Ingredients
1 Whole smoked mullet (can be substituted for any smoked fish)
1 Onion, finely sliced
2 Sticks celery, finely diced
1 Carrot, finely diced
3 Large potatoes (approximately 500g)
2 Sprigs of thyme
¼ Bunch parsley, chopped
3 Hard-boiled eggs, peeled and quartered
75g Butter (25g for the roux and 50g for mashed potatoes)
25g Flour
2½ Cups milk
50g Cheddar cheese
Nutmeg
Salt and pepper
Directions
1. Begin by sauteing the onion, carrot, celery & thyme in a pan over medium heat until tender. Remove from pan and set aside.
2. Next, move on to making the mash potatoes which you will use to make the top of the pie. Dice potatoes and place in a pot, cover with salted cold water and bring to a boil and cook for 10 – 15 minutes or until tender. Drain potatoes well and mash with 50g butter, ½ cup of milk and season to taste with salt and pepper.
While the potatoes are cooking, you can pick the flesh from the smoked mullet being careful to remove all the bones.
3. Preheat the oven to 180℃ fan bake.
4. To make the white sauce, which will be the sauce component of the pie, start by making a roux. In a small pot over medium heat, melt 25g butter; once melted, add the flour and whisk. The flour will begin to form a paste with the butter, but ensure that you cookout this mixture for a further 2-3 minutes, ensuring that the raw flour is cooked. Next, grate in a small amount of nutmeg and whisk in the remaining 2 cups of milk; for best results, warm the milk up first. Continue to whisk well to stop lumps forming and cook for a further 5 minutes until the sauce becomes rich and voluptuous. Finally, add the picked smoked mullet, sauteed vegetables, parsley, and cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper.
5. Now’s time to form the pie, take a pie or lasagna dish, place the smoked fish filling into the bottom, and lay your quartered hard-boiled eggs on top, slightly nestling them in the sauce. Top the pie with the mashed potatoes, I chose to pipe on the mash, but a rustic smear works perfectly for this dish.
6. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes, or until the top is golden and the sides are bubbling. Remove and allow to cool for 5 minutes before enjoying.
TIP: With this pie, it is crucial to taste each component and adjust the seasoning as you go. There is nothing worse than a beautiful filling topped with flavourless mash or vice versa.