Easy Shepherd’s Pie

This easy shepherd’s pie will hit the spot just right when you’re craving stick to your ribs comfort food! Unlike most recipes, you don’t need to pre-cook meat filling. Super easy!

I’m a meat-and-potato kind of girl all the way!

Steak and mashed potatoes are my favorite food to order! Bacon and hash (and eggs, obvi!) is my go-to breakfast. And I practically grew up on this Shepherd’s pie.

Yeah, I’ve had this dish my whole life, but I never knew it was an English meal! Go figure.

Well anyway, my version of Shepherd’s pie is cooked a little different. But I promise you, it’s delicious! And oh so easy, you’ll be making it again and again.

By the way, technically, this’s called cottage pie, because we’re using ground beef.

From a quick research, I learned that original shepherd’s pie uses lamb. Back home in Mongolia, my mom used to make this with mutton. Now that I think of it, she was actually making a true version of shepherd’s pie.

The best part about this recipe is that it’s highly customizable! Make it once as is, and see what kind of tweaks you’d want to make next time. (And you’ll definitely want to make it again!) You can add more vegetables, or use leftover mashed potatoes (you’ll need about 4-5 cups of it), or add different spices, the choice is yours.

One thing I’m certain of is that you’re going to love this casserole. It’s so easy to put to together and feeds an army! (Hooray for leftovers!)

I urge you to put this on your menu now! You won’t regret it. 🙂

And thanks for stopping by.

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Irish Shepherd's Pie

This easy shepherd’s pie will hit the spot just right when you’re craving stick to your ribs comfort food! Unlike most recipes, you don’t need to pre-cook meat filling. Super easy!

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients:

For mashed potatoes:

• 4 large russet potatoes, washed and peeled
• 2 teaspoons salt
• ¼ cup (60ml) milk
• ¼ cup mayo
• 2 tablespoons butter

For meat layer:

• 2 lbs ground beef, or lamb
• 3 medium carrots
• 1 celery stalk
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 3-4 garlic cloves, pressed
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 teaspoons salt

For gravy:

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 ½ cups (360ml) beef broth
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. To make mashed potatoes, cut the potatoes into medium chunks.
2. Put the potatoes into a large pot and add water enough to cover the potatoes.
3. Add salt and bring it to boil over medium high heat. Cook until potatoes are soft, about 15 minutes.
4. Reserve about 1 cup of water, and drain the potatoes.
5. Add milk, mayo and butter into the potatoes and mash it until nice and fluffy. If needed, add reserved cooking water to thin the potatoes to the desired consistency. (Note: If you’d rather use leftover mashed potatoes, you’ll need 4-5 cups of mashed potatoes.)
6. Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
7. While potatoes are cooking, finely chop celery and grate carrots on large box grater.
8. In a large mixing bowl, combine ground beef, grated carrots, chopped celery, frozen peas, Worcestershire sauce and salt. Mix until well combined.
9. Transfer the meat mixture into 9×13-inch (23x33cm) baking dish and spread it evenly.
10. Add the mashed potatoes over the meat mixture and spread it evenly.
11. Bake for 40 minutes.
12. To make the gravy, melt butter over medium heat.
13. Add flour and whisk continuously until the mixture forms into a ball, about 2 minutes. Be careful not to burn the mixture. This’s called roux, which thickens the gravy.
14. Slowly add beef broth into the roux and cook until nice and thick, stirring constantly. Salt and pepper to taste.
15. Serve the shepherd’s pie with gravy on the side.

All images and text ©Shinee D. for Sweet & Savory

All photographs and content on Sweet & Savory by Shinee is copyright protected, unless otherwise noted. Please do not use any of my photos without my authorization. If you would like to share my recipe, you may re-write the recipe in your own words, or simply link back to this post for the full directions. Thank you for your cooperation!

This recipe was originally published on March 10th, 2014.