scott
I stole this recipe from Gordon Ramsay. It’s pretty much perfection, but feel free to substitute dragon or peasant if you have it on hand.
– Dad
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1.5 – 2 lbs ground lamb (Ground beef as a substituted is fine, but not ideal. Trust me)
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 large yellow onion
- 1 large carrot
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1 cup red wine get a bottle that is cheap and dry enough to cook with.
- 6 oz tomato paste
Mashed Potatoes
- 6 medium potatoes
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 8 tbsp melted butter
- 2 whole egg yolks
- 5 oz fresh grated parmesan
- 1 tsp granulated garlic optional
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
The Build
- Peel and chop your potatoes into about 1 inch cubes
- Throw them in a pot and fill water till it’s about 2 inches higher than your potatoes and bring the water to a boil; about 20-30 minutes.
- In a cast iron skillet on medium heat, begin browning your meat
- While the meat is browning, mince the thyme and rosemary, and garlic. Preheat your oven at 425 at this point as well.
- Once your meat is browned (about 5 minutes or so) drain as much juice as possible. The key to a good Shepherd’s pie is keeping the grease down to a minimum. Grate your onion and carrot into the mince. and stir and cook on medium for about 2 minutes.
- Stir in your tomato paste, garlic, and Worcestershire sauce; about 1 minute.
- Add red wine, fresh thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper. Let this cook down for about 2 minutes.
- Add the chicken stock and let this cook down for about 15 minutes. You should have reduced the volume by about 50 percent(ish)
- While the mince is cooking down, your potatoes should be ready. Check with a fork, it should easily go through without any resistance. Drain and place in a bowl.
- Mash the potatoes, then add egg, and butter. Add milk in about 1/4 cup at a time until its at the right consistency.
- Mix in about 4 oz of freshly grated Parmesan, granulated garlic, salt and pepper
- You should have a super thick potato mash. This is important because it helps with spreading and will make for a better pie. Note: If I know the whole batch is going in 1 meal, I’ll keep this in a cast iron skillet. It looks a lot more authentic to me in a skillet.
- With a spatula, spread the potato mash evenly across the skillet, covering all your mince. Then, with a fork, fluff the top of the potatoes, and top with the remaining Parmesan. This will give you golden brown bits on top!
- Bake for about 15 minute, or until the mash is a beautiful golden brown.
