Fish pie with swede mash recipe

Our fish pie with swede mash serves four and takes an hour to make

This lightly spiced twist on the humble fish pie makes a great prep-ahead midweek meal. We’ve used defrosted, fish pie mix but feel free to use a selection of fresh fish if you prefer. Salmon, cod, and haddock are popular options but you can experiment with your favourite combination. For a touch of luxury, consider adding some prawns to the mix. 

Ingredients

• 3 eggs
• 20g butter
• 1 leek, washed well and sliced
• 20g plain flour
• 400ml milk
• 200g frozen spinach, defrosted
• 350-400g frozen fish pie mix, defrosted
• 2tsp garam masala
• 3tsp chopped dill

For the topping:

• 500-600g swede
• 500g celeriac
• 2 carrots
• 1⁄2tsp ground nutmeg
• 1⁄4tsp Dijon mustard

You will need:

• 25cm round oven-proof dish

Method

1. For the topping, peel and chop the swede, celeriac and carrots into similar-sized chunks. Put into a pot, cover with water, bring to a boil and cook for 20 minutes until tender. Drain, then mash with the nutmeg and mustard, and season to taste.
2. Put the eggs into a pan and cover with water. Bring to the boil. Once boiling, cook for 7 minutes. Rinse under cold water then peel and halve each egg.
3. Heat the oven to 200C Fan/ Gas 7. In a separate pan, melt the butter. Add the leek and sizzle for 5 minutes until soft. Over a medium heat, stir in the flour, then mix in the milk, a little at a time, to make a smooth paste. Let it bubble, stirring regularly, until thick. Off the heat, mix in the spinach, fish, garam masala and dill. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Pour half the mixture into the dish, lay the eggs on it and top with the remainder of the fish mixture. Cover with the mash, using a fork to make a textured top. Bake for 25 minutes.

Top tips for making our fish pie with swede mash

We’ve used Dijon mustard in the mash but you can use wholegrain or English mustard if you prefer. Alternatively, if you don’t like the flavour, feel free to leave out the mustard completely. 

Jessica Ransom

“If you don’t want to ditch potatoes completely for your mash topping, consider using half potato and half swede. You’ll benefit from some of the reduced carbs, get a little boost of sweetness  and lots of other nutrients and minerals that you wouldn’t consume if using 100 percent potatoes.” 

For a smooth swede mash we recommend using a potato ricer such as this one from VonShef.

VonShef Potato Ricer Masher - View at Amazon 

When you’re not making mash, use this ricer for fruit purees and smoothies. It comes with a two-year warranty and is easy to clean.

Try our classic fish pie recipe if you don’t like the flavour of garam masala. You might also like this quick and easy fish pie or this Slimming World fish pie recipe has a creamy Quark potato topping.