Shepherd's Pie is a comfort food classic and I'm happy to share my favorite version with you! This version is made with ground beef and it's basically a whole meal in one pan!
Ingredients for Shepherd's Pie:
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- 2.5 pounds of ground beef
- 1 small yellow onion - chopped
- 4 large cloves of garlic - minced
- 1 teaspoon of fresh thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper
- 1 cup of frozen peas and carrots mix
- 2 tablespoons of corn starch
- 1 cup beef broth
- About 5 cups of mashed potatoes (you can use these GARLIC CREAM CHEESE MASHED POTATOES or refrigerated ones.)
- ½ cup of parmesan cheese (you can substitute any cheese you like!)
To make the shepherd's pie, you'll add the olive oil, meat, onion, garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper to the pan (make sure you use an oven safe pan) and cook until the meat is browned. This should only take about 10 minutes at most. I like to drain the fat off of my meat after this step but that's up to you. Just note that the dish might be a little greasy if you don't drain off the fat.
Next, you can add in the peas and carrots. You can add in any veggies you want but I just keep it simple! I've mixed in corn and green beans before too and it's great! After stirring in the veggies, the corn starch and beef broth go in. This ends up making a really great gravy!
Once you've cooked the beef broth for just a couple of minutes, you can top the meat mixture with the mashed potatoes. If you want to make homemade mashed potatoes, these garlic cream cheese potatoes are to die for!! If not, just use instant or refrigerated ones...I won't judge! If you do use store-bought mashed potatoes, you can always doctor them up with some butter and salt or even sour cream!
Top the shepherd's pie with cheese then take the pan straight from the stove top to a preheated 400 degree oven and bake for 30 minutes. If the top doesn't get as golden as you'd like, just set the oven to broil and watch closely for a couple of minutes.
Remove the shepherd's pie from the oven then let it rest for about 10 minutes before enjoying.
Can you make shepherd's pie ahead of time:
Yes! You can make the meat mixture and the mashed potatoes ahead of time. Assemble it in an oven proof dish, let it cool, then refrigerate for up to 3 days.
How to reheat shepherd's pie:
If you made this ahead and refrigerated it, you can bring it to room temperature then bake in the oven for 45 minutes at 400 degrees.
Shepherd's Pie
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2.5 pounds ground beef
- 1 small yellow onion - chopped (about ½ cup)
- 4 large cloves of garlic - minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper
- 1 cup frozen peas and carrots mix
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 cup beef broth concentrate
- about 5 cups mashed potatoes (homemade or instant is fine)
Instructions
- Pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees.
- If you are making homemade mashed potatoes, start those first then move along to the shepherd's pie. Click here to see my recipe for garlic cream cheese mashed potatoes.
- Heat a 12" oven-safe pan over medium high heat and add the olive oil, meat, onion, garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper to the pan and cook until the meat is browned.
- Add in the peas and carrots and stir to combine.
- Sprinkle the corn starch over the meat/veggie mixture and then stir until you see no more white. Then add in the beef broth and cook until it starts to bubble. (Just about 2 minutes)
- Top with the mashed potatoes. If you are using refrigerated or instant, just make sure to warm them first according to the package directions.
- Top the mashed potatoes with the parmesan cheese and place in the oven for 30 minutes.
- If you'd like the top to be browned more after the 30 minutes, just set the oven to broil and watch very carefully for just a couple of minutes.
- Let the shepherd's pie rest for 10 minutes before serving then enjoy!
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