andrew’s fish pie with rosti topping

An old friend Andrew Wallace’s gentle fish pie, with a light breadcrumb topping. Serve with buttered broccoli.

serves 6

• 800ml milk
• 3 bay leaves
• 600g fresh haddock fillets
• 300g undyed smoked haddock
• 130g butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 leeks, finely sliced
• 300g peeled prawns
• 6 hard-boiled eggs (optional)
• 70g plain flour
• 40g fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• Salt and black pepper

For the topping:

• 600g waxy potatoes (red potatoes type)
• 100g breadcrumbs
• 50g Parmesan cheese, finely grated
• 20g fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
• 5 spring onions, thinly sliced
• 30g butter

method

Preheat the oven to 170°C. Put out a rectangular baking dish 30 x 22 x 7cm deep.

Pour the milk into a wide, shallow pan. Add the bay leaves and bring to just below the boil. Place the fish in the hot milk. Leave to stand, off the heat, for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, put 30g of butter and the olive oil in a pan and fry the leeks until soft (about 10 minutes). Spread these over the bottom of the baking dish.

Remove the fish from the milk, discard the skin and flake a little. Place it over the leeks. Add the prawns on top. Peel and slice the eggs, then add these too.

Melt 100g of butter and stir in the flour, then the warm milk. Add the parsley and season. Cook for 4–5 minutes over a low heat. Pour into the dish, covering the fish.

Put all the topping ingredients except the butter into a bowl and mix to combine. Melt the butter in a pan and stir the topping around in it. Sprinkle the mixture over the sauce

Bake for 30–35 minutes in the middle of the oven, until bubbling hot and golden.