What's your best Shepherd's Pie Recipe?
October 5, 2018 10:09 AM Subscribe
I make a very good Shepherd's Pie (although it's really a Cottage Pie because I mostly use beef mince, but that's beside the point!) but it's in need of an update or a change, so I'm wondering - what are your Shepherd's Pie secrets?
I have some cool tricks up my sleeve in actual fact. I'm English so I tend to add Marmite to the beef mince mixture to give it a cool umami buzz, and I also add horseradish to my buttery mashed potato topping which helps give a nice spicy kick.
I do all the usual things; start with an onion, celery, carrot, garlic base. Once seasoned and sweated I'll usually add tomato paste and beef broth and fresh herbs. There's always a dash of worcestershire sauce involved. But - I need to do something different.
What are your favourite recipes for this very basic meal, and what makes it special??
I have some cool tricks up my sleeve in actual fact. I'm English so I tend to add Marmite to the beef mince mixture to give it a cool umami buzz, and I also add horseradish to my buttery mashed potato topping which helps give a nice spicy kick.
I do all the usual things; start with an onion, celery, carrot, garlic base. Once seasoned and sweated I'll usually add tomato paste and beef broth and fresh herbs. There's always a dash of worcestershire sauce involved. But - I need to do something different.
What are your favourite recipes for this very basic meal, and what makes it special??
Dark beer in the base. Cream cheese or sour cream mixed into the potatoes, sometimes garlic as as well. Swapping out carrots for parsnips (or use both!) Adding different herbs like thyme, sage, or rosemary.
posted by ananci at 10:17 AM on October 5, 2018 [6 favorites]
posted by ananci at 10:17 AM on October 5, 2018 [6 favorites]
I can't find a single recipe with it now, but I could have swore there was a traditional variation with fennel mixed with the mashed potatoes, as opposed to (or instead of) it being only in the meat.
posted by rhizome at 10:18 AM on October 5, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by rhizome at 10:18 AM on October 5, 2018 [2 favorites]
Star anise with beef works quite well. Dried mushrooms would be an alternative to marmite or Worcestershire sauce for umami. Black garlic in the mince would be good. Red wine? Sherry?
I once made a shepherd’s pie topped with slices of crusty grainy bread instead of potatoes, which I thought was reasonably successful—the top got brown and crunchy and the bread soaked up meaty juices underneath. Like a sort of savoury bread pudding.
posted by Bloxworth Snout at 10:29 AM on October 5, 2018 [2 favorites]
I once made a shepherd’s pie topped with slices of crusty grainy bread instead of potatoes, which I thought was reasonably successful—the top got brown and crunchy and the bread soaked up meaty juices underneath. Like a sort of savoury bread pudding.
posted by Bloxworth Snout at 10:29 AM on October 5, 2018 [2 favorites]
Doing the mash with half celery root is also nice.
posted by neroli at 10:30 AM on October 5, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by neroli at 10:30 AM on October 5, 2018 [3 favorites]
mash with half celery root
Ooh, that might be what I was thinking of!
Fennel, celery root...they're next to each other in the grocery store.
posted by rhizome at 10:33 AM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
Ooh, that might be what I was thinking of!
Fennel, celery root...they're next to each other in the grocery store.
posted by rhizome at 10:33 AM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
add a packet of unflavored bloomed gelatin to your mince/sauce combo for extra rich texture.
posted by Exceptional_Hubris at 10:33 AM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by Exceptional_Hubris at 10:33 AM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
rhizome: epony-sorta-cal!
posted by wellred at 10:36 AM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by wellred at 10:36 AM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
Mine is not so fancy, but we do like a can of creamed corn in the base rather than gravy. And HP
I often do a mix of sweet potato and potato mash.
posted by Ftsqg at 11:08 AM on October 5, 2018
I often do a mix of sweet potato and potato mash.
posted by Ftsqg at 11:08 AM on October 5, 2018
Dark beer in the base. Cream cheese or sour cream mixed into the potatoes
Yeah, I use Guinness in the gravy/base, cheddar in the potatoes. I add mushrooms in with the meat & veg - they soak in the sauce nicely and become good flavor bombs. Also peas for a pop of color and sweetness. My mom used to add chopped green beans too.
posted by dnash at 11:50 AM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
Yeah, I use Guinness in the gravy/base, cheddar in the potatoes. I add mushrooms in with the meat & veg - they soak in the sauce nicely and become good flavor bombs. Also peas for a pop of color and sweetness. My mom used to add chopped green beans too.
posted by dnash at 11:50 AM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
I love shepherds pie, and I can't really see any reason to improve it, but the other day at work, we had bobotie, a South African dish which is a bit like a curried shepherds pie. It was delicious.
posted by mumimor at 11:54 AM on October 5, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by mumimor at 11:54 AM on October 5, 2018 [3 favorites]
I make taco beef with the mince, lots of chili powder, salt and a little bit of flour to make gravy. Tacos, yay! The next night, the remaining beef is used in shepherd's cottage pie. Layer of corn - 1 can corn & 1 can creamed corn, some jalapeno, then the mashed potatoes, made with beef broth as I don't eat dairy. For those who do, I top it with shredded jack cheese.
posted by theora55 at 11:58 AM on October 5, 2018
posted by theora55 at 11:58 AM on October 5, 2018
- Sliced gherkins on top of the meat mixture, before the mash*.
- Slices of tomato on top of the mash then grate (lots of) cheese.
* Celeriac as others have mentioned but parsnip is great too, as is cauliflower mash (boil the florets and the green leafy part of the leaves and mash as you would potato). Lower carbs too.
posted by humph at 11:59 AM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
- Slices of tomato on top of the mash then grate (lots of) cheese.
* Celeriac as others have mentioned but parsnip is great too, as is cauliflower mash (boil the florets and the green leafy part of the leaves and mash as you would potato). Lower carbs too.
posted by humph at 11:59 AM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
I make a variation sometimes that is 50/50 beef and chorizo, and it works surprisingly well. I also use cauliflower puree for the top instead of potato.
posted by baseballpajamas at 12:09 PM on October 5, 2018
posted by baseballpajamas at 12:09 PM on October 5, 2018
I boil the potatoes with garlic cloves in it and then mash them in. I often add mushrooms to get that umami flavour of which you speak.
posted by terrapin at 12:27 PM on October 5, 2018
posted by terrapin at 12:27 PM on October 5, 2018
If you’re looking for something different/non-traditional, this Moroccan shepherd’s pie recipe is amazing and delicious.
posted by Weeping_angel at 12:44 PM on October 5, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by Weeping_angel at 12:44 PM on October 5, 2018 [3 favorites]
I add a bunch of gravy into the ground beef when assembling the pie. I'll also sometimes add chunks of really good raw steak (usually ribsteak) into the beef , that then gets cooked when you bake the pie. The steak chunks end up very juicy and tender. I'll also top the potatoes with a mixture of grated cheese and panko for a nice crunchy crust. My dad loooooves shepard's pie so I've been refining my recipe - lots of good ideas in this thread! Once n a while I'll make him a gift; I'll get a bunch of little loaf pans and whip up a huge batch of pies that I'll then freeze and give to him along with a bunch of knorr gravy packets.
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 12:50 PM on October 5, 2018
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 12:50 PM on October 5, 2018
Weeping_angel's mention of Moroccan reminded me of this Lebanese dish I made after seeing it on a TV show. (Sara's Weeknight Meals on PBS.)
You slice an eggplant, layer the slices around the bottom of a baking dish with olive oil and bake til browned, about 45 min. While that's cooking, you fry up onions with garlic and spices, then add ground meat (beef and/or lamb). Assemble by adding the meat on top of the eggplant, then lay slices of tomato over that, then spread over a tahini sauce (tahini, lemon juice, olive oil, and cold water). Sprinkle with pine nuts or slivered almonds and bake aabout 15-20 minutes til it all comes together.
(Although in practice I found the tomatoes added a lot of water to the dish in that final cooking - maybe instead of layering them on top raw in slices, chop them up and cook them into the meat.)
This in turn also reminds me of Nigella Lawson's beef and eggplant Fatteh - which more like a platter of Middle Eastern loaded nachos than Shepherd's Pie, but it hits a lot of the same notes of "yummy minced meat and veg with sauce, layered with a carb."
posted by dnash at 1:17 PM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
You slice an eggplant, layer the slices around the bottom of a baking dish with olive oil and bake til browned, about 45 min. While that's cooking, you fry up onions with garlic and spices, then add ground meat (beef and/or lamb). Assemble by adding the meat on top of the eggplant, then lay slices of tomato over that, then spread over a tahini sauce (tahini, lemon juice, olive oil, and cold water). Sprinkle with pine nuts or slivered almonds and bake aabout 15-20 minutes til it all comes together.
(Although in practice I found the tomatoes added a lot of water to the dish in that final cooking - maybe instead of layering them on top raw in slices, chop them up and cook them into the meat.)
This in turn also reminds me of Nigella Lawson's beef and eggplant Fatteh - which more like a platter of Middle Eastern loaded nachos than Shepherd's Pie, but it hits a lot of the same notes of "yummy minced meat and veg with sauce, layered with a carb."
posted by dnash at 1:17 PM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
We shred some good cheddar over top the mashed potatoes before baking. Gets nice and bubbly.
posted by fancyoats at 1:18 PM on October 5, 2018
posted by fancyoats at 1:18 PM on October 5, 2018
Seconding Worcestershire sauce - that’s was my mum’s secret ingredient!
posted by atlantica at 1:25 PM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by atlantica at 1:25 PM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
Instead of mince, chunks of good quality beef. Red wine in the gravy. Sour cream and/or chives in the potatoes. Definitely cheese on top, nice mature cheddar or maybe red Leicester.
Now I wish I could be your guinea pig.
posted by Athanassiel at 1:32 PM on October 5, 2018 [2 favorites]
Now I wish I could be your guinea pig.
posted by Athanassiel at 1:32 PM on October 5, 2018 [2 favorites]
I make a masala shepherd's pie - shepherd's pie with a desi twist! This is a mash-up of two recipes found online - I use this mince recipe and this recipe for the mashed potato topping (except skipping the parsnip and using 500g of potato instead).
posted by Ziggy500 at 2:54 PM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by Ziggy500 at 2:54 PM on October 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
Seconding Henderson’s Relish and a glass of strong red wine for the sauce. I grate nutmeg in with the mash along with a handful of extra mature cheddar mixed in (not just on top).
posted by freya_lamb at 5:31 PM on October 5, 2018
posted by freya_lamb at 5:31 PM on October 5, 2018
This might be too plain for you if you already have your own tricks, but I love the Serious Eats recipe for Shepherds Pie (also technically Cottage Pie). It is delicious and a solid representation of the dish. I usually make half the recipe and still have plenty, but it depends on how many you’re cooking for/if you want to freeze any portions.
posted by carlypennylane at 8:20 PM on October 5, 2018
posted by carlypennylane at 8:20 PM on October 5, 2018
Add some white beans to the meat mixture after it's cooked.
posted by never.was.and.never.will.be. at 9:30 PM on October 5, 2018
posted by never.was.and.never.will.be. at 9:30 PM on October 5, 2018
Egg and/or egg yolk mixed in the potatoes to give it some structure and body and help with browning. Marmite in the meat is good; red wine works, too. I toss a bit of flour on the veggies after cooking and before adding the meat to help it thicken up nicely.
posted by devinemissk at 6:15 AM on October 6, 2018
posted by devinemissk at 6:15 AM on October 6, 2018
A little A1 sauce and/or dijon in the meat is tasty. Also, caramelizing the onions and roasting the other veg (quickly on high heat, to get them colored but not dried out) makes for a nice hearty flavor.
posted by Grandysaur at 11:50 PM on October 6, 2018
posted by Grandysaur at 11:50 PM on October 6, 2018
I'm very late with this, but nobody's suggested it, so: another way to get that umami kick in a cottage pie (or anything involving beef mince) is to stir a tin of anchovies into the mince. The stirring breaks the anchovies up, and they seem to disappear completely in the course of cooking - you don't end up with startling mouthfuls of anchovy in the finished dish, just a delicious savoury flavour.
posted by ManyLeggedCreature at 5:40 AM on November 1, 2018
posted by ManyLeggedCreature at 5:40 AM on November 1, 2018
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Also, you could try a dash of fish sauce (the good kind) for a twist on the umami.
posted by heigh-hothederryo at 10:16 AM on October 5, 2018 [2 favorites]