Shepherd's Pie

Name: Shepherd's Pie
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 80 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: British
Ingredients: Ground lamb 500 g; Onion 1 piece; Carrot 2 piece; Frozen peas 100 g; Red wine 100 ml; Beef stock 200 ml; Worcestershire sauce 1 tbsp; Potatoes 800 g; Butter 3 tbsp; Milk 100 ml

Quick answer

Total time: 80 min
Level: Medium
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients: 10

About this dish

Lamb rather than beef sits under the mashed potato, and the filling is reduced with red wine, beef stock and Worcestershire until moist but no longer runny.

A loose filling lets the mash sink, and the two layers blur together on the plate. The wine gets a minute or two of hard boiling first so its sharp alcohol edge is gone. Potatoes mashed while hot with butter and milk spread without dry lumps, and sealing them right to the edges of the dish keeps the sauce underneath as it bubbles in the oven. Fork ridges across the top give the heat raised peaks to brown.

Ingredients

servings

IngredientAmount

Onion1 piece

Carrot2 piece

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Instructions

6 steps

1

Finely chop the onion and carrots, and cut the potatoes into large even pieces for boiling.

Preheat the oven to 200°C so it is fully hot when the assembled pie is ready.
2

Set a pan over medium-high heat, add 500 g ground lamb, and break it up as it browns.

When the surface turns brown, add the onion and carrots and cook until they start to soften.
3

Pour in 100 ml red wine and boil over high heat for 1 to 2 minutes to cook off the sharp alcohol aroma.

Add 200 ml beef stock and the Worcestershire sauce, then reduce the heat to low.
4

Add 100 g frozen peas and simmer the filling for 20 minutes.

Stir occasionally so the bottom does not catch, and stop when the mixture is moist but thick enough not to run.
5

Boil the potatoes until they are tender enough to break easily, then drain them well.

While still hot, mash with 3 tablespoons butter and 100 ml milk until smooth and creamy, without leaving dry lumps.
6

Spread the meat filling in a baking dish and cover it evenly with the mashed potato.

Drag a fork over the top to make ridges, then bake at 200°C for 25 minutes until the edges bubble and the top browns.