This recipe, handed down to me by a friend in the form of index cards, was originally from the beloved Joy of Cooking.
Start by chopping up 1-1/2 lb. potatoes into rough 1-inch cubes for boiling. Fill a large pot with enough water to cover the potatoes and bring to a boil. Once the water boils, add the potatoes to the water and return the water to a boil. Turn the heat down to medium to keep the water at a simmer. Cook the potatoes until fully tender, about fifteen minutes.
While, cooking the potatoes, prepare the vegetables. Use one medium carrot, a celery stalk, and a medium onion (a classic combination known as a mirepoix).
Dice the carrot, celery, and onion and place in a bowl. Assemble the rest of the ingredients: 1 tablespoon flour, 1 teaspoon each of dried rosemary and dried thyme, 1 cup beef broth, and 1 pound of ground lamb or beef.
When the potatoes are tender, remove them from the water into a large bowl, reserving 1/2 cup of the water. Mash the potatoes with 1 Tbs. butter, the 1/2 cup of reserved water. Add salt and ground white pepper to taste while mashing. I use white pepper in my mashed potatoes so black flecks of pepper are not visible in the finished product. Feel free to use the pepper of your choice.
After the potatoes have been mashed, set them aside. Heat 3 Tbs. vegetable oil or clarified butter in a large pot over medium heat.
Add the diced onion, carrot, and celery and stir until the vegetables are coated.
Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occassionally, until tender, about fifteen minutes. This is a good time to preheat your oven to 400°F.
Increase the heat to medium-high and add the ground meat. Use a wooden spoon (or the potato masher you used on the potatoes) to break the meat apart while cooking.
Cook the ground meat while stirring until no longer pink, about five minutes.
Tilt the pot and allow the excess fat to run to one corner. Spoon off the excess fat.
Add 1 Tbs. flour to the mixture. Mix and cook for a couple minutes while stirring. The flour is added here to help thicken up the gravy that we'll prepare in this mixture. We cook it for a couple minutes during this step so there will not be a raw flour taste to our final dish.
Add the beef stock, dried thyme, dried rosemary, and nutmeg. Cook while stirring until the liquid has thickened, about 5 minutes. While the gravy thickens, add salt and ground black pepper to taste.
Pour the meat mixture into a casserole or baking pan.
Cover meat mixture with the mashed potatoes and fluff the top of the potatoes with a fork. This will allow the bits of potato sticking up to brown and form a crispy crust. Instead of fluffing the potatoes, you can use the fork to carve patterns into the potatoes producing a dramatic crust.
Cut 2 Tbs. of butter into small pieces and sprinkle over the top of the potatoes. Cover with a healthy amount of paprika. (Optionally, an ounce or two of finely grated cheese, like parmesan, can be used to top the potatoes.)
Place the shepherd's pie into the oven onto a rack in the center of the oven. After thirty minutes, the potatoes should have formed the golden brown crust. Remove from the oven and allow to rest ten minutes before serving.For larger groups or potlucks, I double the portions and prepare exactly as above until the meat mixture is done cooking. Instead of transfering the meat to a baking pan, I put the potatoes into the pot to cover the meat mixture. (If I know that there will be many carb dishes at the meal, then I won't double the potato portion.) After fluffing the potatoes, I bake the whole pot for 30 minutes at 400°F.
Shepherd's Pie (serves four to six)
Mashed potatoes
| 1-1/2 lb. (700 g) russet potatoes | boil until tender (15 min.) | mash | season to taste |
| 1/2 cup (120 mL) water reserved from boiling potatoes | |||
| 1 Tbs. (14 g) unsalted butter | |||
| salt | |||
| ground white pepper | |||
Shepherd's pie
| Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C) | ||||||||||
| 3 Tbs. (45 mL) vegetable oil | heat | med-low until tender | cook until meat is no longer pink | mix and cook | stir in and cook until liquid thickens | season to taste | cover with potatoes and fluff with fork | drop butter pieces on top | cover with paprika | bake 400°F (205°C) 30 min. |
| 1 medium (110 g) onion | dice | |||||||||
| 1 medium (61 g) carrot | ||||||||||
| 1 medium (40 g) celery stalk | ||||||||||
| 1 pound (450 g) ground lamb | ||||||||||
| 1 Tbs. (8 g) all-purpose flour | ||||||||||
| 1 tsp. (1.2 g) dried rosemary | ||||||||||
| 1 tsp. (1 g) dried thyme | ||||||||||
| 1 pinch ground nutmeg | ||||||||||
| 1 cup (235 mL) beef broth | ||||||||||
| salt | ||||||||||
| ground black pepper | ||||||||||
| 1-3/4 lb. (800 g) mashed potatoes | ||||||||||
| 2 Tbs. (28 g) butter | cut up into small pieces | |||||||||
| paprika | ||||||||||
The rest of the recipe looks fine to my British eye, although most cooks I know make Shepherd's (or Cottage) Pie from the remains of a roasted joint of beef, rather than raw meat. It's a way of using leftovers for most families, rather than a dish they create from scratch.
I use milk and loads of butter as well in mine, and while I typically use leftover meats, on occasion we crave the meal itself withough having any leftovers to use!
Thanks guys'
Rick cast
Midland, Texas
Russets are a starchy (floury) variety. Definitely the mashed potatoes could be made with more substantial ingredients. I don't usually both though because people (at least my guests) seem to focus more on the flavor of the meat and use the mashed potatoes for contrasting texture. Maybe even a palate cleanser - which is why I kept them simple for this particular dish. But there's probably no wrong way to make a shepherd's pie. :)
Ah, yes. I forgot to mention that Shepherd's Pie was originally intended (and for most of the world still is used) as a way to prepare leftovers in a palatable manner. If you've got flavorful meat leftovers, chop it up and toss it in! :)
a cottage pie is a meat pie with mash potatoes on top, the key difference is cottage pie's have pastry base and side with no lid topped with potato's, Shepherd's pie's do not have any pastry.
I agree with Michael's definition of a Shepherd's and Cottage Pie - neither of them have a pastry base.
Robert Werner
Vancouver, BC
http://PelaLusa.blogspot.com
Had one issue, I couldn't get the top to brown quite as nicely as your picture shows.
Keep up the good work!
a cottage pie is a meat pie with mash potatoes on top, the key difference is cottage pie's have pastry base and side with no lid topped with potato's, Shepherd's pie's do not have any pastry.
Shepherds pie uses Lamb (the name is a clue), cottage pie uses beef
When cooking for my 3 years old son I always try to balance what's good and what tastes good. And I am sure you think the same.
So... let's join our efforts. See, alone I can only do so much. Together, with your help, we can make Tasty Chicken Recipes really useful.
And, while you're there, why don't you send me your thoughts on how to make it a better place? A place where you'll really enjoy being. A place that you'll be proud of making better.
<a href="http://www.fellwalk.co.uk/londonfood3.htm>the pie</a>[/url]
Surely that depends on whether the pie was made by (or belonged to) one shepherd, or several in collaboration! :)
As sheepherding was a solitary occupation, I'd prefer to think of 'shepherd's pie' as being correct.
I did want to mention that this grey text on black background is a little hard on the eyes of us older engineers....
-b
In my experience, shepherd's pie freezes just fine. Simply freeze it after it's been assembled (before baking) and when it's time to serve, just bake until the edges are bubbly.
PhilB
My boyfriend also made this for me one day when I came home late. Wow! He did it perfectly!
Thanks for this great recipe!
Admittedly, I am from a very English family, but I'm really surprised at how many people seem to be trying cottage pie for the first time!
I was brought up on the stuff (and I hasten to add, never brought it up!), and at the ripe young age of 40, we still have it at least once every couple of weeks.
I have to admit, though, that we don't generally wait for leftovers, as these are a rarity in our house!
Otherwise a nice recipe, and as this is my first comment, let me congratulate you on an excellent website. If this website did not exist, mankind would be driven to create it.
Great site, by the way. Very fresh among food blogs. I've been tracking them for ThisNext.com, and yours is really inventive. Looking forward to the next recipe...
I did use someone's recommendation and set it under the broiler instead of baking it. I prepared the potatoes after the meat mixture, so they were still warm. Broiled it a few minutes until the top was golden, then sprinkled a touch of sharp cheddar and returned to the turned off, but still warm oven to let it melt. This is exactly how my husband likes it, so he was thrilled.
Thanks again for a wonderful site, I have tried 4 recipes here already and they have all been a big hit with the family. Thank you, Michael!!
They added sweet potatoes to the mashed potato topping ( aboout 50/50 red garnet sweet potatoes / russett potatoes).
The meat filling was the same ground lamb and veggies, but spiced with a mild curry.
IMHO a very tasty change of pace.
I tried a variation that others might like to experiment with. I used country sausage (pork sausage w/a light onion/garlic flavor and minimal sage) in lieu of the beef/lamb. Instead of beef stock for gravy I used some excellent turkey stock made with herbs d'provence. The stock is a little stronger that chicken stock and not as heavily flavored as beef stock. The results were very good. I also added the layer of peas.
jb
Extra water cooked into and then mashed into the potatoes makes mashed potatoes weigh more than the starting potatoes.
I would concur with both the Worcester sauce and tomato puree additions, but only when using lamb. If you are using beef, then it has to be Marmite.
As for the potatoes, I've achieved my best results by steaming them, then mashing with a positively indecent amount of unsalted butter and a little double cream. Season with a good sea salt and white pepper.
In our household, peas are usually served separately.
As an aside, the devil's vegetable (sweetcorn) should only ever be eaten on the cob, in tuna sandwiches or in a smoked fish chowder.
Oh, nice. I when I wrote this I did it from note cards and didn't know if I had gotten it handed down through friends or from a cookbook. Even the presentation notes are the same - fluffing the potatoes in a baking dish. Only thing that got added over the years appararently, was the paprika. Interesting, how some recipes evolve quickly, and some just stay the same as they change hands. I've added a credit statement at the beginning of the article.
are there any other cheaper or more common substitutes? for example..garlic salt? haha..thanks :)
A little trick for making sure your boiled potatoes are completely dry before mashing them: After draining, return the potatoes to the stove and dry-cook for a few minutes - this ensures there's no extra water left in the pot which can make them taste -- watery of course! Then mash in your butter thoroughly before adding the milk. This way each particle of potato is encapsulated in butter before adding the milk. Make sure you use enough salt & pepper and you'll end up with creamy, buttery potatos.
This is for the person wanting a cheap source for rosemary & thyme: Instead of buying the expensive brands in the spice section, look for the Hispanic spice display, which is usually close to the regular spices or in the Hispanic food section. You'll find most of your common spices at a much cheaper price - around $1.00 for a 4 to 6 oz. bag of thyme, bay leaves, rosemary, black pepper, etc.
Thx for all contributors, I am anxious to try some of the variations posted, particularly the fish and white sauce. I assume the suggested bed of cooked spinach is to prevent the cheese in the white sauce from sticking to the bottom. I might try adding small pieces of broccoli over the bed of spinach. I like cheesy white sauce with broccoli. Cheers
I think the intent was for the cream corn to mimic the gravy. I do have to say that it is still my favorite meal.
I had forgotten about this dish for many years. I had it while growing up but never prepared it myself. I tasted it again while traveling through the Yukon and it brought back great memories. I want to start making it for my family too. Thank you for all of the ideas. The kids will love it!
I'd made Shepherd's pie this morning for the freezer, then discovered a link to this site - it's great!
A couple of things:
With the emphasis on increasing the amount of vegetables we eat, I stuffed my 2lb meat mix with 2 big onions, 3 medium carrots, 1 red pepper, 1 yellow pepper, and a mug of peas. All the veg exept the peas chopped. I never thicken the gravy, but add just enough stock to come to about an inch below the top of the meat.
Steaming the spuds and then ricing them before adding butter and seasoning gets them really fluffy. (A ricer is like a huge garlic press.) Don't stint on the butter (but olive oil can be substituted) as it aids the topping to get beautifully golden.
A few bruised cloves of garlic, bay leaves, fresh woody herbs like thyme/rosemary can be cooked in with the meat and removed before assembling the pie.
Oh yes - a heaped tsp of mild curry powder and plenty of worstershire sauce add zing and help cut down on the salt needed in the meat layer.
It's a wrestle to get the stuff cooked, cooled and frozen before it gets eaten! :huh:
Yikes - posting as a guest needs concentration ;)
For the potatoes, I used a recipe of Martha Stewart's for Basil-Chive Red Potato Mash.
Good review from my husband! :D
One variation I recall from my Scots mother's version of this is NOT mashing the potatoes, but ricing them (using a potato ricer) onto the top of the filling. I found that this added a nice look (it is mostly aesthetic as I can think of no important functional difference) and a few minutes of broiling at the end (after some lower temp cooking) seemed to brown up the top really nice (another poster had suggested that earlier).
If you want a different (and I think nicer) look to your pie (I won't touch the shepherds'/shepherd's/cottage dispute...), get a potato ricer and give me old mum's variant a try.
Also, having done this with corn a few times, I prefer kernel corn to creamed corn, but our mileage (or kilometerage) may vary.
Without it it is just not right! Before cooking, inbetween cooking and after. Its like it was made for it
MrFerret
Chopped meat. Carrots. Sweet Peas. Sliced Onions (mushroom gravy, beef gravy)better taste and more juicy. salt and pepper. Mashed potatoes (MILK and butter), water is no good, milk makes it creamier.
Do this and you'll find a winner!
:)
Happy eatings
For those of you not counting calories, cook 4-5 slices of bacon until crispy, set aside and saute the veggies is the fat instead of the oil. I still remove the fat later on (before adding the flour). Crumble the bacon into the meat mixture at the end once they're cooled.
Personally, I don't use celery. Essential: One pkg of mushrooms (quartered) sauted with the veggies and several handfuls of frozen peas at the very end.
Worcestershire is a must, as well as a pinch of red pepper flakes. Final touch is liberal amount of sour cream into mashed potatoes and I triple the butter used in this recipe. No milk necessary. I've mixed in grated gruyere cheese to potatoes before too... sinful!!
I make this anytime I need to soften my fiancé up. Afterwards he's putty in my hands...
My family always used a layer of baked beans between meat & potatoes - drain the sauce from the beans and stir it into the meat with a dash of worcester sauce, instead of gravy. All sorts of tinned or left over veg can be used though, as other comments suggest.
One of the great things about the basic idea is that you can vary it in so many ways - curried meat mix or sausage & tomatoes are both good with cheesy mash for example. You can also use a layer of sliced potatoes on top instead of mashing them, if you have waxy potatoes, or use celeriac, swede, sweet potato, kohlrabi or what you will.
Incidentally the fish version, fisherman's pie, is usually made with a layer of sliced hard boiled eggs over the fish & white sauce.
The fish? Memories of Kedgiree! Mmmmmmm.
Joy
My family always used a layer of baked beans between meat & potatoes - drain the sauce from the beans and stir it into the meat with a dash of worcester sauce, instead of gravy. All sorts of tinned or left over veg can be used though, as other comments suggest.
One of the great things about the basic idea is that you can vary it in so many ways - curried meat mix or sausage & tomatoes are both good with cheesy mash for example. You can also use a layer of sliced potatoes on top instead of mashing them, if you have waxy potatoes, or use celeriac, swede, sweet potato, kohlrabi or what you will.
Incidentally the fish version, fisherman's pie, is usually made with a layer of sliced hard boiled eggs over the fish & white sauce.
One question- What do you call it if it is made with a pastry? I would like to try that sometime.
"made with a pastry" - not entirely sure I'm understanding the question, but a "deep dish thing" with a pastry top might be more aptly a "pot pie"
chicken pot pie is the "classic" but only a few zillion parallels exist. . . .
perhaps what distinguishes "cottage pie" from "pot pie" is indeed the use of mashed potato vs. pastry as a "lid"?
On the subject of the pies, I never slavishly follow a recipe. I believe that cooking should reflect how you feel, and I rarely feel quite the same twice. :P
I personally like to mash my potatoes with grated mature cheddar cheese and nothing else for this recipe, it just seems to enhance the flavour of the rest of the dish. Also, I never boil potatoes without generously salting the water first, most of the salt is poured away with the water and the potatoes taste insipid without it.
Lastly, I find that an egg, beaten with a little milk, painted over the mash with a pastry brush gives a wonderful, crispy, golden brown crust. I have also heard of people using breadcrumbs on the crust.
Thanks a lot for the site, unfortunately, I have an hour of work to go still and am now ravenous! ;)
it's a similar situation as "the only way to fry eggs is: . . . . "
the dish has so much history, I doubt there is "proof" that Recipe X is the one and only "authentic" method. . . .
mashed potatoes are a usual & customary "topping" to a savory "inside"
you'll see tasty looking mentions here of vegetables in with the meat - well, other than "seasoning stuff" i.e. celery, mushrooms, green/red peppers, onion, leeks, <whatever>.... I stick with ground beef browned to a slightly crisp stage. it's not "right", it's not "wrong", it's how my family likes it.
so whatever works for you along the lines of making a mashed potato is what you go with <g> I prefer a mealy type (high starch) vs. waxy (low starch) for mashing - waxy types often mash to small chunks vs something smoother - but that is entirely personal preference.
and it is also my personal preference to do things differently now and then - steak is good, but steak every night.......