Classic Shepherds Pie Easy

Shepherd's pie is a dish of cooked minced meat topped with mashed potato. Its defining ingredients are red meat (lamb or beef), onions, gravy or sauce, and a topping of mashed potato. Common variants include adding vegetables to the filling and topping the dish with cheese

The term shepherd's pie did not appear until 1854 and was initially used synonymously with cottage pie, regardless of whether the meat was beef or lamb. Several cookery writers have asserted in recent decades that shepherd's pie uses lamb while cottage pie uses beef.

In early cookery books, the dish is given as a way of using leftover roasted meat of any kind, and the pie dish was lined on the sides and bottom with mashed potato, as well as having a mashed potato crust on top.

Classic Shepherds Pie Easy Video Tutorial

Classic Shepherds Pie Easy

Ingredients:

For lamb mixture:

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp olive oil

1 diced onion

2 diced carrots

2 pounds lean ground lamb

1/3 cup flour

salt and pepper to taste

1 tsp smoked paprika

1/8 tsp cinnamon

2 tbsp minced fresh rosemary

1 tsp minced thyme

4 cloves minced garlic

1 tbsp ketchup

2 1/2 cups broth (use more or less to adjust thickness as needed)

1 cup frozen peas

For the potato topping:

2 1/2 pound Yukon gold potatoes

1 tbsp butter

salt and pepper to taste

pinch of cayenne

1/4 cup cream cheese

1/4 pound Irish cheddar

1 egg yolk beaten with 2 tbsp milk

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

Place olive oil and butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Stir in onion and ground lamb; brown the meat, breaking it up into small crumbles as it cooks, for about 10 minutes.

Stir in flour until incorporated, then mix in salt, black pepper, rosemary, paprika, cinnamon, ketchup, and garlic; cook and stir until garlic is fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes.

Stir in water and scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the Dutch oven. Reduce heat to medium-low and bring mixture to a simmer; cook and stir until thick, about 5-6 minutes.

Remove lamb mixture from heat and stir in peas and carrots until combined.

Spread lamb mixture into the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish and set aside.

Place potatoes into a large pan of salted water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain well and return potatoes to pan.

Mash butter, cayenne pepper, cream cheese, and Irish cheese into the potatoes. Mash until combined and potatoes are smooth. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.

Whisk together egg yolk and milk in a small bowl; stir into the mashed potato mixture.

Top the lamb mixture in the baking dish with the mashed potatoes and spread evenly to cover.

Bake in the preheated oven until the top is golden brown and sauce is bubbling up around the edges, 25 to 30 minutes.