Easy Shepherd’s Pie

Easy Shepherd's Pie is a one-pan dinner loaded with savory ground beef or lamb plus colorful veggies. This skillet Shepherd's Pie recipe is also perfect for using up leftover mashed potatoes!

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 30

Total Time 50

Servings servings

Calories 332kcal

Author Samantha Skaggs

Equipment

Ingredients

1 pound ground beef OR lamb
¾ teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
4 tablespoons tomato paste
½ cup beef broth OR stock
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 ½ cups carrots julienned OR shredded
8 ounces mushrooms cleaned & chopped
2 large cloves garlic minced
1 cup frozen peas thawed
1 cup frozen corn thawed
4 cups mashed potatoes see NOTES for recipe if you don't have leftovers
1 cup grated cheddar cheese DIVIDED

Instructions

Adjust oven rack to center position and preheat oven to 375°F.
Cook beef in a large, oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat until no longer pink; drain and discard grease. Season the beef with oregano, salt, and pepper.
Stir in the tomato paste, beef broth, and Worcestershire sauce. Add the carrots, mushrooms, and garlic and cook until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the peas and corn; taste and adjust the seasonings.
If using leftover mashed potatoes, briefly warm them in the microwave so that they can be stirred until smooth (add a splash of milk, if necessary). Stir ½ cup cheddar into the mashed potatoes, then dollop and spread them over the top of the meat/veggie mixture in the skillet. Sprinkle the remaining ½ cup cheddar on top.
Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes until golden brown. Serve immediately.

Video

Notes

Feel free to change up the veggies to your liking. If you enjoy onion and/or celery in your Shepherd's Pie, you can add and cook a medium diced onion and/or a stalk of chopped celery during the same step that you add the garlic/mushrooms/carrots.
If desired (or if assembling ahead of time), you may transfer the meat/veggie mixture to a 2-quart oval casserole dish (or similar sized dish) and top with mashed potatoes before baking.
If you'd like to prep this Easy Shepherd's Pie recipe ahead of time, assemble (without baking) and then tightly cover and refrigerate for several hours up to 3 days. Allow the dish to come to room temperature while the oven is preheating and then bake, uncovered, as directed.
Similarly, if you'd like to freeze this recipe for up to 3 months, transfer the cooked meat/veggie mixture to a casserole dish before topping with the mashed potatoes and cheese. Tightly cover with a double layer of freezer-thickness foil and label. The day before you'd like to enjoy it, transfer the dish to the refrigerator to thaw overnight. When it's time to bake it, remove the dish from the fridge to come to room temperature while the oven preheats. Then bake as directed, uncovered, until heated through.
If the surface starts to get too brown before the center reaches temperature, you can lay a piece of foil over the top for the last few minutes of cooking time.
TO MAKE MASHED POTATOES: (in case you don't have leftovers)
- 1 ½ pounds potatoes, peeled & cut into cubes
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¾ cups milk
- 4 tablespoons butter
- Garlic salt, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste Place the potatoes in a saucepan and cover with 1 inch of cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat and stir in 1 teaspoon of salt. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 10 to 12 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. While the potatoes are cooking, microwave the milk and butter until hot (or heat in a small saucepan). Once the potatoes are done, drain the water and return the potatoes to pot. Pour the hot milk/butter over the potatoes and mash them directly in the pot (as long as it's not a pot that can be scratched, such as coated/non-stick). Season with garlic salt (or regular salt, if you prefer) and fresh pepper, to taste.

Nutrition