Fun Fish Pie Shaped Like a Salmon Recipe

My daughter said it looked like a blob. She was six, so she was right.

I’d spent forty-five minutes shaping pastry into a fish. It puffed into a misshapen lump. The tail disappeared. The eye slid off.

She ate it anyway. Said nothing else.

The Whole Point Is the Shape

This isn’t a recipe you make for flavor alone. The fish pie itself is standard—creamy, mild, forgiving. You could bake it in a dish and call it dinner.

But the shape changes everything for kids. Or for adults who want to pretend.

I made it for a birthday dinner that wasn’t really a birthday dinner. Just a Tuesday. My daughter had been asking for “fish that looks like a fish” ever since she saw a photo online. I showed her one from a British cookbook. She pointed. That was the order.

So I ordered two sheets of puff pastry and hoped for the best.

About the Filling

White fish and salmon. The standard duo. Cod or haddock for the bulk, salmon for the color and fat.

I poached both in fish stock for exactly eight minutes. Not nine. Eight. Any longer and the salmon turns mealy.

The sauce is a simple roux. Butter, flour, the poaching liquid plus milk. I used whole milk because skim makes the sauce taste like wet paper.

Frozen peas. Sliced mushrooms. Dill. Lemon zest.

Honestly? Not that deep. It’s a creamy fish pie filling. It works.

The trick is cooling the filling completely before spreading it on the pastry. I skipped that step once and the pastry went soggy before it hit the oven. The bottom never crisped. We ate it with a spoon.

Shaping the Fish

This part is tedious. I’m not going to pretend otherwise.

I laid one pastry sheet flat on the baking tray. Spread the filling in a vague oval, leaving a five-centimeter border. That border is essential—it’s what you’ll seal the top pastry to.

The second sheet I cut freehand into a fish shape. Tail at one end, wider body, a rounded head. I added triangular fins cut from the scraps.

First attempt looked like a deformed potato. Second attempt looked like a fish that had been stepped on. Third try—fine. Good enough.

Quick tip: Use a paring knife or scissors. Puff pastry cuts easier when it’s cold.

I laid the fish-shaped pastry over the filling. Pressed the edges firmly with a fork. Brushed the whole thing with beaten egg.

Then I scored scales into the pastry using the back of a knife. Short curved lines. Overlapping. Like actual fish scales but made of butter and dough.

I cut a small eye circle from a scrap and pressed it on. Drew a gill slit with the knife tip.

It looked ridiculous. My daughter loved it.

Baking and Waiting

Thirty-five minutes at 200°C. The pastry puffed. The scales became more pronounced. The tail, predictably, puffed into a stub.

I should have made the tail longer before baking. I knew this. I did it anyway.

The filling bubbled at the edges. One small leak in the seal let a bit of sauce escape. It burned on the tray. I scraped it off after.

Let it rest five minutes before slicing. The filling needs to set. If you cut too early, it floods the plate.

I served it with lemon wedges and extra fresh dill. My daughter named it “Fishy.” She didn’t finish her portion.

I’ve made worse.

How to Make It

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 200°C. Place the white fish and salmon fillets in a single layer in a wide pan. Pour the fish stock over the top. Poach gently for eight minutes, until the fish just flakes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the fish to a bowl. Reserve 400ml of the poaching stock.

Step 2: Melt 75g butter in the same pan over medium heat. Add 75g plain flour and stir continuously for one minute—this is your roux. It should look like wet sand. (If it clumps, don’t panic. Keep stirring. It will smooth out as the liquid goes in.)

Step 3: Gradually whisk in the reserved stock and the milk. Keep whisking. The sauce will thicken after two to three minutes. It should coat the back of a spoon. Turn off the heat. Flake the poached fish into large chunks and fold them in. Add frozen peas, sliced mushrooms, chopped dill, lemon zest, and a squeeze of lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. Taste it. Adjust the salt if needed. I forgot salt once and the whole thing tasted flat.

Step 4: Let the filling cool to room temperature. This is not optional. Hot filling will melt the butter in the pastry before it reaches the oven. You’ll get a soggy bottom. I’ve done it. It’s not good. While it cools, line a baking tray with parchment paper and lay one sheet of puff pastry flat on it.

Step 5: Spread the cooled filling onto the pastry in an oval shape, leaving a 5cm border uncovered. Don’t pile it too high. The pastry needs room to puff around the edges.

Step 6: Cut the second pastry sheet into a fish shape. I start with the tail at one end, then wide body, then rounded head. Add triangular fins cut from the scraps. Place the fish-shaped pastry over the filling. Press the edges of both pastry sheets together firmly with a fork. Brush the entire surface with beaten egg.

Step 7: Score scales into the pastry using the back of a paring knife. Short curved lines, overlapping. Don’t cut all the way through. Add an eye by pressing a small circle of pastry onto the head. Cut a gill slit with the knife tip. Make the tail longer than you think you need—it shrinks during baking.

Step 8: Bake for 35 minutes at 200°C, until deep golden brown and puffed. If the tail or fins brown too fast, cover them loosely with foil halfway through. Remove from the oven and let it rest for five minutes. This waiting period is boring but necessary. The filling sets. Have you ever cut into a pie too early and watched it collapse? Share below!

Ways to Change It Up

Try this: Replace half the white fish with smoked haddock. The smoky flavor cuts through the creaminess. You’ll need to reduce the salt slightly because smoked fish is already salty.

Try this: Swap the mushrooms for leeks. Slice one leek thinly and sauté in butter until soft before adding to the filling. It gives a milder, sweeter base. My mother-in-law prefers this version. She’s not wrong.

Try this: Use shortcrust pastry instead of puff. It won’t puff into scales, but you can stamp patterns into the top crust with a fork or knife. It’s less dramatic but more stable. The filling won’t leak as easily. Which would you go for? Drop it in the comments.

How to Serve It

Serve the fish pie whole on a large wooden board or platter. Let people see the shape before you cut into it. The reveal is half the fun.

Pair it with buttered peas and boiled new potatoes. Or a simple green salad with a sharp vinaigrette—the acid cuts through the richness.

For kids, serve with ketchup on the side. My daughter dipped every bite. I didn’t argue.

What would you pair it with?

Storing It Without Ruining It

Leftovers keep in the fridge for three days. Wrap tightly in foil or plastic wrap. The pastry will soften slightly, but that’s unavoidable.

To reheat, place in a 180°C oven for 15 minutes. Don’t microwave it. The pastry turns into a wet sponge.

Freezing works if you freeze the unbaked assembled pie. Wrap the whole thing in plastic wrap, then foil. Freeze for up to one month. Bake from frozen, adding 15 minutes to the cooking time.

I froze one once. The pastry cracked during thawing. It still baked fine. Just looked worse than usual.

Have you ever saved leftovers like this? Tell me below!

Mistakes I Made So You Don’t Have To

Mistake one: I used hot filling straight from the pan. The pastry bottom went soggy before it hit the oven. It never recovered. The bottom layer was a sad, doughy mess. Cool your filling completely. Put it in the fridge for 20 minutes if you’re impatient.

Mistake two: I didn’t seal the edges tightly enough. Sauce leaked out during baking and burned on the tray. The smell was acrid. I had to soak the tray overnight. Press the edges firmly with a fork, then pinch them with your fingers. Be paranoid about it.

Mistake three: I once made the tail too short. It puffed into a stub. The fish looked like a tailless cartoon creature. My daughter laughed. I cut it longer the next time, and it still shrunk. Extend the tail by at least a third beyond what looks right.

Did something like this happen to you?

Your Fish Pie Questions, Answered

Can I use only white fish? Yes. The recipe works fine without salmon. It just won’t have the pink color. Add a little smoked paprika to the sauce if you want visual contrast.

Can I make this ahead? Yes. Assemble the pie, refrigerate unbaked for up to 24 hours. Bring to room temperature for 20 minutes before baking. I tried baking straight from the fridge once. The pastry didn’t puff as much.

My pastry leaks every time. What am I doing wrong? The filling is too wet. Reduce the milk slightly next time, or cook the sauce a minute longer to thicken it. A wet filling has nowhere to go but out.

Can I use homemade puff pastry? You can. I don’t. The ready-rolled sheets work fine. Homemade would need to be thinner than usual. I’ve tried it. Not worth the effort.

How do I make the scales more visible? Score deeper into the pastry. Don’t cut through. A deeper score puffs into a more defined scale. I used the back of a knife my first time. Not deep enough. Barely visible.

Can I make individual fish pies? Yes. Cut smaller fish shapes. Reduce baking time to 20 minutes. Keep an eye on the edges. They’ll brown faster. Which answer helped you most?

One Last Thing

This recipe is not complicated. It’s tedious in parts, but not complicated.

The shape makes it feel like more. For an hour of work, you get a fish on the table that makes people smile. My daughter forgets to be picky when food looks like something.

I didn’t finish my slice. It was fine. Cold by then.

But the next day, she asked for leftovers. She picked at the pastry scales first. Ate around the mushrooms. Left the salmon for last.

That’s the win. A kid asking for more of something that isn’t chicken nuggets.

Will you make this soon?

Happy cooking! —Danielle Monroe

Fun fact: Cod has a mild flavor that pairs perfectly with creamy sauces, which is why it’s a classic choice for fish pies—it doesn’t overpower other ingredients.