Seafood and leek pie with puff pastry
Hearty seafood pie with salmon, cod and prawns in a creamy mustard sauce, topped with golden puff pastry — perfect for midweek or guests.
This is a proper British-style pescatarian pie — no soggy top, just chunky salmon and cod with prawns in a silky mustard-leek sauce, all wrapped in golden puff pastry. It's smart enough for guests, straightforward enough for a midweek supper.
Use really fresh fish if you can; that large salmon chunk makes the pie feel indulgent, while the cod and prawns keep it classic and flaky. Serve with a crisp green salad or buttery new potatoes if you like.
Ingredients
- 300 g salmon fillet — skin removed, cut into large chunks
- 300 g cod fillet — cut into large chunks
- 150 g peeled king prawns — raw, thawed if frozen
- 1 large leek — white and pale green parts only, halved lengthways and sliced
- 40 g butter
- 15 ml olive oil — about 1 tbsp
- 40 g plain flour
- 300 ml milk — full-fat or semi-skimmed
- 50 ml double cream
- 250 ml fish stock — hot
- 5 ml English mustard
- 150 g frozen peas
- 320 g ready-rolled puff pastry — one retail sheet should be sufficient
- 1 egg — beaten for egg wash
- 1/2 lemon — zest and a little juice
- 10 g flatleaf parsley — finely chopped
- salt — to taste
- black pepper — freshly ground, to taste
Equipment
- ovenproof pie dish (20–23cm)
- pastry brush
- measuring jug
Instructions
Heat the oven to 200°C fan/220°C conventional. Have a 20–23cm ovenproof pie dish to hand.
Pour the milk and fish stock into a medium saucepan and bring to a gentle simmer. Add the salmon fillet and cod fillet, poach very gently for 4–5 minutes until just cooked through, then lift the fish out with a slotted spoon and set aside. Reserve the poaching liquid.
While the fish poaches, heat the butter and olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Add the sliced large leek and sweat for 6–7 minutes until very soft. Sprinkle over the plain flour and cook, stirring, for 1 minute to cook out the raw taste.
Gradually pour the reserved poaching liquid into the pan, whisking to avoid lumps. Add the double cream and English mustard, then simmer gently for 3–4 minutes until the sauce thickens to a creamy consistency that coats the back of a spoon. Stir in the frozen peas and season with salt and black pepper.
Flake the poached salmon and cod into large chunks (discard any skin or bones). Roughly chop the peeled king prawns and fold both into the sauce off the heat. Stir in the lemon zest, half the flatleaf parsley and a squeeze of lemon juice. Taste and adjust seasoning.
Spoon the filling into the ovenproof pie dish and level the surface. Unroll the ready-rolled puff pastry and lay it over the dish, trimming any excess and pressing the edges to seal. Crimp the pastry and use a sharp knife to make two small vents in the top. Brush the pastry with the beaten egg.
Chill the assembled pie in the fridge for 20 minutes to help the pastry relax and prevent shrinking in the oven.
Bake the pie on the middle shelf for 35 minutes until the pastry is deep golden and the filling is bubbling. If the pastry browns too quickly, tent loosely with foil for the last 10 minutes.
Leave the pie to rest for 10 minutes, then scatter over the remaining flatleaf parsley and serve.
Tips
- Use a gentle simmer when poaching the fish — boiling will make it fall apart and dry out.
- If your pastry is browning too fast, tent with foil rather than lowering the oven temperature; the filling needs the full heat to bubble through.
- Make the filling a little saucier than you think — sauces thicken as they cool and the oven will reduce moisture.
- You can assemble this a few hours ahead and keep it chilled (covered) before the final egg wash and bake.
- For neater slices, let the pie rest for the full 10 minutes before cutting.
Substitutions
cod fillet → haddock fillet, same weight
Stays closeready-rolled puff pastry → shortcrust pastry or a mashed potato topping (for fish pie), same quantity by weight
Noticeably differentdouble cream → crème fraîche, same volume
Stays close
Nutrition
Per serving · estimated
- 945
- Calories
- 56 g
- Protein
- 48 g
- Carbs
- 56 g
- Fat
- 2 g
- Fibre
- 5 g
- Sugar
- 700 mg
- Sodium
FAQ
Can I use frozen fish?
Yes — thaw it fully and pat dry before poaching. Frozen fish can release more water, so ensure the sauce is well reduced.
Can I make this ahead and freeze it?
You can freeze the uncooked assembled pie (before the egg wash) for up to 1 month. Bake from frozen but add 10–15 minutes to the cooking time and check the filling is bubbling.
How do I know the filling is cooked through?
The pastry should be golden and the filling must be bubbling at the edges — that means the sauce has reached a safe temperature and the prawns are cooked.
Can I replace the prawns with another shellfish?
Yes — scallops or chunks of firm white fish work, but adjust cooking so delicate shellfish like scallops don’t overcook.
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