Shepherd's Pie with Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes recipe is the ultimate comfort food known and loved by many. Minced lamb stewed gently with variety of vegetables and roasted garlic enhancing the flavour of mashed potato topping makes for wonderful feast any time of year.
Shepherd's Pie - British Classic
Shepherd's Pie must be one of the most comforting pies ever! There are as many different versions of this delight as there are families in Britain and I'm pretty sure they all think that their version is the best there is which is only fair! I do hope, you'll like my take on it and especially the most delicious roasted garlic mashed potato topping. It really is a game changer!
My classic Shepherd's Pie wouldn't be a proper shepherd's pie without lovely minced lamb and as we eat meat very rarely these days when we do indulge I go for best quality and organic mince.
What is so great about this Shepherd's Pie?
- It is packed to the brim not only with minced lamb but also with variety of vegetables (even underrated broccoli stalk didn't go to waste).
- I have added some roasted garlic to the mashed potato topping which adds so much lovely flavour and it's not overpowering at all (in case you were wondering).
- When the mood strikes I also like to add my secret ingredient - a tin of baked beans (or rather its content). Another nutritious ingredient and lovely flavour too.
- It's a great batch cooking recipe, perfect for the freezer.
- Kids absolutely love it!
Helpful tips when making your shepherd's pie
If you think that roasting garlic is a bit of a faff on a day when you plan to make your shepherd's pie, then try and roast it ahead of time. I'm not saying for you to roast just a single head of garlic but perhaps you have your oven on for something else. Foil wrapped garlic will not take a lot of space and can fit alongside whatever that is you're roasting. Once roasted it will keep in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Feel free to halve the amount of meat you are using when adding baked beans for slightly leaner and even healthier pie.
You can also double the recipe and freeze half of the filling for later. You can use it not only for shepherd's pie but as jacket potato topping or even with pasta.
How to roast garlic?
Roasted garlic is a delight in itself. It's fragrant, sweet as opposed to garlicky and also easily spreadable or mashable (is that a word?) which makes it perfect for our mashed potato topping.
To roast your garlic in the oven simply cut the top off entire head of garlic so that you can see the exposed cloves, sprinkle with salt, drizzle with olive oil and roast wrapped in foil at 180C/350F/gas mark 4 for 40min.
Once ready all you need to do now is to squeeze out all the sweet, garlicky goodness.
My top tip here would be to roast more than a single head as you can always freeze surplus garlic plus it has lots of uses from hummus to pasta sauces and more.
How long can I keep leftover shepherd's pie for?
Cooked Shepherd's Pie can be safely stored in the fridge for 3-5 days. Make sure you reheat it until nice and bubbly.
You could also freeze your leftovers for up to 2 months. Make sure your pie is cooled completely before transferring it to the freezer friendly container. If you're freezing your shepherd's pie in the baking dish, simply wrap it in aluminium foil. In both cases I would defrost it in the fridge overnight before reheating in the microwave when needed.
How to make Shepherd's Pie with Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes?
Roasted garlic
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See above
Shepherd's Pie Filling
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Heat a glug of oil in a large pot with a lid and sauté prepared chopped vegetables (onions, celery, carrots and broccoli stalk (if using)) until soft but not coloured approx. 5-8 min.
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Add minced lamb and sauté it together with vegetables for approx 10 min. Make sure you break it up with wooden spoon as it cooks.
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Add thyme or rosemary, bay leaves, tomato paste and flour. Stir briefly and slowly start adding hot lamb/chicken stock stirring everything slowly with wooden spoon until you've used up all the stock. Add Worcestershire sauce, cover pot with the lid (leaving small opening for some steam to escape) and let it simmer for approx. 30 min. If you'd like to include baked beans in your pie make sure to add them towards the end of 30 min simmering time. Season to taste with salt and pepper and perhaps some more Worcestershire sauce.
Roasted Garlic Mashed Potato Topping
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Boil the potatoes in a large pan of salted water until cooked. Drain well and mash with butter and milk and some seasoning. Squeeze roasted garlic out and onto the potatoes and mix well. Taste & season some more if needed.
Pie Assembly
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Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Transfer the pie filling onto ovenproof pie dish, top with mashed potato and sprinkle with some grated cheddar. Bake for approx. 25-30 min until golden and bubbly. Serve with your choice of vegetables or salad. Enjoy!
📋 Recipe
Shepherd's Pie with Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients
Shepherd's Pie Filling
- 500 g minced lamb
- 2-3 carrots (roughly 230g) peeled & roughly chopped
- 2-3 celery stalks (roughly 100g) peeled & roughly chopped
- 1 large onion (roughly 210g) finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves minced, grated or finely chopped
- 1 leftover broccoli stalk (roughly 100g) roughly chopped
- 500 ml hot lamb or chicken stock (from cube is fine)
- 2 tablespoon tomato puree
- 2 bay leaves (dried or fresh)
- 1 ½ teaspoon dried thyme or rosemary
- 1-2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce or to taste
- 2 tablespoon plain flour
- rapeseed/olive oil
- 400 g tin of baked beans optional
Roasted Garlic Mashed Potato Topping
- 1 head of garlic
- 1 kg floury potatoes
- 75 g unsalted butter
- 75 ml milk
- 50 g strong cheddar cheese
Instructions
Roasted garlic
- Cut the top off entire head of garlic so that you can see the cloves, sprinkle with salt, drizzle with olive oil and roast wrapped in foil at 180C/350F/gas mark 4 for 40min.
Shepherd's Pie Filling
- Heat a glug of oil in a large pot with a lid and sauté prepared chopped vegetables (onions, celery, carrots and broccoli stalk (if using)) until soft but not coloured approx. 5-8 min
- Add minced lamb and sauté it together with vegetables for approx 10 min. Make sure you break it up with wooden spoon as it cooks.
- Add thyme or rosemary, bay leaves, tomato paste and flour. Stir briefly and slowly start adding hot lamb stock stirring everything slowly with wooden spoon until you've used up all the stock. Add Worcestershire sauce, cover pot with the lid (leaving small opening for some steam to escape) and let it simmer for approx. 30 min. If you'd like to include baked beans in your pie make sure to add them towards the end of 30 min simmering time. Season to taste with salt and pepper and perhaps some more Worcestershire sauce.
Roasted Garlic Mashed Potato Topping
- Boil the potatoes in a large pan of salted water until cooked. Drain well and mash with butter, milk and some seasoning. Squeeze roasted garlic out and onto the potatoes and mix well. Taste and season some more if needed.
Pie Assembly
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Transfer the pie filling to the ovenproof pie dish, top with mashed potato and sprinkle with some grated cheddar. Bake for approx. 25-30 min until golden and bubbly. Serve with your choice of vegetables or salad. Enjoy!
Notes
- Nutritional information is approximate, per serving and should be treated as a guideline only.
- Baked beans in the filling are optional but work really well. Feel free to reduce the amount of minced lamb if adding these.
- Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for 3-5 days or frozen for up to 2 months.
Nutrition
Update Notes: This post was originally published in March 2018 and revised in March 2020 with updated recipe card, helpful info and better layout improving user experience.
More family friendly dinner ideas
Veggie Lentils and Spinach Lasagne
Baked Spinach & Ricotta Stuffed Pasta Shells
Braised Pork Chops with Leeks & Carrots
Oven Baked Pork Chops with Carrots & Cheese Crust
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jenny walters says
Oh God Jo,give me some!!I could eat the whole lot!Roasted Garlic is a wondrous thing!Have a fab Easter!x
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Jenny! 🙂 Roasted garlic is fantastic isn't it! Hope you had wonderful Easter! Bring on the second week of Easter hols now! 🙂 xx
Michelle Frank | Flipped-Out Food says
Roasted garlic is EVERYTHING. I probably roast a head like you've done here about once a month. Then I pop a few cloves out whenever needed—so YUM! I love that you've put them into your mash for this shepherd's pie! Speaking of which, I was eating shepherd's pie for the whole month of February—even so, I'm hungry for it again after drooling over your photos!
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Michelle! 🙂 I was absolutely in awe of your shepherd's pie so I don't blame you for eating lots of it! 🙂 Roasted garlic is so lush isn't it? When added to the mash it creates something simply out of this world!
Karen, the next best thing to mummy says
This sounds like a brilliant twist on a favourite traditional recipe, I must give it a try #brillblogs@_karendenbid199@gmail is
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Karen! 🙂 Simple addition of roasted garlic makes all the difference! Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
Corina Blum says
I think roasted garlic is just so good in all kinds of recipes and I think it's brilliant to use it in the mash. My mum used to make a pie with baked beans in when I was young and I used to love it so I can see why your children like that version. Thanks for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice x
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Corina! I know, roasted garlic is fantastic when it comes to adding loads of flavour in a slightly more mellow way! Its sweetness is incredible! Baked beans added to my second, more every day version of the pie are always hugely popular by the kids and they usually ask for seconds which always makes my day. 🙂 x
Cat | Curly's Cooking says
This looks so tasty. I don't eat lamb but I could easily swap and use beef to make a cottage pie. The roasted garlic mash sounds amazing, my mouth is watering. My Dad used to make us cottage pie when we were kids and he always used to add a tin of baked beans which was really tasty x
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Cat! Absolutely, super easy swap! 🙂 I must say the roasted garlic is well worth the extra effort! So you know what I'm on about with beans then 🙂 My secret ingredient is not so secret it seems lol Version with baked beans is so good too! 🙂 x
Donna says
oo what a yummy twist! Shepherd's Pie is a big favourite in our house! #CookBlogShare
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Donna 🙂 Same here, cannot fault it as a perfect family meal! 🙂
Monika Dabrowski says
Sounds delicious as an everyday dish, not just for Easter! I really like garlic prepared in this way. Thank you for sharing with #CookBlogShare:)
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Monika! Yes most certainly it can be enjoyed anytime really! Garlic is so wonderfully sweet when roasted and in this case makes the potatoes taste amazing!
Patrick says
You had me at garlic mashed potatoes!!
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Patrick! ? I’m glad you like it! ? All that roasted garlic makes mashed potatoes pretty epic!