Shepherd’s Pie
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This shepherd’s pie recipe is cozy, crowd-pleasing, and just the thing to make when you’re craving something hearty and homemade.
Shepherd’s pie is the ultimate comfort food—creamy mashed potatoes piled on top of a rich, savory stew. It hails from the UK and Ireland and was originally made with leftover lamb stew, but here in the U.S., it’s usually made with ground beef (technically cottage pie, but most of us still call it shepherd’s pie).
In this version, you’ll start by making a batch of buttery mashed potatoes with a little sour cream for extra tang and richness. Then you’ll cook up a hearty ground beef and veggie stew with bacon and a splash of wine for depth. You can spoon the potatoes right over the filling in the skillet to keep things simple (easy clean-up!), or assemble the layers in a baking dish if you want to serve it more casserole-style.
“This is comfort food at its best! The meat mixture with the bacon was incredible. It takes a bit of prep time, but was a wonderful Sunday project (and worth the effort)!”
What You’ll Need To Make Shepherd’s Pie
- Ground Beef: The hearty base of the filling. Using extra-lean beef keeps things lighter and saves you the step of draining off fat. Ground lamb is the traditional choice for Shepherd’s pie and would work beautifully here as well. For a lighter version, you can substitute ground chicken or turkey. When using meats other than beef, you can omit the step of tenderizing with baking soda.
- Baking Soda: Helps tenderize the meat so it stays juicy and tender as it cooks.
- Russet Potatoes: These starchy spuds make the best mashed potato topping—light, fluffy, and perfect for soaking up the gravy.
- Sour cream, butter, and half & half: The combination of these makes the mashed potatoes extra rich, creamy, and flavorful.
- Bacon: Adds a smoky depth and heartiness to the filling.
- Onions and Garlic: Build the savory base of the filling.
- Carrots and Frozen Peas: Add color, sweetness, and some veggies to balance out the richness of the other ingredients.
- Red Wine: Brings bold, complex flavor to the sauce. Any dry red wine will work—use one you’d be happy to drink.
- All-purpose flour: Thickens the filling, ensuring it’s hearty and not too liquidy.
- Tomato Paste: Adds richness and a concentrated tomato flavor to the meat mixture.
- Worcestershire sauce: A splash adds a tangy, meaty depth of flavor.
- Chicken Broth: Keeps the filling saucy and adds more savory flavor without weighing things down. I use chicken broth as that’s what I typically have in my cupboard, but beef broth works just as well.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Tenderize the beef. In a medium bowl, combine the ground beef, baking soda, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1 tablespoon of water. Mash with your hand to mix, then let sit for 20 minutes. This quick step raises the pH of the meat, which helps it stay juicy and tender as it cooks.
Step 2: Boil and prep the potatoes. While the beef rests, place the potatoes in a medium saucepan and cover with cold water. (Starting the potatoes in cold water helps them cook evenly from the inside out.) Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until fork-tender, about 10 minutes. Drain, return the potatoes to the pan, and cook over medium heat stirring them with a wooden spoon or potato masher until they are dry and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
Pro tip: Drying the potatoes in the pan removes excess moisture, which gives you a fluffier, creamier mash with better structure for topping the pie.
Step 3: Mash the potatoes. Off the heat, add the sour cream, butter, half & half, and remaining teaspoon of salt. Adding the dairy ingredients off the heat keeps it from curdling and helps maintain a smooth texture. Mash until smooth and creamy, then taste and adjust the seasoning as needed. Set aside.
Step 4: Cook the bacon. In a large oven-safe skillet over medium heat, cook the bacon until crisp, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate, leaving the fat in the pan. Those bacon drippings add a ton of flavor to the base of the filling.
Step 5: Cook the veggies. Add the onions and carrots and cook until soft and starting to brown, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook another minute. Letting the vegetables brown slightly builds flavor and adds sweetness; adding garlic after the onions and carrots keeps it from burning and turning bitter.
Step 6: Add and reduce the wine: Pour in the wine, turn the heat to high, and boil until reduced by half, scraping up any browned bits. The browned bits (called fond) add flavor and depth to the sauce.
Step 7: Add the flour. Stir in the flour until dissolved. Make sure to stir it thoroughly to prevent lumps later on. The flour adds body to the sauce; cooking it briefly removes any raw flour taste.
Step 8: Add the ground beef and flavoring. Add the beef mixture, tomato paste, and Worcestershire sauce to the skillet.
Step 9: Cook ground beef mixture and add broth. Cook, breaking the meat up with a spoon, until no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken broth and simmer until thickened, 2 minutes more, scraping the pan as needed.
Step 10: Add remaining ingredients. Stir in the thyme, pepper, peas, and cooked bacon. Cook just until the peas are warmed through. (Adding peas at the end keeps them bright and tender, not mushy.)
Step 11: Top the ground beef mixture with potatoes. Drop spoonfuls of mashed potatoes over the filling. Dotting the top with spoonfuls first makes it easier to spread without disturbing the filling underneath.
Step 12: Spread the potatoes. Use a rubber spatula to spread the potatoes into an even layer, all the way to the edges. (Spreading all the way to the edges helps seal in the filling and prevents bubbling over.) Drag a fork across the top to create ridges.
Step 13: Bake. Place the skillet on a baking sheet to catch any drips and bake at 400°F until hot and bubbling, about 30 minutes. For a more golden top, pop under the broiler and broil for the last 5 minutes (just keep a close eye on it to prevent it from burning).
Sprinkle with chives and serve. Shepherd’s pie can be made ahead—just prep the stew in advance and store it in the fridge. For best texture, make the mashed potatoes fresh before baking.
Shepherd’s Pie Video Tutorial
More Hearty Dishes You May Like
Shepherd's Pie
This shepherd’s pie recipe delivers big, cozy flavor with rich beef and creamy potatoes in every bite.
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds 90% lean ground beef
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons salt, divided
- 2½ pounds russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1-in chunks
- ¼ cup half & half
- 4 oz bacon, diced (about 3 slices thick-cut bacon)
- 2 medium yellow onions, diced
- 2 carrots, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup red wine
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1½ cups chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup frozen peas
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped chives
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F and set an oven rack in the middle position.
- Place the beef, baking soda, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and 1 tablespoon of water in a medium bowl. Mash with your hand to combine. Set aside for 20 minutes.
- While the meat tenderizes, place the potatoes in medium saucepan and add just enough cold water to cover them. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until the potatoes are soft and fork-tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain the potatoes and return to the saucepan. Place the pan over medium heat and stir the potatoes with a wooden spoon or potato masher until they are dry and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and add the sour cream, butter, half & half, and the remaining teaspoon of salt. Using a potato masher, stir and mash the potatoes with the other ingredients until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary. Set the mashed potatoes aside.
- Heat a 12-in oven-proof skillet over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring frequently, until crisp, 6 to 8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate, leaving the fat in the pan. Add the onions and carrots to the bacon fat and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and starting to brown, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more. Add the wine and increase the heat to high; bring to a boil, scraping any brown bits from the bottom of the pan, until the liquid is reduced by about half. Add the flour and stir until dissolved. Add the reserved ground beef mixture, tomato paste, and Worcestershire sauce; continue cooking on high heat, breaking the meat apart with a spoon, until the meat is no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken broth; bring to a simmer, reduce the heat to low, and cook, scraping any brown bits from the bottom of the pan, until thickened, about 2 minutes. Stir in the thyme, pepper, peas, and reserved bacon, and cook until the peas are warmed through. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary.
- Dollop the mashed potatoes evenly over the filling. Use a rubber or offset spatula to spread the potatoes evenly over the stew and all the way to the edges of the skillet. Drag a fork across the top to make ridges. Place the skillet on a baking sheet or large sheet of foil to catch any drips and bake until the filling is hot, the topping is lightly browned, and the edges are bubbly, about 30 minutes. (For more color, turn on the broiler and broil for the last 5 minutes, or until the top is golden.) Sprinkle with chives and serve.
- Make-Ahead Instructions: The stew portion of the recipe can be made several days ahead of time and refrigerated. Before assembling the pie, reheat the stew, adding a little broth if necessary if it seems dry. The mashed potatoes should be made right before assembling and baking the pie.
- Note: If you don’t have an oven-safe skillet, you can transfer the meat mixture to a 2.5-qt casserole dish and then spread the mashed potatoes overtop.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 650
- Fat: 33 g
- Saturated fat: 15 g
- Carbohydrates: 50 g
- Sugar: 7 g
- Fiber: 5 g
- Protein: 33 g
- Sodium: 1243 mg
- Cholesterol: 122 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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I made a vegan version of this for our Christmas dinner this year and it was seriously the best dinner ever!!!
I used ‘impossible burger’ meat instead of the ground beef. Omitted the bacon, and added chopped celery–and used non dairy subs in the mashed potatoes. Everybody (including meat eaters) loved it.
Thanks for another great recipe.
Thank you for a great recipe! It was so delicious! I used white wine because I am not a fan of red wine and it was terrific!
Jenn,
So glad I stumbled upon your lexicon. I love cooking with my kids and your site has given us a lot of new dishes & memories. Questions/comments:
1. Do you have a preferred cooking wine for shepherd’s pie? I used Malbec, had a great flavor but curious what your choice is.
2. I grabbed ground sirloin by accident, made for slightly chewy texture. Won’t make that mistake again.
3. Considering adding a dash of cumin. Thoughts?
Thanks in advance.
Hi Kyle, glad you found the blog as well! Regarding the cooking wine, you can use any dry red – Merlot, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Red Zinfandel, etc. – that you have in the house. Don’t use anything too pricey — when using wine for cooking, something inexpensive (but still good enough to drink) is ideal. And cumin sounds like an unusual addition, but if you just use a little, I think it’s fine. Hope that helps!
Outstanding recipe, to say the least…now I’m sitting here trying to figure out how to convert it for 8 ! Wish there was a simple (??) button to push. Thanks again for ALL your 5 Star recipes.
Hi Don, So glad you like it! For 8, I would double the recipe (you may have some leftovers). 🙂
thanks…will do !
We loved this recipe, as most we try from your blog.
I came across your website during my thanksgiving recipe hunt and was drawn to this particular recipe to keep in mind for a later day. Shepherds pie was one of the first dinners I was taught to make as a young teen; albeit, a can of condensed soup was in the mix unlike this beauty. My question for you today is your pan. Is this a carbon steel pan, or could you please direct me to you favorite cooking pans? Much appreciation from MT!!
Hi Jeni, That’s an All-Clad 12-inch stainless pan (and All-Clad is my favorite brand of cookware). Hope you enjoy the Shepherd’s Pie if you make it!
Hi Jenn! Do you think substituting ground lamb for the ground beef would work? If so, would you make any adjustments? Thanks.
Hi Elsa, Yes, lamb will work. You can skip the tenderizing step as well as the bacon (lamb is so flavorful that I don’t think the bacon is necessary). Enjoy!
I love all of your recipes that I’ve tried so far!
With this recipe, can I leave out the bacon? Would it taste fine without it?
Thanks!
So glad you’re enjoying the recipes! I think the bacon adds a lot of flavor, but several readers have commented that they’ve made this without it and have been happy with the results. Please LMK how it turns out if you try it!
This was absolutely delicious! I followed the recipe but left out the thyme. Next time, I’d love to try it with ground turkey to make it a little healthier. Have you tried?
Hi Marla, Glad you liked it. It won’t be quite as flavorful with ground turkey, but it will work (and you can skip the step of treating the meat with the baking soda). Please LMK how it turns out with turkey!
Great recipe, however this is Cottage Pie. Shepards Pie uses lamb, Cottage uses beef 😉
I don’t generally make shepherd’s pie and when I do I use steak and cut it up in small bite sized pieces. BUT! I have to say this was delicious and the bacon added a lot of flavor!
Thanks again Jen for another keeper!
I am not a fan of Shepherds (or Cottage) Pie. However, my husband asked for it tonight and I found this recipe. It was delicious!!!
I agree that the prep part was a bit time consuming, but I think once made a few times, it will go much faster. This will definitely be made often.