Try this fish pie recipe and you’ll see why it’s a menu fixture at this famous Melbourne pub
Comforting but not too heavy, this creamy fish pie is a year-round favourite. So don’t be shy – bust through the golden pastry cap and dive right in.
This fish pie has been a menu fixture at the Builders Arms Hotel – in Melbourne’s Fitzroy – since we opened in 2012. With its combination of textures and flavours, it’s a comforting dish without being too heavy, so you can enjoy it year-round.
When it comes to eating it, don’t be shy. Push the puff pastry top into the sauce and eat the crust and filling together. Enjoy it on its own, or with something fresh and cold on the side, such as a leafy green salad or, as we do at the hotel, with a chopped broccoli and freekeh salad.
Ingredients
SAUCE
3 tbsp olive oil
3 brown onions, finely sliced
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 large fennel bulb, cored and finely sliced
6 prawn heads (reserve the bodies for the filling)
180ml white wine
300g potatoes, peeled and sliced
625ml chicken stock or water
185ml thickened cream
salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper
PIE FILLING
375g puff pastry (or enough to cover your chosen dishes)
1 large fennel bulb, diced into 2cm pieces
300g rainbow trout fillet, skinned and pin-bones removed
950g goldband snapper, skin removed, cut into 6cm-long pieces
6 large prawns, tails removed, peeled and deveined, halved lengthways
12 large sorrel leaves, torn
½ cup chopped dill
zest of 1 lemon
3 tbsp capers, chopped
1 egg, beaten
Method
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 190C fan-forced (210C conventional).
Step 2
To make the sauce, heat the oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan over medium heat and gently cook the onion, garlic and fennel until soft, about 8-10 minutes. Add the prawn heads and cook until pink, about 3-4 minutes.
Step 3
Increase the heat, deglaze the pan with the wine and simmer for 3-4 minutes until the liquid has almost all evaporated. Add the potatoes and stock (or water) and simmer gently until the potatoes are tender and the liquid has reduced by two-thirds, about 15-20 minutes.
Step 4
Add the cream, bring the mixture to a boil, and turn off the heat. Remove the prawn heads and discard. Tip the mixture into a blender and puree until smooth. Strain the sauce and season to taste. Set aside.
Step 5
Cut shapes out of the puff pastry to top the pies with (6 x 500ml ramekins work well for this or you could use one large pie dish). Be sure to cut the pastry about 1cm wider than the dish all the way around.
Step 6
Blanch the diced fennel for 4 minutes in boiling water, drain and cool.
Step 7
Divide the blanched fennel, seafood, herbs, lemon zest and capers between the pie dishes. Spoon about 200ml of the sauce into each dish and stir to coat.
Step 8
Dampen the edges of the pie dishes with a little water and place the pastry lids on top. Press the pastry lightly onto the dishes and brush the top with a little beaten egg.
Step 9
Pierce a couple of holes through the top of each pie to let the steam escape during cooking, place the pie dishes on a baking tray and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the pastry is golden, the filling is hot and the fish just cooked through.
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