Salted pollock with potatoes, cream and marjoram

Method

1. Heat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas 4. Peel, then slice the potatoes thinly into 2-3mm rounds. Put the slices in a large heatproof bowl along with the onion, garlic and chopped marjoram, then season with plenty of black pepper (the fish will bring salt into the mix). Put the cream in a small pan over a medium heat and bring it up to a simmer. Pour the hot cream over the potatoes, then turn the slices to combine.
2. Arrange a relatively neat layer of overlapping potatoes in the bottom of the round baking dish. Scatter over some of the sliced salted fish, then make a second layer of overlapping potatoes. Continue in this way until you have used up all the fish and potatoes, finishing with a layer of potatoes on top. Pour over all the remaining cream from the bowl. Decorate the top with a couple of marjoram flower stems, which I think look beautiful and dry brittle as glass in the oven – but of course, they aren’t essential.
3. Put the pie in the oven and bake for 60-70 minutes, pressing the potato layers down firmly once or twice during cooking using a spatula. The pie is ready when the potatoes are tender, the top layer is golden and the sauce is bubbling. Remove it from the oven and allow it time to settle – it will be much better, and still nice and hot, after 30 minutes of resting. Serve with a green salad or lemony steamed broccoli.
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