Do you like Shepherd’s Pie? I am pretty sure you do! I mean, who doesn’t, right?
The recipe originating from Ireland is known primarily throughout the British Isles. But it is also popular in other countries.
Old-fashioned Shepherd’s Pie mainly consists of two components:
- A rich sauce made from ground meat and vegetables
- Beautiful baked mashed potatoes
Excellent ground beef recipe
Many of us like various simple recipes from ground meat. That’s why I recommend this fantastic and relatively easy recipe.
Firstly, the choice of meat. Traditional Shepherd’s Pie usually contains ground lamb. However, feel free to use ground beef, which is also favored and more available.
Moreover, I always say it’s better to go to a butcher’s shop for meat. That way you mostly get quality and also support the local butchers. Yes, you pay a little more. At our home, on the other hand, we prefer to eat less meat, but we know where it comes from.
How to make the best Shepherd’s Pie recipe with ground beef
The good thing about this recipe is that you can make the meat filling and the mashed potatoes at the same time. Just boil the potatoes and at this time you can also prepare the filling.
I recommend using Russet or Yukon Gold potatoes, which are great for mashed potatoes. In addition to the potatoes, you need egg yolk, milk, butter, and parmesan.
It’s not so much a classic puree as more of a tasty layer of mashed potatoes “sitting” on top of your lovely meat filling.
What cheese to use?
Cheese is an important ingredient that gives the potato layer a nice taste and texture. I usually choose Parmigiano Reggiano. But of course, British or English cheddar is also a traditional and popular choice.
Which cheese you choose is up to you. Feel free to add both.
Don’t “skimp” on the parmesan and butter at all. A lot of butter and cheese always adds excellent softness and flavor. There is no such thing as too much cheese!
If you have too much leftover meat and parmesan, save it for another lunch or dinner — a classic homemade lasagna!
When you have the potatoes and ground beef with vegetables ready, all that’s left to do is combine these goodies. Choose a larger baking dish and place the meat filling on the bottom. Then spread well over the entire surface and repeat the same with the mashed potatoes.
Lastly, just put your easy Shepherd’s Pie with ground beef in the preheated oven and wait about half an hour for a great culinary experience.
Tips for the best Shepherd’s Pie recipe ever:
- You can choose beef or chicken broth to cover the ground meat. However, if you don’t have homemade broth, feel free to use a bouillon cube.
- As for thyme and rosemary, you can use either dried or fresh. I don’t always have fresh on hand, so I often choose dried.
- Once you have the Shepherd’s Pie prepared in the baking dish, fork the potato topping. This will give the pie a tempting look.
- If your eggs are smaller, use two egg yolks for the potato filling. You don’t have to throw away the egg whites. Use them for some yummy breakfast, for example.
Easy Shepherd’s Pie
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
Easy Shepherd’s Pie with ground beef is a wonderful recipe that everybody loves. The combination of juicy meat filling and cheesy mashed potatoes is absolutely delicious!
Ingredients
Meat filling:
- 500 g of ground beef (or lamb)
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- 2 carrots (grated)
- 1 large yellow onion
- 3 cloves of garlic (crushed)
- 2 tablespoons of tomato puree
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 300 ml of beef broth
- 1 teaspoon of thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon of rosemary
- 180 g peas (frozen)
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
Mashed potatoes topping:
- 1 kg of potatoes (Russet or Yukon golds)
- 3 tablespoons of butter (unsalted)
- 80 ml whole milk
- 100 g Parmesan (freshly grated)
- 1 egg yolk
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- First, boil the potatoes. Peel the potatoes, cut them into pieces, and place in a pot. Cover with cold water, add salt and bring to a boil. When the water starts to boil, reduce the heat and let it cook for about 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.
- While the potatoes are cooking, heat the olive oil in a large skillet and add the ground beef. Season with salt and pepper and fry at high temperature for approx. 7 minutes. Stir occasionally and break the meat apart with a wooden spoon.
- When the meat is golden brown, add finely chopped onions, crushed garlic, and grated carrots. Meantime, preheat the oven to 190 °C (375 °F).
- Stir and let it cook for a few minutes. Then add the tomato puree and season with Worcestershire sauce, thyme, and rosemary.
- After that add one to two tablespoons of all-purpose flour and mix well. Then pour in the beef broth, mix again and add the frozen peas.
- After about 5 minutes, season with salt and black pepper and turn off the heat. At this point, your potatoes should be done.
- Start mashing the boiled potatoes. Add the butter, freshly grated Parmesan cheese, egg yolk and milk. Season with salt and pepper and stir to a desired creamy consistency.
- Place the meat filling on the bottom of the baking dish. Spoon the mashed potatoes on top of the meat and spread evenly. You can run the fork over the entire surface and give the Shepherd’s Pie a beautiful look (photo above in the text).
- Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes. The beautiful golden color of the mashed potatoes will tell you when it’s ready.
- Lastly, when the Shepherd’s Pie is done, let it cool slightly, sprinkle with extra cheese and serve. Bon appetite!
Notes
You can also add a glass of red wine before pouring the broth over the fried ground beef.
Flour is added to keep the meat sauce nicely thick after pouring in the broth.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Category: Lunch
- Cuisine: British
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6 servings , Amount per serving:
- Calories: 475
- Sugar: 6.8g
- Sodium: 862mg
- Fat: 18.5g
- Saturated Fat: 8.8g
- Carbohydrates: 39.7g
- Fiber: 6.9g
- Protein: 37g
- Cholesterol: 137mg
One Response
Shepard’s Pie – Lamb
Cottage Pie – Beef