Scallop Pie (Irish)

This is the seafood answer to a shepherd’s pie. Sweet sea scallops poach in milk, get folded into a sherry-spiked cream sauce with mushrooms, and disappear under a blanket of buttery mashed potatoes that bakes to a freckled, golden crust. It’s pure Irish coastal comfort cooking.

Poaching the scallops in milk first does double duty. It gently cooks them so they stay tender (no rubbery bites), and it infuses the milk with sweet seafood flavor. That milk becomes the base for the sauce, so nothing is wasted.

The sauce starts as a quick roux. Cook the flour in butter for a full minute before whisking in the milk to lose the raw flour taste. Stir constantly to keep it lump-free. The sherry goes in near the end so its aromatic edge doesn’t cook off.

Spread the mashed potato right to the edges of the dish. Any gaps and the filling bubbles up and burns on top.

A fork dragged across the potato makes ridges that brown beautifully under heat. Skip that step and you get pale, flat potato instead of crisp peaks.

Pro Tips

• Buy dry-pack scallops, not the wet kind. Wet scallops release water that thins the sauce.
• Slice large scallops into halves or thirds so each spoonful gets a piece.
• Use floury potatoes (russets or Maris Piper) for the topping. Waxy potatoes make a glue-like mash.
• Make ahead through the assembly step, refrigerate, then bake the next day for a stress-free dinner.

Variations

• Add a handful of cooked prawns or chunks of smoked haddock for a mixed seafood version.
• Stir in a tablespoon of fresh tarragon or chives at the end for herbal lift.
• Top with a layer of grated cheddar or Gruyère under the potato for melted-cheese bonus.