The Best Classic Shepherd’s Pie – AKA Shepards Pie or Cottage Pie. Ground Beef (or lamb) with vegetables in a rich gravy, topped with cheesy mashed potatoes, and baked.
Shepherd’s Pie
So, this is how you spell it: Shepherd’s Pie. But, from doing a quick google search, it came to my attention that TONS of people think it’s Shepards Pie.
Irish Shepherd’s Pie
Traditional Irish Shepherd’s Pie would actually call for ground lamb. The difference between Shepherd’s Pie and Cottage Pie is the meat. Cottage Pie uses ground beef, while Shepherd’s Pie uses ground lamb.
I called this recipe Shepherd’s Pie. But, I wrote the recipe so that you could use ground beef or ground lamb.
I typically use ground beef because it is widely available. But, for a special occasion, like St. Patricks day, I would use ground lamb.
How To Make Shepherd’s Pie
(Note – The full printable recipe is at the bottom of this post)
- Sauté some chopped onions in olive oil.
- Add ground beef or ground lamb.
- Add dried parsley, dried thyme, dried rosemary, salt, and pepper.
- Stir and cook the meat mixture until the meat is browned.
- Add minced garlic and Worcestershire sauce.
- Cook the garlic for a minute.
- Add flour and tomato paste.
- Add beef broth, frozen mixed peas and carrots, and frozen corn kernels.
- Simmer the meat gravy until it is thick.
- Boil some peeled and chopped potatoes until they are soft.
- Drain the potatoes
- Add butter, half & half, parmesan cheese, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
- Mash the potatoes until smooth.
- Pour the meat mixture into a casserole dish.
- Top it with the cheesy mashed potatoes.
- Bake until the meat is bubbling and the potatoes are golden.
Easy Shepherd’s Pie
Making the best Shepherd’s Pie is not difficult. But, there are a few steps to it. You have to make the meat mixture, the mashed potatoes, assemble the casserole, and bake it.
I find that the easiest way to make this dish is to work ahead. You could make the beef or lamb mixture ahead of time. Or, you could make the mashed potatoes ahead of time.
You could also make the whole recipe ahead of time. Just assemble the casserole, cover the dish, and keep it in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake it. I find it is best to bake it within 3 days of preparing it.
When you are ready to bake it, take it out of the refrigerator for about 20 minutes before you need to bake it to let it start coming to room temperature. Uncover it, and bake.
What to serve with The Best Shepherd’s Pie
- Deviled Eggs
- Roasted Broccoli from Skinnytaste
- The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies
Watch the Video for the Best Classic Shepherd’s Pie Below.
Find more of my recipes on TikTok
Best Classic Shepherd’s Pie Recipe
Video
Ingredients
Meat Filling:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup chopped yellow onion
- 1 lb. 90% lean ground beef -or ground lamb
- 2 teaspoons dried parsley leaves
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary leaves
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 garlic cloves -minced
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 cup beef broth
- 1 cup frozen mixed peas & carrots*
- 1/2 cup frozen corn kernels
Potato Topping:
- 1 ½ - 2 lb. russet potatoes -about 2 large potatoes peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter -1 stick
- 1/3 cup half & half
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
Instructions
Make the Meat Filling.
- Add the oil to a large skillet and place it over medium-high heat for 2 minutes. Add the onions. Cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the ground beef (or ground lamb) to the skillet and break it apart with a wooden spoon. Add the parsley, rosemary, thyme, salt, and and pepper. Stir well. Cook for 6-8 minutes, until the meat is browned, stirring occasionally.
- Add the Worcestershire sauce and garlic. Stir to combine. Cook for 1 minute.
- Add the flour and tomato paste. Stir until well incorporated and no clumps of tomato paste remain.
- Add the broth, frozen peas and carrots, and frozen corn. Bring the liquid to a boil then reduce to simmer. Simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Set the meat mixture aside. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Make the potato topping.
- Place the potatoes in a large pot. Cover the potatoes with water. Bring the water to a boil. Reduce to a simmer. Cook until potatoes are fork tender, 10-15 minutes.
- Drain the potatoes in a colander. Return the potatoes to the hot pot. Let the potatoes rest in the hot pot for 1 minute to evaporate any remaining liquid.
- Add butter, half & half, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Mash the potatoes and stir until all the ingredients are mixed together.
- Add the parmesan cheese to the potatoes. Stir until well combined.
Assemble the casserole.
- Pour the meat mixture into a 9x9 (or 7x11) inch baking dish. Spread it out into an even layer. Spoon the mashed potatoes on top of the meat. Carefully spread into an even layer.
- If the baking dish looks very full, place it on a rimmed baking sheet so that the filling doesn’t bubble over into your oven. Bake uncovered for 25-30 minutes.** Cool for 15 minutes before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Check out all of my great ground beef recipes.
Nevermind..I didn’t see where you mixed the veggies with the beef. Mom layered it separately but we really enjoyed it! Thanks for the recipe ☺️
You forgot to say layer meat mixture,” then veges,”, then potatoes
This was my first time trying to make a shepherd’s pie and it came out perfectly! Full of flavor and great aroma wafting through the air! I used ground turkey and chicken broth instead of beef. It was yumlicious! I had to make it two days in a row as it didn’t survive long in my house with my husband! Once he got his cornbread it was over!!! LOL
Made this tonight and it was delicious!!! Very flavorful. I will double the recipe next time so we can have leftovers.
Great and easy to make
This was easy and amazing, thank you! I cheated this round and used pre-made mashed potatoes (no judgment!), but next time I’m going to try the potato mixture. 😎
Brilliant. Perfect. Scrumptious. Heavenly. Comforting.
Definitely 5 stars for at least 5 adjectives that do not even come close to how much I love this dish and recipe.
When I make Shepherds Pie, this is the only recipe I use.
I only use lamb in my pies because I really think it pairs perfectly with the other ingredients and the flavor of the lamb brings the whole dish together.
Simply wonderful.
Delicious! 😋
So delicious! My first time making a Shepherd’s Pie and I was not disappointed.
Wowww! Go ahead & make a double or triple recipe…cause it’s soooo good. Gourmet shepherds pie…and I’m a tough critic!
I make this a lot but I use tater tots on top. Delicious!
It was easy to make. We enjoyed it.
This is my third attempt at shepherds pie, always with lamb, and by far the best. Thank you.
This Shepard’s Pie was awesome!!! Thank you.
Absolutely delicious. Totally authentic and the whole family loved it.
I’ll make it with minced lamb tomorrow evening but I already like it!!
Love this! The spice blend makes it so rich! I always add a bit of fish sauce anytime I use Worcestershire sauce to add some umami.
Can I use freeze dried peas instead of frozen
So, so, so delicious!!!!
Delicous pie, just a few things I omitted in the potato mixture- the cheese and the garlic powder.
I also did not add rosemary in the meat mixture, either.
I did find that 2 large potatoes were not enough, next time I will boil 3, I used a 9×9 non stick square pan.
I baked it at 350 for 40 minutes
Maybe if you followed the recipe you too would be able to see why everyone rates it 5 stars except for you.
I’m just curious how one can objectively rate a recipe for taste when the recipe was not followed when making the dish.
Of course your resulting dish did not taste as good. But that is not the fault of the recipe, but rather you.
Perhaps the recipe should be rated 5 stars and give yourself 4 for your cooking.
Love this recipe. The meat is seasoned perfectly. Made for the freezer, and baked from frozen at 350F for 90mins.
This is a recipe I return to often! I’ve made with cauliflower mash on top in place of potatoes and I’ve made it with a mix of potato and cauliflower. Trying to sneak in more veggies. Love this recipe.
The only recipe I use for Shepherds Pie. Our family go to for a comfort meal. Five stars!! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. One thing I add when I want an extreme boost of flavor is a splash of Pikkapeppa sauce to my bowl.
This was so good! I added a little more seasoning, and cheese on top. I think ill add a little more tomato paste next time but that’s just because i enjoy the flavor more than some
This is a terrific recipe! Easy to put together — Excellent results!
As a registered dietitian, I balked at the amount of butter and cream but after considering the serving size, I give it a thumbs up! 🙂
Give it a try, you will be happy you did
Awesome recipe my whole family loves it