Description
This classic Shepherd’s Pie recipe is the ultimate comfort food, featuring a savory ground beef and mixed vegetable filling topped with creamy mashed potatoes, all baked to golden perfection. It’s a hearty American dinner casserole that will satisfy your cravings.
Ingredients
Scale
Ingredients for mashed potato topping:
- 2 pounds potatoes (peeled and cut into big chunks)
- 4 tablespoons butter (half a stick)
- ¼ cup sour cream
- ¼ to ½ cup milk
- Salt and pepper to taste
Ingredients for filling:
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 small onion (diced)
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 2 cups frozen peas, carrots, and corn medley
- 2 tablespoons flour
- ½ cup beef broth
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon rosemary
- ½ teaspoon thyme
- 1 bay leaf
Instructions
- Preheat oven: Preheat your oven to 350°F to prepare for baking the casserole.
- Cook potatoes: Boil the peeled and chunked potatoes in water until they are fork tender, then drain the water completely.
- Mash potatoes: Add butter, sour cream, milk, salt, and pepper to the drained potatoes, then mash with a hand masher or mixer until smooth and creamy. Set aside.
- Brown beef and aromatics: In a large skillet, brown the ground beef over medium heat along with diced onions and minced garlic. Drain any excess grease to keep the filling from being too oily.
- Cook vegetables: Add the frozen vegetable medley to the skillet with the beef and cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally to heat through.
- Thicken filling: Sprinkle flour over the meat and vegetables, stirring well to coat everything evenly.
- Add flavorings: Stir in tomato paste, then add beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, rosemary, thyme, and bay leaf. Bring the mixture to a simmer, then reduce heat to low and cook uncovered for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally and adding broth if needed to keep it moist.
- Assemble the pie: Remove the bay leaf and spread the meat and vegetable mixture evenly in a 9×13-inch casserole dish sprayed with nonstick spray.
- Top with mashed potatoes: Layer the mashed potatoes on top of the meat filling evenly. Optionally, pipe the potatoes decoratively or spread them with a spoon and create ridges with a fork to help them brown nicely.
- Bake: Place the casserole in the preheated oven and bake for 30 minutes until bubbly and golden brown on top.
- Optional broiling: For extra browning, you can place the pie under the broiler for a few minutes at the end of baking.
Notes
- Allow the meat filling to cool for about 20 minutes in the casserole dish before layering the mashed potatoes to prevent sinking.
- You can pipe the mashed potatoes for a decorative look or simply spread and texture with a fork to create browning ridges.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: Dinner, Dinner Casserole
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: Shepherd’s Pie, Comfort Food, Mashed Potatoes, Ground Beef Casserole, American Dinner
