Shepherd’s Pie is warm, hearty, and oh so delicious! This is a recipe the entire family will beg for time and time again!
It’s the time of year where Irish foods tend to grace tables across the United States. Shepherd’s Pie is a comfort food staple. We keep things simple with this classic recipe, and love to use ground lamb in lieu of ground beef. It is warm, inviting, and delicious. A grand salute to the Irish!
Do you prefer more veggies than meat? More meat than veggies? This recipe is quite forgiving and lets you adjust to your own personal tastes. We love the added texture the veggies give, but can’t deny the savory flavor of the meat. Give yourself a balanced ratio of both, and you’ll find yourself licking the plate clean.
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What is the difference between Shepherd’s Pie and Cottage pie?
Oh the terminology of Shepherd’s Pie vs. Cottage Pie. There are some strong opinions out there. “Cottage pie” has been in use since 1791, when the potato was introduced as an edible crop affordable for the poor. The term “shepherd’s pie” has been used synonymously with “cottage pie” since 1877, regardless of the type of meat used, mutton or beef. More recently, the term “shepherd’s pie” has been used when the meat is lamb, and “cottage pie” when the meat is beef. We like to refer to it as a Shepherd’s Pie, no matter what meat goes inside of it.
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Do I have to use red meat?
We get it, not everyone can or likes to eat red meat. Red meat produces the best flavor for this dish whether you use ground beef or ground lamb, but ground turkey is acceptable as well.
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Make Ahead Instructions:
This is not a dish that should be made in its entirety ahead of time, simply because mashed potatoes do not reheat well. If you would like to save some time, you can make the meat and vegetable filling ahead of time and freeze or refrigerate until you’re ready to bake. If you choose to freeze, make sure the filling is fully thawed before baking. Continue on with the recipe and make the mashed potatoes fresh right before you’re ready to bake.
If you like this recipe, you may be interested in these other casserole recipes:
- Creamy Chicken Casserole
- The Best Tuna Casserole
- Mom’s Chicken Pot Pie
- The Best Chicken and Rice Casserole
Watch the video below where Rachel will walk you through every step of this recipe. Sometimes it helps to have a visual, and we’ve always got you covered with our cooking show. You can find the complete collection of recipes onYouTube,Facebook Watch, or ourFacebook Page, or right here on our website with their corresponding recipes.
All of your recipes have been a hit at my house! This one is especially good and very satisfying. I made mine with ground turkey and it was delicious. Keep those recipes coming!!
Delicious, quick and easy! Thank you, Rachel! I love watching your videos and trying your recipes. You are my go-to-gal when looking for a recipe. Everything I have tried has been excellent and easy to follow. Thanks for making me a better cook!
It’s a good recipe. I used to live in England because my mother was British. I am not a fan of the cheese in the potato or on top – I’ve never seen it served like that, but if you’re a cheese fan, then by all means add it. What I might suggest, in addition to what you are cooking in the minced meat, is 2 tbsp. of tomato paste and about 1/4 c of red wine with 1/4 c flour to make a nice tomatoey gravy. Also add a bay leaf and a sprig or two of rosemary with the thyme while cooking, and then remove the herbs when you are assembling the pie. Your recipe is very good, but I think the suggestions I have made will give it a nice spin if you want to switch it up!
I love your suggestions – there are no children in this household any longer and my husband and I like the more her herby-tomato flavoring. Also, I wasn’t a fan of the cheese either (trying to cut down on these kinds of fats). Otherwise, a really super easy and definitely, comforting dish; plus I really love that I will have lots of leftovers.
I’m not crazy about adding tomato paste because of the bitterness so I add ketchup. It’s really yummy.
Easy and delicious recipe!
Delicious as written. I made it with a lb. of ground lamb and 1/2 lb. of ground beef. It makes a lot for two people but we had it two nights in a row and still froze a portion. I am deleting all of my other Shephard’s Pie recipes.
I was always taught the difference between shepherds pie & cottage pie is the topping, shepherds pie has mashed potato topping – representing the wool of a sheep; cottage pie has sliced potato topping, representing the roof of a cottage. While lamb mince was traditionaly used for shepherds pies, these days any mince is considered ok by most. 🙂
Delish!!! Easy recipe also!
The last time I looked at my grandmother’s recipe (Grandmother is from Yorkshire County England.) there is no cheese of any kind in the recipe so I really don’t know how you can call this old fashion and Shepherd’s Pie. Sheperd Pie is made with lamb. There are also a few more herbs in it.
Have a nice day!! 🙂
They loved the shepards pie because it was not dull with the carrots corn and peas.
Very good
Really really good but it’s going to be 4 servings for my hubby and I. He really liked it and went for seconds!