We're big fans of a fish pie here at Good Housekeeping, but this simple smoked haddock pie recipe might just take the crown.
Instead of mash, it's topped with golden breadcrumbs to save time and effort (and add some delicious crunch!) and packed with flaky smoked fish, leeks, spinach, peas, and a delicious cheese sauce. It's a dish to return to time and time again – especially when the colder weather sets in.
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Yields:
4 serving(s)
Prep Time:
25 mins
Cook Time:
40 mins
Total Time:
1 hr 5 mins
Cal/Serv:
320
Ingredients
1tsp.
olive oil
1
onion, finely chopped
2
leeks, finely chopped
150g
spinach
150g
frozen peas
450g
smoked haddock fillet
300ml
skimmed milk
1Tbsp.
plain flour
40g
mature Cheddar
3
slices wholemeal bread, whizzed into breadcrumbs
Directions
Step 1
Preheat oven to 200°C (180°C fan) mark 6. Heat oil in a large pan. Add onion and 2tbsp water; fry for 10min until soft. Add leeks, spinach and peas, cover and cook for 5min until soft. Take off heat; set aside.
Step 2
Put fish in another pan. Pour milk over; bring to the boil. Turn off heat. Remove fish with a slotted spoon, reserving milk. Put fish in a 1.4 litre ovenproof dish. Break up fish with the spoon; add vegetables.
Step 3
Take a small ladleful of reserved milk from pan, put into a bowl and whisk in the flour. Gradually add to remaining milk over a low heat, whisking all the time until sauce simmers and thickens. Stir in half the cheese, season with pepper, then pour over veg.
Step 4
Mix breadcrumbs and remaining cheese in a bowl and sprinkle over the sauce. Cook pie in oven for 25-30min until bubbling.
Smoked haddock is sold both dyed (the bright yellow kind) and undyed, and you can use either for this recipe. If it comes with the skin on leave it on for poaching at step 2 (it adds flavour) but discard when you flake the fish.
Want to make this extra smokey? Use smoked Cheddar instead.
Want to add an extra touch of luxury? A handful of juicy prawns would make a lovely addition, stir them in just before adding the breadcrumb topping.
An experienced and highly skilled team of food writers, stylists and digital content producers, the Good Housekeeping Cookery Team is a close-knit squad of food obsessives. Cookery Editor Emma Franklin is our resident chilli obsessive and barbecue expert, who spends an inordinate amount of time on holidays poking round the local supermarkets seeking out new and exciting foods. Senior Cookery Writer Alice Shields is a former pastry chef and baking fanatic who loves making bread and would have peanut butter with everything if she could. Her favourite carb is pasta, and our vibrant green spaghetti is her weeknight go-to. Lover of all things savoury, Senior Cookery Writer Grace Evans can be found eating crispy corn and nocellara olives at every opportunity, and will take the cheeseboard over dessert any time (though she cannot resist a slice of tres leches cake). With a wealth of professional kitchen know-how, culinary training and years of experience between them, they are all dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work (and if they don’t – we’ll have the answer for why*) every time (*90% of the time the answer is: “buy an separate oven thermometer”!).
