Cooking with kids: Mini cheesy fish pies

Today I’ve got a lovely fish recipe for you that transforms a family classic into a super-quick meal that even the smallest of hands can help to make.

Using frozen fish in your cooking is so convenient; you avoid all the messy preparation that skinning and boning requires, and you can just grab what you need from the freezer, helping you reduce waste. You’re also using a product that has been frozen within hours of being caught, so it’s as fresh as you can buy.

Today I’m showing you how to use frozen fish pie mix to whip up some brilliant mini fish pies. A creamy, cheesy fish filling with a fluffy potato topping; quick and easy for kids to make, and super-tasty too.

You might be thinking fish pie is a complicated dish to make; not this one. Using frozen fish mix takes away all the hard work. To make things even easier, I’m adding frozen peas and topping with frozen mashed potato.

Here’s to make eight mini cheesy fish pies.

Ingredients

• 1 pack of frozen fish pie mix
• 100g (3.52 oz) frozen peas
• 15g (0.52 oz) butter
• 15g (0.52 oz) plain flour
• 500ml (16.9 fl oz) milk
• Juice of half a lemon
• 1/4 tsp mustard
• pinch salt and pepper
• 100g (3.52 oz) mature cheese, grated

Instructions

Defrost the fish pie. This will take an hour or two, depending on the temperature in your kitchen.

To make the white sauce, put the milk, flour and butter in a saucepan and whisk over a medium heat until it thickens slightly.

Mix in the lemon juice, salt, pepper and mustard.

Mix in the half the cheese and set aside to cool.

If you’re making a family size fish pie, you can use the fish straight from the pack, but as these are mini pies for kids, use kitchen scissors to snip the fish into half inch pieces.

Divide the fish between eight pie moulds. You may get one or two more or less depending on the size of your moulds – use your judgement and don’t over fill them.

Divide the peas between each mould.

Pour the cooled sauce into each mould, stopping about 1cm from the top.

Cook the potato in the microwave according to the pack instructions.

Top the pies with the potato and the remaining cheese.

Bake in the oven for 20 minutes until golden and bubbling. Enjoy!

Make sure the pie moulds are cooled enough to be safe before serving to children, or spoon the pie onto the plate.

And here’s that mini cheesy fish pies recipe in a quick printable format so you can have it to hand while you try it out.

Cooking with kids: Mini cheesy fish pies

Course: Lunches and quick-cook meals

Keyword: cooking with kids, fish, fish pie, kid friendly, lunch

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes

Servings: 8

Author: Emily Leary

Cheesy, delicious mini fish pies. These are great for kids.

Print

Ingredients

• 1 pack of frozen pie mix
• 100 g frozen peas
• 15 g butter
• 15 g plain flour
• 500 ml milk
• Juice of half a lemon
• 1/4 tsp mustard
• pinch salt and pepper
• 100 g mature cheese grated

Metric - Ounces

Instructions

1. Defrost the fish pie. This will take an hour or two, depending on the temperature in your kitchen.
2. To make the white sauce, put the milk, flour and butter in a saucepan and whisk over a medium heat until it thickens slightly.
3. Mix in the lemon juice, salt, pepper and mustard.
4. Mix in the half the cheese and set aside to cool.
5. If you're making a family size fish pie, you can use the fish straight from the pack, but as these are mini pies for kids, use kitchen scissors to snip the fish into half inch pieces.
6. Divide the fish between eight pie moulds. You may get one or two more or less depending on the size of your moulds - use your judgement and don't over fill them.
7. Divide the peas between each mould.
8. Pour the cooled sauce into each mould, stopping about 1cm from the top.
9. Cook the potato in the microwave according to the pack instructions.
10. Top the pies with the potato and the remaining cheese.
11. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes until golden and bubbling. Enjoy!
12. Make sure the pie moulds are cooled enough to be safe before serving to children, or spoon the pie onto the plate.

Did your children enjoy helping to make these fish pies?

And don’t forget to check out my Homemade Fish Fingers, Salmon Fish Cakes, Spicy Lentil Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie, Grilled Halloumi Vegetable Couscous with a Yoghurt Mint Dressing and Zesty Bean Quinoa Patties!