Fish pie on tight budget

[summerholsdreamin]

Money is really tight this month but want to make a fish pie this week.
What pieces of fish can I buy to make it tasted yet economical?
Am I better off buying frozen packs?

Generally shop at Aldi if anyone can recommend specific products they sell.

Interested too. We're skint at the moment and I'm really missing fish pie! And salmon.

Hey Shelagh... how's that pregnancy coming along!

We buy the basics frozen fish mix from Sainsbury's... but sure you can get it elsewhere!

If you have a fishmonger, or fish counter, see if they sell cod cheeks - all the flavour, very little money. Add chopped hard boiled eggs to make it go further too.

I used to use the value frozen fillets of white fish from Tesco to make my fish pie. Unfortunately fussy Ds and Dp don't like it so I haven't made it for ages.

Pouting is a cheap fish, also use Cod cheeks. At the Fish Market in Birmingham you can buy the trimmings from when they fillet Cod and Salmon and it is very cheap. Bulk the pie out with carrot, onion and hard-boiled eggs.

Mackerel is full of flavour and very nutritious - lots of good fats.
Not a pie, but a quick, tasty, nutritious and very cheap meal I make is as follows:

Hard boil 3 or 4 eggs and leave to cool;
Boil 300-400g dry weight of wholewheat fusilli pasta, drain and leave to cool;
In a large bowl, mix a healthy dollop (4 or 5 tablespoons) of mayonnaise with a tablespoon of tomato ketchup and (optional) a teaspoon of mild curry powder.
Remove the skin from a packet (usually 3 or 4 fillets) of smoked mackerel and mash with a fork.
Finely chop the eggs and add the eggs, pasta and mackerel to the bowl and turn until fully mixed with the sauce.
Serve chilled with a mixed salad.
Will keep in the fridge for up to 48 hours.

Basically it's pasta, mackerel and eggs in a sauce (kedgeree with pasta instead of rice). You can change the sauce to suit tastes - e.g. swap the curry powder for some other flavoring or leave out. The ingredient measures are flexible as well - it's a recipe not a chemical reaction. Make more or less to suit the size of your family. The quantities above will easily feed 4 people for under a quid a head.

It's coming along great thanks Summer. Except we've bought this massive house and we're too skint to buy fish for my fish pie!

I bulk the fish out with grated carrot, spinach, boiled eggs (kids not so keen on finding eggs in their fish pie though) and loads of peas. You can make a pretty big pie without much fish in it that way. Also you can put frozen shrimp in it. Jamie O also puts grated cheese in too.

How about smoked basa, Pollock or coley? All cheaper than cod/haddock/salmon. Asda smart price frozen prawns are yum and cheap.

Leeks are good in fish pies too - saves serving separate veg too! Second pollock or coley if you can get them. This will be heresy to some, but I don't bother with prawns, just white fish and smoked fish.

Smoked coley, whiting and 'fake' crab would work, plus hard boiled eggs, bacon lardons (buy a pack of cooking bacon, it's cheap) and maybe some sliced mushrooms? Also 'value' grated cheese in the mash.

I don't put prawns in either - they're a bit wasted in fish pie with such a subtle flavour, and they go rubbery if cooked for a tiny bit too long.

Iceland are quite good for frozen smoked fish if you want some for the flavour - about £4 for a bag with 4 fillets in it, and you only need one or two for a pie. Their big bags of frozen whitefish fillets are cheap too.

Fish is not a cheap option these days. I buy fish from our fish monger every week and put random leftover bits in the freezer. My last fish pie was made after a freezer sweep.

I buy fish pie mix from Morrisons, usually two or three quid, sometimes a pack is in the 3 for £10 offer. My recipe is similar to Jamie Oliver's I add grated carrot, finely shredded leeks and celery and chilli. The sauce is made with creme fraiche, cheese and lemon juice, I poach my fish first and use a bit of the water to loosen the sauce, but you could use a standard white sauce to cut costs.
We get about 6 decent portions (or 4 if DH serves it) served with peas and broccoli.
I'm super picky about handling fish though, if I have to mess with it too much I don't want to eat it. My Mum buys random reduced bits of fish and freezes them until there's enough for a pie.

Sainbos Basics fish pie mix is £2.50 for 350g and is perfectly fine.

I often bulk mine up with some tinned crab or salmon if it needs more fish, plus leeks, peas and spinach - boiled eggs are nice too!

Fishmonger and ask if they have fish scraps; supermarkets sell salmon trimmings.

Look for cheap "woopsies" at end of day.

I used to make it with a bag of frozen white fish and a pack of salmon trimmings.