Classic British Shepherd’s Pie – Ultimate Comfort Food

Crispy, golden mash on top, and underneath, rich, savoury lamb mince in a thick gravy. This is how to make a proper shepherd's pie, one of Britain's ultimate comfort foods. 🐑🥔 Lamb mince is browned until crispy, then simmered with onion, carrots, celery, tomato purée, Worcestershire sauce and rosemary into a rich, thick gravy. It's topped with fluffy cheesy mash, roughed up with a fork and baked until golden and bubbling. And remember: shepherd's pie is made with lamb, and cottage pie with beef! ⏱ CHAPTERS 0:00 Intro 0:13 Ingredients 0:23 Prepping the veg 0:33 Browning the lamb 0:53 Making the gravy 1:13 The mash 1:33 Building the pie 2:03 Baking 2:13 Serving 2:23 Final thoughts 📝 INGREDIENTS (serves 4–6) 🐑 Filling • 1 tbsp oil • 500g lamb mince • 1 onion, finely diced • 2 carrots, finely diced • 1 celery stick, finely diced • 2 garlic cloves, crushed • 1 tbsp plain flour • 2 tbsp tomato purée • 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce • 400ml lamb stock • 1 sprig rosemary (or a few sprigs of thyme) • 100g frozen peas • Salt & black pepper 🥔 Mash • 1kg floury potatoes (e.g. Maris Piper), peeled and chunked • 50g butter • 75ml hot milk • 75g mature cheddar, grated 👩‍🍳 METHOD 1. Brown the lamb mince in the oil in a large pan until crispy. Skim off any excess fat. 2. Add the onion, carrots and celery and cook for 5 mins until soft. Stir in the garlic. 3. Stir in the flour and tomato purée and cook for 1 min. 4. Add the stock, Worcestershire and rosemary. Simmer for 25 mins until thick. 5. Meanwhile, boil the potatoes for 15–20 mins. Drain, steam dry, then mash with the butter, hot milk and 50g of the cheese. Season well. 6. Heat the oven to 400°F / 200°C (180°C fan) / Gas 6. 7. Remove the rosemary, stir in the peas and spoon into a 2 litre dish. Cool for 10 mins. 8. Spoon the mash around the edges first, then fill the middle and spread. Rough up with a fork and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. 9. Bake for 25–30 mins until golden and bubbling. Rest for 5 mins before serving. 💡 TIP: Let the filling cool slightly before topping, so the mash sits on top instead of sinking. And always use hot milk in your mash, because cold milk makes it gluey.