What Is Cottage Pie
Although Shepherds Pie a.k.a. cottage pie, has traditionally been made with minced lamb, it is widely acceptable to make with beef. Some recipes call for beef chunks similar to beef stew while other recipes used ground beef, lamb, veal or pork. I like using the mixture of ground beef and pork for this recipe. Shepherds Pie has long been long associated with Irish food in America and is a common dish in Irish pubs and restaurants.
The meat mixture is seasoned with Worcestershire sauce, extra virgin olive oil mixed with a rue . It is relatively easy to prepare.
This recipe is similar to our Cheesy Meatballs, Mashed Potatoes and Mushroom Gravy with a few obvious exceptions. Im sure youd like it too. Its another meat and potatoes meal with gravy! So yummy!
Tips For Making Shepherds Pie
There are a few stages to making Shepherds Pie, but its a straightforward recipe. Theres just two little things that you dont see in most recipes, little things that bugged me:
Cool the filling before topping with potato: It thickens and makes it easier to spread the potato across the top and it stops the potato weeping into the filling
Creamier mashed potato = easier to spread and just an all round better eating experience. I just dont like dry, very firm mash. When I break through the mash, I want it to be borderline collapsing, rather than being able to cut cleanly through it like cake.
I stress again these are little things that bug me, so feel free to by-pass them! Nagi x
PS One last time Cottage Pie is made with beef. Shepherds Pie is made with lamb!
More About This Recipe
- Whether you call it shepherds pie or cottage pie, it will take just one taste to call this recipe delicious. While it seems like a super-trendy new dish, shepherd’s pie has long been a go-to comfort food in the British Isles. Sub out the ground beef for ground chicken or turkey. Looking for more creative recipes for mashed potatoes? Cooking with potatoes is not only fun and easy, but the blank canvas for the tender spuds allows you maximum creativity and inspiration. Looking for more creative recipes for mashed potatoes? Check out all of our delicious side dishes, dinners and more.
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The History Of Cottage Pie
Cottage pie is actually older than shepherds pie. It is a dish that originated around the time that potatoes were introduced in the UK . Potatoes were affordable ingredients that were often used by the peasants, who lived in cottages.
So, cottage pie was an easy to make, affordable dish invented to fill peasant tummies.
How To Make Cottage Pie
At its most basic, cottage pie is a meat pie that is topped with mashed potatoes rather than a pie crust. After this, it can vary greatly from region to region .
Sometimes you will see other vegetables like celery, mushrooms, or peas studded through the meat filling. Other times it is only onions and maybe smattering of carrots. Some add a wide array of herbs, others season it more simply.
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Can I Make Shepherds Pie In Advance
Yes it can be made in advance but keep in mind you wont want to store it in the cast iron pan as it will cause rusting, instead:
- Assemble the pie in a baking dish or casserole dish.
- Cover and refrigerate.
- The following day remove from the fridge while the oven preheats to 350 degrees.
- Bake covered with foil about 25 30 minutes until heated through, then broil closer to broiler element to brown the topping.
What Is Shepards Pie
If youre new to Shepherds Pie , let me be the first to welcome you to your new favourite comfort food. Essentially, its lamb and veggies smothered in a gravy and who doesnt love an excuse for tons and tons of gravy?
All those times you were limited to just a small drizzle on a few slices of roast lamb because there wasnt enough to go around Bah! This is how you get your gravy fix!!
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How To Make Shepherd’s Pie In A Pressure Cooker
When I first came across this recipe, I was puzzled. Maybe I hadn’t had my coffee yet, but I imagined tossing ground beef, veggies, and a few whole potatoes into the Instant Pot and then lifting off the lid to reveal a table-ready Shepherd’s Pie topped with mashed potatoes.
In reality, there are a few more steps involved — though not many!
Coco has you start by prepping the filling using the Sauté function on the Instant Pot. Then you place a tall steamer rack in the pot and place the peeled potatoes on top.
Then the lid goes on and everything pressure cooks together. At the end of cooking, the potatoes are perfectly cooked and ready to be mashed with milk.
For a traditional casserole-style shepherd’s pie, you transfer the filling to an 8×8 pan, top with the mashed potatoes, and broil until the top is golden. You can also serve this in bowls by scooping out some filling and topping it with a generous dollop of mashed potatoes. So easy!
How Do You Make Shepherds Pie
*The full printable recipe is at the bottom of this post.
Shepherds pie before baking.
Delicious Beef and Pork Shepherds Pie!
Worcestershire Sauce and homemade beef broth make this Shepherds Pie especially tasty.
Serve this Shepherds Pie with fresh crusty Skillet Irish Soda Bread. I love this soda bread recipe because theres no yeast and its made with basic ingredients. Best of all, its ready in one hour! Itll be a great St. Patricks meal!
Shepherds Pie
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Main Dish Recipe Index
Browse main dish recipes that are tried and tested. From meatloaf to chili to chicken recipes. These are great options for the busy family any day of the week!
Check out these great entree recipes.
Hi, Im Amanda Finks
Im a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist living in Zionsville, IN. Im an avid cook, travel nerd, & lover of good food! Im trained in Food Science & recipe development. Its my mission to bring you the BEST recipes your whole family will love! See More.
Recent Posts
Variations On Cottage Pie
Whats really fun, is the variations on cottage pie that you see in British cuisine, and that have made their way to the States with the immigrants.
A version of cottage pie, called St. Stephens day pie, is made with leftover Christmas turkey and ham to celebrate St. Stephens feast day on December 26.
Pate Chinois is a French Canadian version where you will find corn as the vegetable of choice in the meat filling.
Youll find another variation of cottage pie in the coastal regions of Britain. Since seafood is abundant, their cottage pie becomes a fish pie.
And, if you top the potato crust of your traditional cottage pie with breadcrumbs and cheese, it becomes a Cumberland pie.
Theyre all so tasty!
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What Makes This The Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
- Texture: The cookies are soft in the middle and chewy around the edges.
- Flavor: They have a sweet, buttery, toffy-like cookie flavor, loaded with chocolate chips.
- Quick & Easy to make: No bringing the ingredients to room temperature. No chilling the dough. The recipe can easily be whisked together, instead of using a mixer. And, its a ONE BOWL recipe.
Ingredients For Deviled Eggs:
Note* The printable step by step recipe card is at the bottom of this post.
- 6 large hard boiled eggs
- 3 Tablespoons mayonaise
- 1-2 teaspoons dill pickle juice
- 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
I always start with 1 teaspoon of pickle juice. Then, I taste the filling. If it needs a little extra saltiness and tanginess, I add another teaspoon of pickle juice.
If you dont have or dont like pickle juice, white vinegar or red wine vinegar are good substitutes. However, you may want to add a pinch of salt to the filling if you use vinegar instead of pickle juice.
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Read The Labels On Your Worcestershire Sauce
Diving into the meat filling, youll see that Worcestershire is a key ingredient. This is a vinegar based sauce made from fermented onions and garlic, along with molasses, tamarind, anchovies, spices and more. Yep, you can say this sauce has an intense depth of flavor, making it perfect to add to meats.
But if youre gluten-free, youll need to be mindful of the brands you buy. Worcestershire often includes a wheat-based soy sauce to get that deep dark brown color. So, I recommend purchasing one of the below brands that are gluten-free .
Ultimate Shepherds Pie With Beef And Pork
Thanks for sharing! You rock!
This tasty Ultimate Shepherds Pie with Beef and Pork is a hearty all-in-one meal! This recipe uses both ground beef and pork and a savory brown gravy. This is a comfort food meal perfect to celebrate St. Patricks Day or any Sunday dinner.
You wont be able to get enough of this yummy recipe! Its all things good in one casserole! The brown gravy makes it so yummy. It is a great use of leftover mashed potatoes and a good make ahead casserole for parties or to freeze.
Our family loves Shepherds Pie! It is a great comfort food with cheddar cheese topped homemade mashed potatoes, peas, and ground meat. This recipe is made with a combination of ground beef and ground pork. Whats not to love?
Sometimes, its hard to choose which to make on St. Patricks Day- this Shepherds Pie or Corned Beef & Cabbage because theyre both so tasty.
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New Cookbook: The Ultimate Instant Pot Cookbook
This is absolutely my new favorite way to make Shepherd’s Pie, but there are plenty more recipes in this book that I’m excited to try.
I’ve actually already made the Sweet Potatoes Stuffed With Black Beans and Quinoa. Verdict: phenomenal. I love having this easy, meat-free meal in my back pocket.
A few that are next on my list:
- French Toast Casserole
- Hoisin-Glazed Spareribs
- Caramelized Onion Dip
Coco sprinkles her recipes with useful tips and suggestions for substitutions, which are all very useful for cooks like me who employ a mix of roughly 80% “follow the recipe” and 20% “wing it.”
Reading through the book, I also appreciate how straightforward and approachable all the recipes feel — though of course, this shouldn’t come as a surprise since this is why I love featuring her recipes here on Simply Recipes as well! With its mix of basic recipes and recipes to make for dinner, I think this book would be a good one for new Instant Pot users and die-hard fans alike.
Is Shepherds Pie Irish Or Scottish
In the States, we tend to think about shepherds pie around St. Patricks Day. So, if you ask nearly anyone what country shepherds pie comes from, youre bound to get the answer, Ireland.
However, cottage pie probably originated in Scotland, in the North of the UK. Meat pies were common in this region, and were topped with pastry crust before the 1700s when potatoes were introduced as a crop. Once the potato crust came into play, cottage pie as we know it today came into being.
As cottage pie became popular throughout Britain and potatoes became a staple crop in Ireland, the dish began to be more associated with Ireland, and similar pies with a pastry crust began to re-emerge in Scottish cuisine.
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Say Hi To Coco Morante
One last treat for all you readers out there: I thought it would be fun for you to get to know Coco a little more. Here’s a quick Q& A with the author herself!
1. How many Instant Pots do you own?
Right now, four. I’ve also given some to friends and family as I’ve upgraded or received new units for review. Currently I have two 6-quart models , as well as 3-quart and 8-quart pots.
2. Whats one recipe from this book that you really want people to try and fall in love with?
Cincinnati Chili . I adapted the recipe from a stovetop version shared with me by my friend Diana Pray. It’s full of spices, including a healthy dose of cinnamon — the Midwestern-meets-Greek flavor is so unique and delicious. You have to try it !
3. What three recipes from this book are best if you just got your first Instant Pot?
Risotto , because it’s so easy you won’t believe it. Split Pea Soup , because it tastes like my grandma’s did — I’m transported back to her kitchen when I eat a bowl. And Succotash — most all the ingredients come from the pantry or freezer, so you can make a hearty, nutritious vegetable side dish any time. Those are all really straightforward recipes that don’t require you to buy additional accessories, so you can make them right when you take your Instant Pot out of the box.
4. Latest food obsession?
5. Three ingredients that are always in your pantry?
Nutritional yeast, almond flour, and San Marzano-style canned tomatoes.
7. What are you working on now?
Thanks, Coco!
How This Pie Is Different From Traditional Shepherds Pie
The shepherds pie of my upbringing features a hefty portion of meat, with vegetables playing a supporting role, and a thick topping of buttery mashed potatoes. My updated version bumps up the ratio of vegetables to meat and calls for extra-lean ground beef, which is the leanest option in the butcher case.
For the mashed potatoes, the recipe swaps in olive oil for butter, which means more heart-healthy fats in every bite. The sum total of these swaps is a lighter dish with no shortcuts on flavor.
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