Also referred to as a fisherman’s pie and very popular in the UK & Ireland, this hearty pie is like a seafood version of a shepherd’s or cottage pie. A savoury seafood filling is cooked on the stovetop and then topped with dreamy mashed potatoes. The whole thing is then baked until golden and bubbling.
The filling is often cream-based and includes the addition of cheese, but if this sounds good and you want a dairy-free version (that is just as luscious and creamy!), then you’ve come to the right place! This recipe checks all the boxes but doesn’t contain any milk or cream products.
How to Make a Fish Pie Without Cream or Milk
We will start first and foremost by making our cream substitute – a cashew cream. This is exactly the same process I use in my creamed spinach or my peppercorn sauce.
And it works brilliantly in this usage, too. You will need a blender to be able to make it properly (a handheld blender in a jar works – I’ve done it!).
Soak some raw, unsalted cashews in boiling water for at least an hour. Drain them, add them to the jar of a blender along with a touch more water.
Blend on high until smooth, thick and creamy. Then, set aside until you’re ready to use it – this will be used in both the filling and the mashed potato topping.
Now, it’s time to start boiling the potatoes for the topping. Peel and cut some potatoes and add them to a saucepan along with a few cloves of peeled garlic.
Cover with cool water and season with salt. Set the potatoes over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and allow to simmer until they’re very tender.
While the potatoes are cooking, make your filling!
Add some olive oil and a couple of anchovy fillets to a large saucepan and set it over medium heat. The anchovies are optional, but they add such a nice complexity to the sauce that I highly recommend including them if you have them on hand (always keep anchovies on hand – they make EVERYTHING better).
Once the oil is shimmering and the anchovies are beginning to dissolve, add some finely chopped shallot, carrot and celery. Season generously with salt and cook, stirring frequently, until everything begins to brown and get lightly caramelised – about 10 minutes.
When you get to this stage, go ahead and add some minced garlic, lemon zest and white miso paste. The miso really adds a nice complexity and umami to the sauce. It also adds a level of cheesiness without the addition of any cheese.
Cook this until fragrant before sprinkling over a bit of flour to add as a thickener. Cook for a few more minutes before deglazing with some dry white wine.
Once the wine has reduced, add some vegetable (or chicken) stock along with two-thirds of your cashew cream. Bring to a simmer and then add your seafood!
Now, you can use whatever mixture of fresh seafood that you wish. I fishmonger sells a “marinara mix” that includes an array of different seafood (white fish, salmon, tuna, prawns, calamari, scallops etc) for an affordable price – and it’s what I used to develop the recipe.
You can also use a mixture of cod or haddock, salmon and prawns. You can used defrosted frozen seafood if you wish and you can also add in smoked fish if you want that flavour! It’s all up to you.
Add your seafood, cover the pot, and allow it to poach in the filling until just cooked through – how long this takes really depends on the seafood you’re using. Assume around 5-10 minutes.
Once the seafood is cooked, stir in some spinach, a bit of parsley and a squeeze of lemon juice. You can also grate in some fresh nutmeg if this sounds good to you.
Cook just until the spinach is wilted and then turn your attention to the potatoes!
Drain the cooked potatoes and add them back into the pan you cooked them in. Add the remainder of your cashew cream, some more miso paste, a touch of vegetable stock and a good grind of pepper. Use a potato masher to mash them until smooth and creamy.
Now, spoon your fish filling into an appropriately sized baking dish.
Spread the potatoes over the top of the filling and then use a fork to gently score the top (this helps get golden, crispy bits!).
Set the pie on a rimmed baking tray (this will help catch inevitable drips) and move it to a 200°C/400°F oven for 20-30 minutes. You want the pie to have a crisp, golden topping and the filling to be bubbling.
Let the pie cool for at least five minutes before serving. Then all you need to do is serve and enjoy!
Dairy-Free Fish Pie
Ingredients
- 100 g (¾ cup) raw, unsalted cashews soaked in boiling water for at least one hour or in cool water overnight
- 500 g (1 lb) potatoes peeled and cut into 5cm (2in) pieces
- 6 cloves garlic 3 peeled and left whole, 3 minced
- 2 anchovy fillets roughly chopped
- 2 large shallots finely chopped
- 1 carrot finely chopped
- 1 rib celery finely chopped
- 2 tsp lemon zest
- 5 tsp white miso paste divided
- 40 g (⅓ cup) plain/all-purpose flour
- 120 ml (½ cup) dry white wine
- 500 ml (2 cups) vegetable stock divided
- 600 g (1⅓ lb) mixed fresh seafood cut into bite-sized pieces (see notes)
- 120 g (4 oz) baby spinach
- 3 tbsp flat-leaf parsley chopped
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- ¼ tsp nutmeg freshly grated (optional)
- 1 tbsp nutritional yeast flakes
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F. Drain the cashews and add them to the jar of a blender along with 120ml (1/2 cup) cold water. Blend on high for 1-2 minutes until very smooth. Transfer the cashew cream to a small bowl and set aside.
- Add the potatoes and the 3 whole garlic cloves to a large saucepan. Cover with cool water and season generously with salt. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium-low and let simmer until fork tender.
- While the potatoes are cooking, add 3 tbsp of olive oil and anchovies (if using) to a large saucepan and set over medium heat. Once shimmering, add the shallot, carrot and celery along with a generous pinch of salt and a grind of pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and beginning brown – about 10 minutes.
- Add the minced garlic, lemon zest and 1 tbsp of miso paste and cook until very fragrant – about 1 minute longer. Sprinkle over the flour and cook for 3 more minutes.
- Deglaze the pan with white wine. Cook stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick and the wine has reduced – only a minute or two.
- Stir in 350ml of the vegetable stock along with ¾ of the cashew cream. Add the seafood and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the seafood is just cooked through – 5 – 10 minutes. Once cooked, stir in the spinach, parsley, lemon juice and nutmeg, if using. Cook for another minute, just to wilt the spinach.
- When the potatoes are finished cooking, drain them from the water and add them back into the pot in which they were cooked. Once the remainder of the excess water has evaporated, add the remaining cashew cream, vegetable stock, miso paste and nutritional yeast flakes. Season with salt and pepper and mash until smooth and fluffy with a potato masher.
- Pour the seafood filling into an appropriately sized baking dish (20cm/8in square is a good size). Spread the mashed potatoes over the top of the filling. Use a fork to draw light score marks across the top of the mash.
- Set the dish on a rimmed baking tray and move to the oven. Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until the topping is golden and crisp and the filling is bubbling. Allow to cool for at least 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Disclaimer: Nutritional information is automatically generated and provided as guidance only. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
Making a fisherman’s pie without dairy is simple and this recipe checks all the boxes without using any cream at all!
Are you after a great fish pie recipe? Have any questions? Let me know in the comments!
