Skillet Shepherd's Pie Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Skillet Shepherd's Pie Recipe

Shepherd's pie recipe made in a cast-iron skillet with cream cheese mashed potatoes and savory minced meat made with frozen veggies, spices, and a splash of Guinness.

Prep Time15

Cook Time1

Total Time1 15

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: British

Servings:

Author: Shawn Williams

Ingredients

Mashed Potatoes

4 large russet potatoes peeled and quartered (about 2 lbs)
6 ounces room temp cream cheese cubed
1/2 cup warm cream
6 tablespoons butter cubed and melted
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste

Meat Filling

1.25-1.5 pounds ground lamb or beef
1 medium yellow onion chopped
2 carrots 1 cup, peeled and chopped (or frozen)
1 cup frozen peas
1 cup frozen or canned corn
2/3 cup Guinness
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 cloves garlic minced
2 sprigs fresh rosemary removed from sprig and chopped
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon olive oil
Chopped fresh parsley and rosemary for garnish

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400°F.

For the mashed potatoes

Add potatoes to a large pot and fill with cold water, covering by 2 inches. Generously season water with a big pinch of salt. You should be able to taste the salt in the water.
Cover and bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low. Simmer for 25 minutes or until you can easily pierce potatoes with a fork with no resistance. Do not undercook.
Add cream and butter to a microwaveable safe measuring glass or bowl. Heat for 45 seconds to 1 minute or until the cream is warm and the butter is partially melted.
Remove potatoes from the heat and strain all water. Return potatoes to the same pot (keep off heat). Pour in half the cream/butter and mash together (with a potato masher) until smooth and creamy. Repeat with remaining cream/butter.
Add cream cheese and mash/stir until potatoes are smooth and silky. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste if needed.

For the meat mixture

Heat oil in a 12-inch ovenproof skillet on medium heat. Add onion, carrots and rosemary. Cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and ground lamb (or beef) and cook until no longer pink, about 5 more minutes. Drain all but about 1-2 tablespoons of fat.
Stir in peas and corn, cooking for 2-3 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add flour evenly over the mixture and stir until fully incorporated. Cook for 1 additional minute before adding Guinness and Worcestershire sauce. Let simmer for about 5 minutes or until the mixture has slightly thickened.
Make sure minced meat is evenly distributed throughout the skillet before topping with an even layer of mashed potatoes. It helps to layer in small clumps/sections. It can be hard to spread without the potatoes sticking to the beef. Bake for 20 minutes or until potatoes start to brown on the top. You may need to broil for the last 2-3 minutes to get a nice golden crust. Garnish with rosemary and parsley and serve.

Notes

I recommend making the mashed potatoes first and setting them aside so it's one less thing to worry about. You can also make them a day ahead if you prefer.

The potatoes will easily stick to the beef and won't spread like you're frosting a cake. I went around the surface of the dish with large dollops and smoothed it with the back of a spoon.

Shepherd's pie needs to bake for about 20 minutes to crisp the top of the potatoes, however, I recommend you broil on high for the last 2-3 minutes to get a nice golden crust like the picture below.

I recommend frozen vegetables over canned ones for this recipe. Frozen vegetables are fresher and have better color. The only exception is canned corn. That can be swapped in place of frozen if you prefer.

Use a potato ricer for foolproof potatoes: while a traditional potato masher works, the best way to eliminate ANY lumps with little effort is to use a potato ricer to pulverize the potatoes before adding cream and butter.

Nutrition