As we drove up to meet Helen and Les, we found our host busy smoking kahawai for our pie. Simply seasoned with salt, brown sugar and honey, the kahawai were left until the sugar melted, then smoked in Les's smoker until the deep golden colour, but still moist on the inside. The fish was delicious on its own, served warm with buttered bread; however, Helen loves a pie and this is her family recipe, which is fabulous. Any smoked fish can be used.

Ingredients

• 1 sheet pre-rolled puff pastry, defrosted
• 50 grams butter
• 1 large onion, peeled and diced
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 37 gram packet seafood soup mix
• 2 cups milk
• 1 smoked kahawai
• 4 frozen hash browns, slightly defrosted
• ½ cup grated Cheddar-style cheese

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200ºC. Grease a 5-6 cup capacity ovenproof dish.
2. Cut the puff pastry sheet to line the base and come about ¼-1/3 of the way up the sides of the dish. Refrigerate while preparing the fish.
3. Melt half the butter in a saucepan, add the onion and cook over a low heat until the onion has softened. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute.
4. Mix together the soup mix and milk. Pour gradually into the roux (flour and butter mix) and cook, stirring over a low heat until the mixture becomes very thick. Remove from the heat.
5. Pull the smoked fish from the bones in chunky pieces and fold into the sauce. Transfer to the pastry-lined dish. Pulse the hash browns in a food processor until they become crumb-like and scatter over the fish filling. Grate over the remaining butter and scatter over the cheese.
6. Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until piping hot and golden. Serve with seasonal vegetables.

Cooks Tips

Variation

- Top with mashed potatoes or kumara instead of crumbled hash browns. To feed 4-5 people, boil around 750 grams - 1 kilogram floury potatoes until tender, then mash with butter and milk.