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.
It was amazing. My husband which is Irish said it is the BEST he has EVER had which includes in restaurants
I fell in love with shepherds pie when I went to England back in the early 1990s and have been looking for a good recipe ever since. Thank you so much this one is the best five stars, hands-down.
Well let’s just say my first attempt at Shepherds Pie du to this recipe was FABULOUS! Thank you
I chose this recipe because I had all the ingredients on hand and I’m overjoyed at how delicious it came out. It took me an hour and a half from start to finish though but so worth it. I followed it almost to the T. I had more veggies so I added more broth and put it in a 9×13. Having a shallow depth made me think I wouldn’t need to let the dish cool longer so I dug in and burnt my mouth anyway. Oh well! Thanks for sharing this recipe! I’ll make it again and again.
Made this for the second time last night. My boyfriend ate 3 servings!!! 2 at dinner and another at 2am ( he works late) love this!!! This will be on rotation menu for sure! 💖
My daughter requested shepherd’s pie so I searched for a recipe and yours caught my eye. I prepared the recipe as directed and it’s delicious! Full of flavor! I will make this my shepherds pie recipe from now on.
Literally so good! I made this for my family, and they all loved it. I would recommend putting a little extra cheese on the top right before putting it in the oven 🙂
Delicious and a crowd pleaser! I’ve made this Shepherds Pie twice now and it’s become my go-to recipe.
I never comment on recipes though I use them alot and rely on reviews. This is one of the best recipes I’ve ever used! My family wouldn’t stop talking about it and ate until their stomachs hurt. I double the recipe so we would have leftovers the next day. It’s 9:45 am and my husband just ate the last of it for breakfast. Wow just wow! Delicious!
Fabulous!
Can you make the meat filling ahead and freeze it? Sorry if this has already been asked but the comments aren’t loading.
This is an excellent recipe. It’s honest in its flavors. Top to bottom. Simple and absolutely delicious. Thanks for sharing 👍
Was absolutely delicious!!! Only ingredient I didn’t have was parsley.
Wow! Amazing recipe as written. Thanks for sharing.
It was delicious, I added half beef and half lamb. Sooo good…
This recipe was delicious! A friend of mine invited me over for dinner, and served your shepherds pie. I,I rated it as a five star winner! I have always enjoyed shepherds pie, but never had a good easy recipe as this one is.
Thank you for sharing.
Made exactly as written! Perfect!
Made this recipe.. followed instructions to a T. Made with beef. Loved it! Will make again.
Having trouble seeing comments… has anyone tried freezing this and then heating? Looking for a “freezer friendly “ meal.
Yes! I froze it in a glass baking dish. Thawed it out before baking. It tasted great!
I made this with lamb. Delicious and easy to make. Thank you for the easy to follow recipe.
Yes! I’ve frozen this recipe. It came out great! I usually double recipe & freeze one of them. I thaw in refrigerator overnight & bake as usual.
Bar none the best shepherds pie I have ever tasted, and easy to follow instructions.
Made the Sheppard pie for dinner tonight it was so delicious..thanks for the recipe
OMG, this recipe was delicious. I have a question though. My mashed potatos stayed runny on the top. What could I have done wrong. I followed the recipe exactly.
To avoid soggy potatoes. I use much less butter and for perhaps 3-4 minutes under the broiler crisps the top a bit at the end. Carful to watch the broiler part, every oven is different
Love this recipe!! My wife always get excited when I make it for us. Super easy, and also agree. If you have a cast iron pan, use that and keep it all in one dish for easy clean up!!
I’ve made this recipe 3 times – it always gets raves. But my prep time is about an hour, maybe I’m just slow!!!