor balance. Good options include cod, pollock, and haddock.
• Potato: Potato gives the pie filling a hearty and satisfying texture.
• Butter: The butter is used to saute the vegetables and also mixes with the flour and milk to make a thick white sauce for the filling.
• Flour: Flour is used to
• Milk: Milk combines with flour to make a roux, which thickens the filling and gives it a creamy quality.
• Fish stock: Fish stock makes up the rest of the liquid - it adds more flavor to the filling. If you don't have it then just substitute more milk.
• Mirepoix (onion, carrot, celery): The mirepoix form the vegetable base of the filling. This combination adds flavor as well as vegetal sweetness.
• Green peas: Green peas are a classic combination with fish and add a nice textural element.
• Seasoning (dried thyme, white pepper, salt): Since there's already a lot of flavor the seasonings are light. Thyme adds an herbaceous note that complements the flavors of the dish well. White pepper adds a deeper musky note but if you don't have it you can substitute black pepper.

pie dough ingredients

This is a very tender shortcrust pastry that bakes up light, golden and flaky but still has enough structure to hold in the filling.

• White wheat flour: A low protein flour like pastry flour is ideal since it makes a more tender pastry but I've also made this pie dough recipe with regular and even high protein flour and it still turns out.
• Unsalted butter: Unsalted butter that's chilled is best. Cubing it will give you more consistency and control in mixing.
• Egg: Eggs give the pie dough structure and make it easier to work with. They are the secret for a forgiving shortcrust pastry.
• Salt: Salt for flavor.

Equipment

• Pie dish or casserole: You will need a pie pan or casserole dish. Ceramic is a good choice but personally I prefer cast iron. I used a Staub cast iron oval roasting dish for this recipe, which is 24 cm / 9.4 inches at its longest point. No lid necessary.
• Food processor: A food processor makes it much easier to make the pie dough. If you don't have a food processor, freezer the butter and grate it with a fine grater. Mix with the flour and then add the egg.

Instructions

Step 1: Prep

Start by finely dicing the mirepoix (onion, carrot and celery) and cubing the potatoes.

Step 2: Make the pie dough

Mix the pie dough in a food processor per the recipe card directions. If you aren't ready to use it right away then wrap it up and put it in the fridge until ready to use (but not more than a day or it can discolor).

Step 3: Roll out and blind bake the pie dough

Cut the dough into two pieces: you'll need one piece to be about 75% of the dough to make the bottom and sides of the pie, and then the rest for the top.

I recommend rolling out the pie dough only when ready to use. Otherwise it should be kept covered in the fridge.

Since the filling for this pie is on the wetter side, I recommend blind baking the bottom of the pie (and making the filling while the bottom is baking). The dough for the top of the pie can rest covered in the fridge while you do this.

By blind baking (baking it with pie weights) you dry out the dough which helps preserve it's structure after baking so that the pieces you cut keep their shape better.

If you don't have proper pie weights then just cover the dough with some aluminum foil and pour in some dry beans like I've done.

If that's not so important to you that the pie keep it's structure (some people like an ooey gooey fall-apart pie) then feel free to skip the blind bake. Just cover the dough and pop it in the fridge while you make the filling. When you're ready to use it, roll it all out as shown in this section and the 'assembly' section below.

If you do choose to blind bake, then you can make the filling while the bottom is in the oven.

Step 4: Make the filling

Sauté the mirepoix in butter until reduced. Then sprinkle in the flour and mix until even.

Pour in the milk and fish stock and then add the potatoes.

To ensure the potatoes are fully cooked after baking, they're simmered in the liquid until fork tender. Just cover with a lid and cook over medium-low heat - about 12 minutes should do it. This also gives the liquid a chance to cook and thicken into a luscious sauce.

Once the potatoes are fork tender then remove the filling from heat and allow to cool for about 10 minutes. This ensures the filling won't melt your pie dough when you pour it in and cover it with the top.

For efficiency, while the filling is cooling you can:

• Roll out the top of the pie.
• Roughly chop the fish. It should be cut into smaller pieces so it distributes more evenly throughout the pie.

Once the filling is cooled, add the chopped fish and peas and mix well.

Step 5: Assemble and bake the pie

Once the filling is ready then it's time to assemble the pie. If you blind baked the bottom then you can just pour the filling in and then cover with the top.

If you have any excess dough around the edges of the pie, you can use it to make a nice border on your pie.

Simply take any excess and roll it into a ball then roll it back out and cut into even strips. Use those strips to line the pie all around the edges. You can use the back of a teaspoon to gently smooth the pieces together.

You can also use the teaspoon to make a crimp patters all around the edge like I've done.

Finally when the pie is fully assembled you just need to apply an eggwash all around and use a sharp knife to cut an X right in the middle to vent the pie.

Serving Suggestion

I don't think there's anything you can add to make this smoked fish pie any better than it is. It has all the elements you want, plenty of hearty starches, protein and veg. A complete (comforting) meal in one pot.

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