Shepherd's Pie

Begin with ground round—we think its flavor is perfect for this dish.

Shepherd’s Pie
Dress up ground beef and potatoes with this Shepherd’s Pie recipe. Have it for supper tonight, or freeze it for up to one month. Photo: William Dickey
Active Time:
40 mins
Total Time:
1 hrs 20 mins
Yield:
8 serves

For an easy weeknight meal, you can prepare this meal when you have time and freeze it. When you're ready to serve, thaw in the refrigerator before baking and you'll have a comforting dinner on the table in 40 minutes.

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ pounds pounds ground round

  • 1 cup chopped onion

  • ½ (8-oz.) package fresh mushrooms, sliced

  • 1 garlic clove, minced

  • 1 cup frozen peas, thawed

  • 4 teaspoons beef bouillon granules

  • ½ teaspoon salt

  • ½ teaspoon dried thyme

  • ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

  • 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

  • 1 (14 ½-oz.) can stewed tomatoes

  • 1 bay leaf

  • 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

  • Cheese-and-Carrot Mashed Potatoes

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400ºF. Brown beef in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, stirring often, 10 minutes or until meat crumbles and is no longer pink. Remove ground beef from skillet using a slotted spoon; reserve 2 Tbsp. drippings in skillet. Reduce heat to medium.

  2. Sauté onion, mushrooms, and garlic in hot drippings over medium heat 10 to 11 minutes or until tender. Stir in ground beef, peas, and next 4 ingredients. Sprinkle flour over meat mixture. Increase heat to medium-high, and cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Stir in tomatoes, bay leaf, and vinegar, breaking up large tomato pieces with a spoon. Reduce heat to medium, and cook, stirring often, 3 minutes or until slightly thickened. Remove bay leaf. Transfer mixture to a lightly greased 3-qt. baking dish or pan. Spoon Cheese-and-Carrot Mashed Potatoes evenly over meat mixture, smoothing with back of spoon.

  3. Bake at 400°F for 15 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Tips

Make It Ahead: Prepare recipe as directed through Step 2. Cover tightly with aluminum foil. Freeze up to 1 month. Thaw in refrigerator 24 hours. Bake at 400°F for 40 minutes or until thoroughly heated, shielding with aluminum foil after 25 minutes to prevent excessive browning.

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