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.
Excellent recipe. Easy to follow the instructions. I made it first time and it was worth it. Everyone enjoyed eating
Thank you so much. It is a month of Ramadhan and I was really happy to serve shepherd pie
I made this and it turned out to be the best I’ve ever made. The flavors were perfectly balanced, the filling was rich and hearty, and the mashed topping was smooth and golden. Definitely a new go-to recipe for me.
I haven’t made Shepard’s pie in a long time and my family decided they would like to have it for dinner. I found your recipe and it came out absolutely amazing.
Tried this last night instead of my usual recipe and it was so good! Rave reviews from my family. Using this recipe from now on.
Absolutely delicious! I’ve never been a huge fan of shepherd’s pie, but my husband loves it so I threw him a bone and found this recipe last night. I used ground venison and followed the recipe exactly. I’m now converted– will definitely make this one again. I would make one suggestion to add to the instructions: warm up your half and half and make sure the butter is room temperature. It makes a big difference in the consistency of the potatoes.
My family loves this recipe! I make it every month!
I have always hated shepherds pie. This recipe makes me love shepherds pie. The spices along with the tomato paste and Worcestershire sauce make for a tangy filling. The addition of garlic powder, half and Half and of course a stick of butter make the potato topping rich and tasty.
I have made this twice and it consistently comes out good.
Never would’ve thought to add Worcestershire sauce; AMAZING. Husband and I are hooked! (Won’t lie, I definitely cheated bc of time constraints and used instant potatoes – STILL the best Shepherds pie I’ve ever eaten!)
I made this for dinner for my family tonight and it was delicious. I made honey corn bread and put that as the bottom layer just to have something to soak up the meat layer. I will definitely be making this again.
Have made it twice. Used 1 cup of fresh, diced carrots sauteed with the onions. I added an extra tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce. Used 1 cup of green frozen peas and no corn. Delicious!!
This is absolutely wonderful. I return to it over and over. I make it with turkey.
This is absolutely delicious. I wouldn’t change a thing. It’s now my go to when I make a meal for another family.
Fantastic! Best I’ve ever had!!
What a delicious, savory, stick to your ribs dish! I made it exactly as written using beef and it is a real crowd pleaser just as it is, although it can be easily adapted to suit other tastes or ingredients that would be on hand and still enjoyed.
Prep time more like 35 min if using fresh carrots and parsley but well worth it. I added chopped celery as well.
Amazing taste and flavor!!! Reminds us of the Shepherds Pie we ate in an Irish Pub in Ulm, Germany last year. Yummy 😋
This was my first shepherd’s pie attempt. This recipe is amazing! The only difference is I used canned veggies instead of frozen, and I used instant mashed potatoes on top to save time. Substituted beef bone broth as that’s what I had on hand. Just delicious!
Would be lovely to know at what temp the shepherd’s pie should be baked.
Delicious receipt and super easy
Delish thanks