Easy Cottage Pie

cottage pie in a cast iron casserole pot, topped with fresh thyme sprigs, and some mashed potatoes removed to show the minced beef beneath.

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: British

Prep Time: 5

Cook Time: 35

Baking time;: 10

Total Time: 50

Servings:

Calories: 315kcal

Author: Andrea Soranidis

The perfect comforting family meal, this easy cottage pie features a layer of flavourful meat and veggies topped with fluffy mashed potatoes.

Print Recipe

Metric - US Customary

Ingredients

2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 carrot finely cubed
1 celery stalk finely cubed
1 golden onion finely cubed
500 g beef mince
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
3 sprigs of thyme
1 tablespoon double-concentrate tomato paste
450 ml vegetable stock or chicken stock
900 g 3-Ingredient Mashed Potatoes
sea salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

Heat a medium (26 cm/10-inch large) oven-friendly skillet with 2 tablespoons of olive oil over low heat. Fold in the carrot, celery and onion and cook, stirring often for about 5 minutes, until the veggies have softened. Then tranfer the vegetables into a bowl until needed.
Return the pot to medium heat, add in the beef and cook, stirring often, until it's browned, then scoop out with a spoon any excess fat.
Add back in the veggies, then add the Worcestershire sauce, followed by the tomato paste and thyme sprigs, and cook, stirring all the ingredients together, for a further 2 minutes.
Pour the stock into the pot, bring to a gentle boil and simmer, covering the pot with a lid, for 20 minutes. Remove the lid and continue to cook for a further 10 minutes. Discard the thyme sprigs and season with sea salt and freshly-cracked black pepper to taste.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180°C/ fan 160°C/ gas 4.
Remove the skillet from the heat, and top the meat with prepared mashed potatoes, then raffle the top with a fork. Alternatively, transfer the mashed potatoes into a piping bag and pipe on top of the meat.
Transfer the skillet into the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes, then place under the grill for a further 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Video

Notes

You could definitely use store-bought mashed potatoes, but homemade is always best. Boil your potatoes while you’re busy with the ground meat mixture. By making your own homemade mashed potatoes you can make sure is fluffy and creamy.

Feel free to add other veggies into the mix: mushrooms, sweet potatoes, frozen corn or peas all work great.

Storage tips:

You can freeze this cottage pie before baking it or after baking it. Either way, make sure you transfer the pie in a freezer-friendly container. It will keep well in the freezer for up to 1 month.

Nutrition