If you like fish, I think you’ll love this recipe for Cod Mornay. It’s made with tender fillets of cod and plump juicy prawns and covered in a deliciously thick and cheesy sauce before being baked in the oven. For extra oomph I’ve added a crispy topping of cheese and breadcrumbs.
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Fish in cheese sauce
To be perfectly honest, cod mornay is really just fish and prawns, oven-baked in a thick and creamy cheese sauce. But fish in cheese sauce sounds very boring! Cod mornay sounds so much more interesting and exotic! And this dish is so delicious it is worthy of an exotic-sounding name.
The mornay sauce is simply a basic bechamel (or white sauce) with the addition of cheese. If you’re worried about making the sauce, you needn’t be. I’ve been making this sauce for years and my method guarantees no lumps. Just follow my easy instructions you’ll get a smooth and creamy sauce every single time. There’s nothing difficult about it.
The fish stays moist and is perfectly flaky, while the prawns are plump and succulent. And thanks to the cheese sauce that covers the fish, there’s no danger of the fish drying out in the oven. Before being baked, the dish is also covered with a mixture of cheese and breadcrumbs, which turn crispy and golden in the oven.
Cod mornay is a versatile recipe. I’ve made it in individual serving dishes, but you could also just layer the cod and prawns into a single dish and make one large fish bake instead. I like to serve it as a main meal, but it makes a great starter for a dinner party served in smaller portions with a side of crusty bread.
What I love about cod mornay is that it is so easy to make. There’s no batter on the fish, and you don’t have to cook the prawns separately. All you do is layer the raw fish and prawns into an oven-proof dish, cover it with the sauce and pop it into the oven for 20 minutes. Voila! Supper’s ready!
What you will need
Equipment
To make cod mornay you will need a saucepan for making the sauce.
You will also need a baking dish large enough to hold all the pieces of fish, or several smaller individual dishes if you intend to make individual portions.
Ingredients
This recipe will feed 2 people. To feed more, simply add extra pieces of fish and prawns, and double up on the sauce.
**You can get the complete list of ingredients and full instructions for making this cod mornay recipe on the printable recipe card at the end of this post**
Fish – I’ve used skinless cod fillets for this recipe, but there’s absolutely nothing stopping you from using whatever fish you like. Any firm fish will work well in this dish, for example, haddock, hake, kingklip, or even salmon. Just make sure that the fish is well filleted – the cheese sauce will make it difficult to see any bones and you don’t want anyone choking on a fish bone.
Prawns – These are shelled and deveined frozen raw prawns. You can use ready-cooked prawns but I prefer using raw as cooked prawns are inclined to turn rubbery after 20 minutes in the oven.
Butter – this forms the base for the sauce. You can use either salted or unsalted butter, but if you use salted butter you will need to take this into consideration when seasoning the sauce. You will also need an extra knob of butter for dotting on top of the dish before it goes into the oven.
Flour – used to thicken the sauce.
Milk – full-fat or semi-skimmed, makes no difference.
Cheese – Swiss Gruyere cheese is traditionally used in mornay sauce, but you can use any cheese that grates and melts well. I’ve used a combination of cheddar and mozzarella.
Breadcrumbs – I like to use Panko breadcrumbs because they are super crispy, but you could make your own breadcrumbs by grating a slice or two of day-old bread and toasting the crumbs lightly in a dry frying pan. Keep your eye on them if you do this, and shake the pan while they are toasting – they burn easily.
Parsley – this is optional, but I like to stir a handful of chopped parsley through the sauce before it goes over the fish. You could use chopped chives instead if you prefer.
Salt – to taste.
What to do
It takes about 10 minutes to prep this dish, then it’s into the oven for 20 minutes to bake.
Mornay sauce
Melt the butter in a saucepan on a gentle heat .
Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the flour until there are no lumps.
Return the pan to the heat and stir the flour and butter for one minute.
Pour in half of the milk and continue to stir the sauce on a gentle heat until it starts to thicken. Then add the remainder of the milk and continue to stir.
This will take 4 to 5 minutes. You are looking for a thickish consistency. If you draw a spoon through the sauce it should leave a trail that closes up immediately.
In the unlikely event that you do get some lumps in the sauce, whisk it with a balloon whisk to get rid of them.
Now stir in the half the cheese until it has melted.
You will notice that the consistency of the sauce changes and the trail left by the spoon is much more pronounced.
Reserve the remaining cheese for making the topping.
Finally, stir in the chopped chives or parsley.
Assemble and bake
Before you start, pat the fish and prawns with paper towels to remove as much moisture as possible. If the fish is not completely dry there’s a chance that any excess moisture could thin out the sauce as it bakes.
Place the fish fillets into a large baking dish (or into individual dishes) and arrange the prawns on top.
Cover the fish with the cheese sauce.
Mix the remaining cheese with the breadcrumbs and sprinkle on top of the sauce.
Dot with butter.
Bake in a preheated oven (200C / 400F) for 20 minutes until the sauce is bubbling and the topping is crispy and golden.
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Serving suggestions
There are quite a few ways in which you could serve cod mornay.
- Spoon it over a bed of buttery mashed potatoes with a helping of green peas on the side.
- Serve it with boiled baby potatoes or a helping of potatoes Romanoff and freshly steamed vegetables
- If you want something less traditional than potatoes and vegetables, why not serve it with a dish of spicy mushroom fried rice
- Make half-sized portions in small ramekins and serve as a starter with crusty bread to mop up the cheese sauce.
FAQ
The answer to this question is ‘it depends’.
First of all, I wouldn’t freeze the cooked dish, but depending on whether you are using fresh or frozen fish fillets and prawns you may be able to freeze the assembled dish.
If you are making this dish with fillets of fish and prawns that have been previously frozen, then the answer is ‘No, you can’t freeze this dish before cooking it’.
If you are making it with fresh (previously unfrozen) fish, then the answer is ‘Yes, you can freeze it’.
To freeze, assemble the dish and allow it to cool, then cover the dish with a layer of tinfoil and wrap it securely with plastic wrap, or place it inside a large plastic bag.
Cook from frozen, as per the recipe instructions, but allow an additional 7 minutes of cooking time.
You can prepare the sauce and assemble the dish up to one day in advance and store it, covered, in the refrigerator.
No, you can make this dish without prawns. Just use a larger piece of fish per person.
Save for later
If you would like to make this cod mornay yourself, why not save the recipe to one of your Pinterest boards so you can find it easily? Just click on the image below.
Alternatively, you can save the recipe by clicking on the floating heart icon on the right-hand side of the screen.
Other recipes
If you enjoyed this recipe for cod mornay, you may also like to try some of my other easy fish dishes:
- Pan-fried fish fillets with a light batter
- Cheesy fish pie with a crispy topping
- Fish Milanese with a buttery garlic and parsley sauce
- Spicy fish and rice bake in tomato sauce
- Mediterranean oven-baked cod with marinara sauce
- Easy fish curry in a tomato and onion sauce
The recipe
Cod Mornay with prawns
(Click the stars to rate this recipe)
Equipment
Ingredients
Fish and mornay sauce
- 6 ounces / 170 grams skinless cod filles or other fish of your choice
- 4 ounces / 115 grams frozen raw prawns shelled and deveined
- 2 ounces / 60 grams butter
- 1½ tablespoons / 15 grams plain flour
- 1 cup / 240 ml milk
- ½ cup / 65 grams grated cheese
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons chopped chives or parsley
Topping
- ¼ cup / 30 grams Panko breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup / 65 grams grated cheese
- 1 tablespoon / 15 grams butter
Instructions
Mornay sauce
- Melt the butter in a saucepan over a gentle heat.2 ounces / 60 grams butter
- Remove the pan from the heat, add the flour and salt and stir until there are no lumps.Return the pan to the heat and stir the flour and butter for one minute.1½ tablespoons / 15 grams plain flour, ½ teaspoon salt
- Pour in half of the milk and continue to stir the sauce on a gentle heat until it starts to thicken. Then add the remainder of the milk and continue to stir.This will take 4 to 5 minutes. You are looking for a thickish consistency. If you draw a spoon through the sauce it should leave a trail that closes up immediately.1 cup / 240 ml milk
- Now stir in the half the cheese until it has melted. You will notice that the consistency of the sauce changes and the trail left by the spoon is much more pronounced.½ cup / 65 grams grated cheese
- Finally, stir in the chopped chives or parsley.2 tablespoons chopped chives or parsley
Assemble and bake
- Preheat the oven to 200°C / 400°F
- Pat the fish and prawns with paper towels to remove as much moisture as possible.6 ounces / 170 grams skinless cod filles, 4 ounces / 115 grams frozen raw prawns
- Place the fish fillets into a large baking dish (or into individual dishes) and arrange the prawns on top.
- Cover the fish with the mornay sauce.
- Mix the cheese with the breadcrumbs and sprinkle it over the sauce. Dot with butter.¼ cup / 30 grams Panko breadcrumbs, ¼ cup / 65 grams grated cheese, 1 tablespoon / 15 grams butter
- Bake in a preheated oven for 20 minutes until the sauce is bubbling and the topping is crispy and golden.
Notes
- Spoon it over a bed of buttery mashed potatoes with a helping of green peas on the side.
- Serve it with boiled baby potatoes or a helping of potatoes Romanoff and freshly steamed vegetables
- If you want something less traditional than potatoes and vegetables, why not serve it with a dish of spicy mushroom fried rice
- Make half-sized portions in small ramekins and serve as a starter with crusty bread to mop up the cheese sauce.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutrition information has been calculated using an on-line calculator, and is intended for information and guidance purposes only. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should consider calculating it yourself, using your preferred tool.
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