Shepherd’s Pie

Shepherd’s Pie is a comforting casserole that features a layer of flavorful ground beef and vegetables cooked in gravy, topped with mashed potatoes, and then baked together. This dish practically defines comforting classic home cooking.  

Don’t miss my comforting ground beef recipes like Stuffed Pepper Casserole, Picadillo, and amazing Beef Enchiladas Verde. 

Homemade Shepherd’s Pie

Shepherd’s Pie is another classic that was brought over to America from England. This dish originated from the English “cottage pie” which used finely minced beef combined with gravy, vegetables, and topped with mashed potatoes. “Shepherd’s Pie,” on the other hand, originally used minced lamb meat. 

Once the dish immigrated over to America, it transformed into the casserole-like dish we know today, where ground beef is used and cooked with vegetables and gravy. 

The layer of cooked beef with vegetables and gravy is topped with a layer of soft, fluffy mashed potatoes and baked until golden. The best part in my opinion is the golden crunch on top of potatoes and the crispy edges created around the casserole. There is so much flavor in those crispy edges from the combination of potatoes and meat soaked gravy, it’s just heavenly.

Besides being a wonderful, comforting dish it can easily be made ahead or time or even frozen for later. Shepherd’s Pie makes a great freezer meal.

Cooking Instructions

Shepherd’s Pie consists of two parts, the beef and vegetable layer and mashed potato layer. 

To make mashed potatoes:

Start by peeling your potatoes and cutting them in about 1 inch chunks. Cutting the potatoes will make it faster to cook and easier to mash. (If you want to leave skin on, make sure to wash potatoes well.)

Cook potatoes in a pot of water with a bay leaf. Season water with some salt and pepper. Cook potatoes over medium heat until potatoes are tender enough to be pierced with a fork.

Drain potatoes but save some cooking water. Add butter, heavy cream, about 1/4 cup of cooking water, garlic powder and salt. Mash potatoes until all lumps are broken and it’s smooth. If you need to, add another 1/4 cup or so of cooking water to reach desired consistency. Mashed potatoes should be soft enough to easily spread over the beef.

To make the beef:

Preheat a large (12-inch) cooking pan over medium heat. Sauté diced onions and carrots until softened and add minced garlic. Sauté until garlic is fragrant. 

Add ground beef and break it up into as many pieces as possible. Season the beef with some salt and pepper, cover and let it cook until browned about half way. Stir and break up as many lumps as possible. Add peas and corn, cover and cook for a few more minutes, until meat is browned. 

While meat is cooking, heat up beef broth and mix it with Worcestershire sauce and tomato paste. Set it aside.

Sprinkle flour over the beef and stir well until flour is evenly incorporated. 

Pour in beef stock mixture and stir it in carefully. Add herbs and taste to see if more salt and pepper is needed. Stir and cook for a few minutes, until the gravy is thickened. 

To assemble Shepherd’s Pie:

Preheat oven to 375° and lightly grease a 9×13 casserole dish.

Spread beef mixture evenly over the bottom of the casserole dish. Spoon mashed potatoes over the beef mixture and gently spread it over the top. 

Bake it for 30-35 minutes, until golden brown on the top. 

MAKE AHEAD TIP: Shepherd’s Pie can be made ahead of time. Prepare it up to the step of baking and instead of baking it, cover it air-tight with plastic wrap or aluminum foil. Put away into the refrigerator. When ready to bake, take off the cover and bake for 35-40 minutes. 

Storing Recommendations

You can easily store cooked Shepherd’s Pie in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Make sure that the dish is cooled to room temperature, cover it air-tight with plastic wrap, and place it in the refrigerator.  

Freezing Instructions

Shepherd’s pie can easily be frozen as well. If you are planning on freezing it, use 9×13 aluminum foil casserole pan to assemble the beef and potatoes. 

Cook mashed potatoes and beef per the recipe. Spread beef mixture evenly over the bottom of the aluminum foil casserole dish. Spoon mashed potatoes over the beef mixture and gently spread it over the top.

Cover the whole pan air-tight. I recommend double wrapping the pan with a layer of plastic wrap all around and then a layer of aluminum foil all around. Make it air-tight.

Label and place in the freezer. Stuffed shells can be frozen for up to 2 months. 

To cook frozen Shepherd’s Pie, you can either bake them frozen or let them thaw in the refrigerator overnight or up to 12 hours. 

If you are going to bake it frozen, take off the plastic wrap and cover the pan with a sheet of aluminum foil. Bake for 80 minutes. Take off the foil and bake for another 10 minutes or you can crisp the top under the broiler on low setting.

Thawed Shepherd’s Pie will take 35-40 minutes and it doesn’t need to be covered with aluminum foil.

Make It Gluten Free

Shepherd’s pie is actually a very easy dish to make gluten free because the only part that contains gluten is flour in the gravy. Gravy can just as easily be thickened with cornstarch or gluten free flour. 

To thicken the gravy in beef with gluten free flour, follow the recipe steps exactly and simply substitute regular all purpose flour for gluten free all purpose flour. 

If you would rather use cornstarch, it would need to be mixed with some cold broth fist, before adding it to the beef. Set aside about 1/4 cup of cold beef broth and mix it with 1 1/2 tbsp of cornstarch. Mix in the cornstarch mixture into the beef mixture after warm beef broth had been added. Gently stir and let it heat through and thicken.

Is Shepherd’s Pie Keto?

No, traditional Shepherd’s Pie that’s made with a mashed potato topping is not Keto diet friendly. Since Keto is a low-carb diet, it does not allow things like potatoes, rice, and pasta. To make Shepherd’s Pie Keto, you would need to substitute mashed potatoes for cauliflower “mashed potatoes.”

Another part of a traditional Shepherd’s Pie that is not Keto is flour used to thicken the gravy. To avoid using flour, you would need to use less broth as well. Don’t add broth or flour when cooking beef at all. 

More Comforting Recipes To Try

The Best Lasagna

Beef Stew

Awesome Chili Recipe

Pot Roast

Bolognese Sauce

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