Recipe: Cheesy fish pie

Cheesy fish pie. Photo / Janna Dixon

This is another recipe that allows you to choose the fish mix, and I recommend including some smoked fish.

Serves 6

1 Poach 4 cups of seafood in a pan of milk, adding a bay leaf while it is simmering. When the fish is only just cooked, remove it from the pan and set aside.

2 In the same warm milk, poach finely diced carrots, potatoes and celery, adding some frozen peas once the vegetables are soft (a total of about 3 cups of vege).

3 Strain off the milk and set the vegetables aside. Remove the bay leaf and discard.

4 Make a white sauce using this milk. Don't worry if it looks a bit "ickey". It contains all the fish and vegetable flavours and it will all smooth together. Once you have achieved a thick smooth sauce (you may need to add a bit more liquid ) add a cup of grated cheese.

5 Add any juices that have drained from your poached fish and vegetables.

6 Add a good amount of chopped parsley, chives, dill or fennel to taste. You may need to season more or sharpen with another squeeze of lemon.

7 Layer the fish and vegetables in a pie dish. Pour the sauce over and gently fork it through the ingredients until it's well distributed. Cover with a top of puff pastry. Glaze with a beaten egg yolk and bake in a medium oven until the pastry is cooked and the contents are bubbling.