Shepherd's Pie

Shepherd's pie, as many of you well know, is a classic layered British dish, traditionally made with minced lamb and potato. Everyone and their grandmother has their own favourite twist on this recipe, and I'm no different.

This savory, moreish dish is a favourite for my husband and I during depressing Danish winters where it's typically rainy, windy and very dark. When I think about it, pretty much anything with mashed potato is a fan favourite here.

I kept the recipe simple with ground beef, carrot, celery, onion and garlic, with a bit of red wine, beef stock and spices, and then piled the buttery mashed potatoes high on top for a super tasty one-dish meal that took less than an hour to make.

What you'll need

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Meat Filling
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon oil
500 g ground beef
2 onions, diced
3 stalks celery, diced
3 carrots, diced
3 cloves garlic, diced or crushed
2 tablespoons fresh thyme
1 tablespoon dried oregano
Pinch ground cloves
250 ml beef stock
150 ml red wine
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
Salt
Pepper

Mashed Potato Topping
6 baking potatoes
4 tablespoons butter
60 ml cream
Pinch ground nutmeg
Salt
Pepper

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How to make it

1. Peel and boil potatoes in unsalted water until tender.
2. Drain potatoes and place back on low heat to steam dry.
3. Mash potatoes with butter, cream, salt, pepper and a pinch of nutmeg.
4. Preheat oven to 175°C/345°F and set potatoes aside.
5. In a large sautee pan or or skillet, heat oil and butter.
6. Sweat onions and garlic until softened, approximately 5 minutes.
7. Add beef and brown.
8. Add carrots, celery, thyme, oregano, cloves and cook approximately 10 minutes, until vegetables begin to soften.
9. Add wine and reduce by half.
10. Add stock, Worcestershire sauce and dijon.
11. Season with salt and pepper, and simmer for approximately 15 - 20 minutes until liquid reduces and becomes thicker.
12. Spread meat mixture into a baking dish and layer mashed potato on top. If you choose to pipe the potatoes, allow them to cool slightly to avoid burning yourself. Safety first.
13. Bake 20-30 minutes until potatoes are browned and mixture is bubbly.

Find a printable version of the recipe here.

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Boil potatoes and mash

Sweat onions and garlic

Brown beef

Add vegetables and herbs

Layer meat and mashed potato

Bake and enjoy!

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And there you have it! This dish gets extremely hot, so let it sit and cool off for about 5 minutes before serving to avoid burning your mouth.

If this recipe is right up your alley, then be sure to leave a like and share with your friends! Feel free to comment below or send me an email to tell me how it went, and as always, you can find me on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram as Quite Chefy.