By Samantha Seneviratne
- Total Time
- 1 hour 30 minutes
- Rating
- 4(5,026)
- Notes
- Read community notes
Shepherds are in the business of herding sheep, which makes lamb the most obvious choice for this shepherd's pie recipe, but ground beef is a tasty addition. The combination of ground lamb and ground beef is earthy and robust, and keeps lamb’s gaminess in check. Ground lamb tends to be fatty, so this recipe uses lean ground beef to compensate. If you prefer all beef, be sure to use something with a little more fat (and call it a cottage pie, if you like). And if you prefer all lamb, you may want to skim off some of the extra fat after browning the meat.
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Ingredients
Yield:6 servings
- 2tablespoons kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
- 2½pounds (about 3 to 4 large) russet potatoes, peeled and quartered
- 8tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½cup whole milk
- 1cup shredded aged white Cheddar
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1small yellow onion, diced small (about 1¼ cups)
- 2medium carrots, peeled and diced small (about 1¼ cups)
- 4cloves garlic, minced
- 4sprigs fresh thyme
- 24-inch sprigs fresh rosemary
- ¾pounds lean ground beef
- ¾pounds ground lamb (or use all ground beef)
- ⅓cup tomato paste
- 1tablespoon all-purpose flour
- ¾cup beef stock
- 1cup fresh parsley, chopped
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
726 calories; 48 grams fat; 24 grams saturated fat; 2 grams trans fat; 16 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 46 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams dietary fiber; 6 grams sugars; 31 grams protein; 1073 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Step
1
In a large pot, bring a gallon of water and 2 tablespoons salt to a boil over high heat. Add potatoes to boiling water and boil for about 15 to 20 minutes, until soft; a knife should go in with almost no resistance.
Step
2
In a small saucepan or a microwave oven, heat 6 tablespoons of the butter and milk together until butter melts. Drain potatoes well and return to pot. Using a masher or a ricer, mash hot potatoes until smooth. Mix in the hot butter mixture, just until blended. Stir in the Cheddar. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and set aside.
Step
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Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large oven-safe skillet with high sides or an enameled cast-iron braiser (at least 2½-quart capacity) over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, garlic, thyme and rosemary and cook, stirring often with a wooden spoon, until the onions are translucent and the carrots are just tender, about 10 minutes. Add the beef and the lamb and cook, breaking the meat up with a spoon, until it is no longer pink. (At this point, you can drain off some of the excess fat if you like.) Season the mixture to taste with salt and pepper.
Step
4
Add the tomato paste and stir, cooking until it is well combined, another 2 to 3 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the mixture and cook for 1 minute. Add the beef stock and cook, stirring, until the liquid has thickened slightly. Stir in the parsley and remove the thyme and rosemary stems. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Step
5
Top the meat mixture with dollops of the mashed potatoes then spread them out over the top. (Or transfer the meat mixture to a 3-quart casserole dish and spread into an even layer, and top with potatoes.) Transfer to the oven and, if the mixture is at the top edges of your pan, set a foil-lined baking sheet underneath the pan to catch any drips. Bake the pie until the potatoes have begun to brown and the edges are bubbling, about 30 minutes. Let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes before serving.
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Cooking Notes
Stacey K
I added a few shakes of Worcestershire sauce, as a previous poster suggested, plus 1.25 C of frozen peas with the carrots and onions.
Jessica
Cheese in the mash I have never heard of. Shredded cheese on top is characteristic of a Cumberland pie, but I always add it to my cottage (beef) or shepherds’ (lamb) pies too. Other than that, Worcester sauce essential, garlic unnecessary (it’s in the Worcester sauce) and peas best served on the side. A fat tablespoon of wholegrain mustard is great in the meat sauce, too, if you have it to hand.
Jonathan
Always found shepherd’s pie lacking in many ways but this is a winner. Added celery (same amount as carrot) which increased the veggie count and reduced the carrot sweetness. Now a standard in our home.
gf
To keep fat low, don't add cheese to the potatoes, it's not necessary and isn't really a problem for flavour. You can always sprinkle grated cheese on top of the potatoes if you want. If you drag a fork over the mashed potato topping, it will give it a nice crisping and looks nice. Definitely let it stand before serving or else you get a gloopy mess.
Chris
I always use leftover roast lamb in my version. Get a bigger leg of lamb than you need when doing a Sunday roast and keep the leftovers in the fridge for a Shepherd’s Pie a few days later. I don’t have a meat grinder, so I chop the lamb into a coarse dice by hand while the vegetables (onion, carrot and celery) are cooking. Worcestershire Sauce is a must, while cheese in the mashed potatoes is definitely not traditional.
Suellen
What have you named this new recipe?
Trent
My Only addition to this recipe was I added Worcestershire sauce. It made all the difference. This was easy and utterly delicious.
LFK
Tasty! Modifications: 1) Instead of 3/4 cup stock, boiled alcohol off 1 cup dry red wine, added 1 cup beef stock, reduced all to 3/4 cup; 2) Added 1 Tbs of worcestershire sauce to the reduction; 3) Mixed in a cup of frozen peas prior to adding the potato layer, which I scored w a fork. Cooked everything in a 12" cast iron skillet which had plenty of room. My 10" skillet volume was 2.25 qts. At 30 min., the edge browned nicely, but center was pasty. Fixed by a few minutes under the broiler.
Amy
I put cauliflower in with the mashed potatoes so used less potatoes. Next time, I will only use cauliflower.I used olive oil and the potato water to mash them together instead of butter and milk.I substituted Parmesan cheese for the cheddar.It was really good family friendly, feed a crowd food.
Amanda
This was fantastic! I made some changes, based on all the recommendations here: Added half bag each of frozen peas and frozen corn right before adding potatoes on top, used Yukon golds instead of russets, doubled the cheese in the potatoes, brushed the top with melted butter, added the 2-3 shakes of Worcestershire to the meat, drained about half a cup of fat out, used 1# each of ground lamb and 90/10 ground beef. I will not be waiting until next St Patrick's day to make it again!
Catherine
I vegetarian-ized this recipe with the following changes:+1 carrot+8 oz porcini mushroomssubs. med. onion for small onion+1 cup peas+2.5 tbsp vegetarian worchestire saucesubs. vegetable Better than Bullion for beef broth+10 oz Beyond Beef Beefy CrumblesOmit lamb and beefIt turned out very well! I'll be making this again, perhaps swapping turnips for the potatoes.
April
I've made Shepherd's Pie for years, and fancied an alternate way of doing it. I did the potatoes as suggested, but for the meat, I fried 4 rashers of good quality bacon for the fat. I also didn't add the stock. Instead I added 14.5oz of chopped tomatoes. I did add Worcestershire to the veggies when they were almost done. I also added frozen peas. Its now cooking so I will report back when its done. Oh! And a tip from a Brit... score the potatoes with a fork. It helps to brown.
Geoff G
Added peas and mushrooms, and a turnip to the potatoes. Delish!
Cyndi
I added Worcestershire (1 tb.), whole grain mustard (1 tb.) and frozen peas (3/4 c.) as suggested by others. Instead of cheddar, I used parmesan (2 generous tbs.) in the mashed potatoes and on the top (4 generous tbs.) for a good crisp. Next time, I'll add a little more Worcestershire. It was delicious.
Zach
Substituted a cauliflower mash for the potatoes. A nice healthful twist to the recipe. Obviously not quite as delicious as mashed potatoes but still really good. I would definitely make again.
Peg
I was so excited to make this version of shepherd's pie, as my other recipe is much more time consuming. I made it according to the recipe except used ground beef instead of lamb. It was good, but I didn't find it very flavorful. Next time I will use some of the suggestions here, definitely the worcestershire!
Peg
Update: I had leftovers for lunch today, and it was yummy! I will definitely make it again using some of the suggestions.
Susan W
Used 1 lb of ground lamb and 1 lb of 90/10 ground beef and next time would add celery with the carrots and onions. Also, wish I had read the other comments which suggested scoring the potatoes with a fork and putting under a broiler to get top brown and a little crispier. Also don’t think you need to have 6 T of butter mixed into the potatoes. Next time I’ll use half the butter to save a few calories! Otherwise it was fantastically delicious!
Irene
Followed the recipe except I used Yukon gold potatoes, added mushrooms, peas, and Worcestershire sauce per other reviewers and it turned out wonderfully. It’s a keeper, thank you!
Catherine
Delicious. Added more veg. Corn, fennel, etc. also added hot pepper jelly, mustard, worstershire and Lea and Perrin’s HP. Leftover lamb delicious. Omitted cheese. Increase meat to potatoes
Bettster
This was wonderful! I doubled the recipe for our crowd, added the worcestershire and frozen veggies as suggested by others, and made it in a large cast iron skillet - amazing!
Dee
Very tasty made was written using only lamb, but with two fewer tablespoons of butter.I'd say 4 generous servings with just a salad as dinner.
btw
For the topping, half potatoes and half celeriac - always make mashed potatoes this way. Lighter and delicious.
GLL
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Made this tonight! Followed exactly just added a splash of Worcestershire Sauce. Delicious!!!
TigerLily
I substituted leeks for onions and delicate squash for carrots and it was delish!
Catherine
Increased the vegetables… leeks, fennel, corn etc. added spices.
Too Sweet
No honey too sweet
Ella Biondi
My Liverpudlian mum used Shepard's pie as a catch all for cleaning out the frig. Leftovers from Sunday diner for sure, the gravy plus the veg and ground up roast. But then some sauted mushrooms from breakfast, a pepper added with the onion. The whatever end of cheese mixed with a few stale crumbs were sprinkled on top of the mashed. And then a ceramic bird was positioned in the center, it was supposed to sing when the pie was ready. Don't think it ever did. But was darling.
NLY
try mashing a parsnip into the potato mash. lovely.
Jack
I used this recipe as a base to make a Southern version of Sheppards’ Pie, using 1 lb. of pork sausage and 2 sweet potatoes as the major ingredients and cooked it all in a cast iron skillet. It was easy to prepare and tasted terrific - a wonderful Pi Day alteration!
Penni
Everyone loved it. The mashed Yukon gold potatoes were so high we put the extra in another dish and that got eaten too.Added broccoli, peas, extra garlic and used a large onion
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