French Fish Pie
Firm white fish baked in creamy dill, leek and fennel béchamel beneath crisp golden swirls of buttery mashed potato.
Known as parmentier de poisson, this homestyle French pie combines chunky white fish and a thick white-wine béchamel with a crisp, buttery mashed-potato crown.
Instructions
- 1
Put the potatoes in a large saucepan, cover with cold water and bring to a boil. Simmer for 25 minutes, until very soft; prepare the filling while they cook.
25 min
- 2
Preheat a static oven to 390°F or a fan oven to 355°F. Place a foil-lined baking tray on the oven floor or a lower rack to catch any bubbling filling.
- 3
Pat the fish pieces dry with paper towels, sprinkle every side with the fish salt and set aside.
- 4
Heat the olive oil and sauce butter in a 10-inch ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, fennel, leek and garlic and cook for 5 minutes, stirring regularly, until softened and lightly golden.
5 min
- 5
Stir in the flour for 30 seconds. Pour in the white wine; let it bubble rapidly, then stir until the mixture looks pasty.
- 6
Slowly add the hot milk and cream while stirring. Add the sauce salt and black pepper, bring to a simmer and cook for 1 minute, until the béchamel thickly coats a spoon. Remove from the heat.
1 min
- 7
Drain the potatoes well and rice them, or return them to the saucepan and mash thoroughly. Stir in the cold butter, topping salt and white pepper, then the hot milk. The mash should be smooth and creamy but firm enough to hold its shape.
- 8
Transfer the warm mash to a piping bag fitted with a star tip. Alternatively, keep it warm for spooning and roughing with a fork.
- 9
Stir the dill into the sauce. Add the fish, nestle it mostly below the surface and move it only enough to coat without breaking the pieces. Smooth the filling.
- 10
Pipe mounds of warm mashed potato across the surface and fill the gaps with smaller swirls, using all the mash. Spray lightly with olive oil.
- 11
Bake for 35 minutes, rotating the skillet halfway, until the potato is golden and the fish reaches 145°F. If needed, broil briefly to deepen the color.
35 min
- 12
Rest for 10 minutes before serving so the pie cools slightly and the creamy sauce thickens.
10 min
Ago's Notes
- Use firm white fish fillets about 3/4 inch thick, such as cod, pollock, halibut, snapper or tilapia. Frozen fish is fine if fully thawed and patted dry.
- The generous flour quantity is intentional: fish releases moisture while baking, loosening the thick sauce into a creamy filling.
- Any dry white wine works; Chardonnay is especially suitable. For an alcohol-free version, omit it or use non-alcoholic wine.
- No piping bag is required: use a zip-top bag, spoon on the mash and rough it with a fork, or spread it across the filling. Surface texture creates the crispest peaks.
- Fish pieces should reach 145°F. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours for up to 3 days; reheat in a 350°F static or 320°F fan oven until the center reaches 165°F. Do not freeze.
Rest the pie for the full 10 minutes so the creamy filling settles, then scoop deeply enough to serve fish, sauce and crisp potato together.
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