Recipe: Shepherd’s Pie

As you all know I’m not brilliant in the kitchen but there are two things I’m pretty good at cooking; Slow Cooker Lamb Curry and Shepherd’s Pie.  I know you purists will be screaming ‘it’s not a Shepherd’s Pie it’s a Cottage Pie’ as it is made with beef.   Luckily, I can’t hear you!

The key to the success of this Shepherd’s pie recipe is in the layering and my special ingredient, Heinz Tomato Ketchup.  It’s fairly easy to make, but I do find I end up using every pot in the house.  As I’m lazy, I tend to use my food processor for all the mashing  but you could do it with a manual masher and you’ll save on the washing up as well.

Ingredients

6-8 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed

1 large TBSP of butter

1 Onion finely chopped

60 g of Cheddar cheese grated

Salt and pepper to taste

4-6 large carrots, chopped

2 tbsp of vegetable oil

455 g of ground beef

2 TBSP of flour

2 TBSP of Heinz Tomato Ketchup, (the secret ingredient), I tend to free pour and eye-ball it.

180 ml of beef broth

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C)
  2. Boil the potatoes for approximately 20-30 min until you can piece them with a fork easily.  Drain and set aside ready for mashing.  I tend to leave them in the colander with a towel over them to absorb excess moisture.
  3. At the same time, steam or boil the carrots for approx 20 minutes until tender. Drain and set aside.
  4. While everything is boiling you can start on cooking the mince.  Put the oil in a frying pan and add ¾ of the onion.  Cook for approx 3 min or until clear.  Add the mince and cook until brown.  If you’ve used cheap and nasty mince drain off some of the excess fat.  Sprinkle the flour over the mince and stir well for about a minute.  Add the ketchup and beef broth, mix well, bring to a boil and then simmer for 5 minutes.
  5. Transfer mince to an oven proof dish.  Now mash the carrots and spread a layer on top of the beef.  Mash the potatoes, with the butter, ½ of the cheese and the remaining onion and spread on top of mashed carrots and top with the remaining cheese.
  6. Bake in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown.  I tend to serve it with frozen peas.  I do cook them first!  Or you could serve it with baked beans

Author: mediocremum

A slightly older mum of one, who drinks far too much red wine and has an unhealthy obsession with her slow cooker. During the day she's an ICT Trainer, Social Media/Online Marketing consultant and does a bit of public speaking. Full Profile on Google+

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