Meaty, succulent and completely satisfying, Cottage Pie is one of the best comfort foods. Though it requires some time at the stove, it is not very difficult to make.

Cottage Pie is often referred to as Shepherd’s Pie, but the correct term depends on what meat is used. Cottage Pies are typically made with beef, while Shepherd’s Pie is made with lamb.

Cottage and Shepherd’s Pies are thought to first been popular in the 18th century in Britain and Ireland and were often an affordable way to use leftovers. They also became more common as potatoes became more popular and well liked, prized for their taste and affordability.

Recipes for Cottage and Shepherd’s Pie typically start by either browning the meat or sauteing onions, carrots and garlic before adding the meat. We chose to begin the recipe by browning the meat as this flavor is more crucial to the dish. At several points in this recipe you also want to be careful to deglaze the pan and capture as much fond as you can for maximum flavor.

For veggies we have stuck to the classic carrot and pea combination, but you can easily customise this to your tastes, such as by adding celery or other flavours. You can also modify herbs to your taste. In this case we used fresh rosemary but thyme, oregano and others would also work.

We used Better Than Bouillon in this recipe to ramp up the beef taste. If you don’t have this you could instead add beef stock, or skip this step.

INGREDIENTS

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 pounds ground beef

1 yellow onion, diced

2-3 carrots, peeled and cut into small pieces

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon tomato Paste

1 tablespoon beef stock paste

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

I cup red wine

1/4 cup all purpose flour

Fresh rosemary

1 cup chicken stock

1 cup frozen peas

Salt and pepper to taste

FOR MASHED POTATO

1.5 pounds russet potatoes

4 tablespoons butter, melted

1/3 cup milk

1/3 cup sour cream

1/2 cup grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano

Another 1/4 cup grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano to top the dish

Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat the oil. Brown the ground beef and season with salt and pepper.
2. Add chopped onions and carrots and cook until soft, then add garlic.
3. Add tomato paste, beef stock and flour and stir through the beef mixture. Try to give the tomato paste and beef stock paste contact with the pan for extra flavour. Add Worcestershire sauce and stir into mixture
4. Add red wine and herbs and deglaze the pot, stirring until it has evaporated
5. Add the rosemary or other herbs and chicken stock and stir in and deglaze the pan as needed.
6. Add frozen peas and stir in. When the mixture is still moist, but not too liquid take it off the heat and let it cool.

MASHED POTATO

1. Cut the russet potatoes into pieces of around 1 inch and boil until soft. Remove them from the heat and mash.
2. Add melted butter, milk, sour cream, salt and pepper, and grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano to the potatoes and mix through.
3. Fill a baking dish with the meat mixture and then top with the masked potato. Top with additional Parmesan or Pecorino Romano Cheese.
4. Cook at 350F or 175C until the top is browned.
5. Let rest for around 15 mins then serve and enjoy!