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Jennifer’s Tuna Fish Pie

Shared by Jennifer Benyon Tinker

This recipe is based on a crab flan recipe from the All in One Cook Book produced for Oxo & Stork. I have had it for over 40 years, so I’m not sure when it was published. Crab was difficult to buy at that time and expensive, so I substituted tinned tuna, and it is still a favourite in my family.

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Recipe by Jennifer Benyon Tinker · Published 11 November 2026 · Updated 11 November 2026

The story

“This recipe is based on a crab flan recipe from the All in One Cook Book produced for Oxo & Stork. I have had it for over 40 years, so I’m not sure when it was published. Crab was difficult to buy at that time and expensive, so I substituted tinned tuna, and it is still a favourite in my family.”

This recipe now belongs to every family who cooks it.

The method

1Heat the oven to 200°C. Roll out most of the pastry on a lightly floured board and line a 20 cm flan ring or dish. Reserve the rest for the lattice. Prick the base, line with foil and bake for 15 minutes. Remove the foil.
2Melt the butter in a saucepan. If using Jennifer’s spring-onion variation, gently soften the finely chopped spring onions in it. Stir in the flour, then whisk in the stock. Bring to the boil, whisking continuously, and cook for 2–3 minutes until thick, smooth and glossy.
3Remove from the heat and stir in the cream, tuna, beaten eggs, chopped gherkins, mustard, cayenne, lemon juice and seasoning. Spoon into the partly baked pastry case.
4Roll out the remaining pastry and cut into strips. Arrange a lattice over the flan. Brush the strips with beaten egg or milk and sprinkle grated cheese over the top.
5Return to the oven for 30–35 minutes, until the filling is set and the pastry is golden brown. Garnish the lattice windows with gherkin slices.

Cook's notes & swaps

A little help from the OPR kitchen

These are optional pointers for making the recipe your own while keeping the spirit of the original.

Jennifer’s stock variation

Jennifer uses a vegetable stock cube with finely chopped spring onions instead of the Onion Oxo cube. She did not specify the quantity of spring onions or grated cheese; add these to taste.

Serve hot or cold

Jennifer serves this hot or cold. If keeping it for later, cool promptly, refrigerate within two hours and use within 48 hours. Contains fish, egg, milk and wheat; check pastry, stock and mustard labels for additional allergens.

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