Shepherd's Pie Recipe

One of my family's all-time favorite dishes is shepherd's pie, a classic comfort food with roots tracing back to the United Kingdom and Ireland. A complete meal in itself, it's the perfect go-to for busy households like ours. (It can be for yours, too!)

Prep Time25

Cook Time30

Total Time55

Course: Entree

Cuisine: English, Irish

Keyword: beef, ground beef dinner, potatoes

Servings: servings

Calories: 403kcal

Author: Laura

Equipment

7 x 11 Baking pan
Hand mixer
Large sauté pan or skillet

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons butter
1 pound 90% lean ground beef
1 medium yellow onion diced
1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
2 teaspoons fresh rosemary chopped (or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary)
2 teaspoons dried parsley leaves
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup frozen mixed peas and carrots
½ cup frozen corn
2 cloves garlic minced
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 ½ Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 cup beef broth

Potato Layer:

2 pounds Russet potatoes peeled and cut into 1-2 inch cubes
8 Tablespoons butter
⅓ cup heavy cream
¼ cup parmesan cheese
3 cloves garlic minced
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
freshly chopped parsley optional garnish

Instructions

Set a large pot of water to boil. Once boiling, add the cut potatoes, set a timer for 10 minutes, and then check to see if the potatoes are soft. Once softened, drain water and set aside.
While the potatoes boil, start the rest of the recipe.
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F and move the rack to the top third of the oven.
Add the butter to a large skillet and melt over medium-high heat. Then add the ground beef and onion and cook until the ground beef is just browned (about 6-8 minutes).
Reduce the heat to medium and stir in the thyme, rosemary, parsley, garlic, tomato paste, and flour. Cook, stirring constantly, for about a minute.
Add in the beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper, and scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Let the liquid thicken up a bit for about 1 minute.
Stir in the frozen mixed veggies and cook for 5 minutes, stirring often.
Once the potatoes are done (a knife should pierce easily), drain them and add them back to the pot they were cooked in.
To the potatoes, add the cream, butter, garlic, parmesan cheese, and salt & pepper. Use a hand mixer to mix until smooth.
Transfer the meat mixture to a 7 x 11 casserole dish and then spoon the potatoes over top. Smooth with a rubber spatula for an even layer.
Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly, then broil for a few minutes (watch it carefully) to brown the potatoes.
Let it sit for a few minutes before serving and sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley if desired.

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