Lots of people, having tried this pie, have asked for the recipe. I have always made it without a recipe, but I have tried to write it as I make it and I hope it works for you. I think the key is to pay special attention to the seasoning stage and to use the best meat possible which, for Sherbhert, means British and Organic. I usually buy minced lamb from Riverford Organics.
Also, instead of fresh minced lamb, I sometimes use leftover roast shoulder of lamb, cut into small pieces and it works very well. And this is really how Shepherd’s Pie originally came to being, an excellent way to use leftover cooked lamb.
Enough for 4-6
For the Lamb Mixture
A little olive oil
2 medium onions, peeled and finely chopped
2-3 medium carrots, peeled and chopped into small pieces
800g minced organic lamb
1 tbsp plain flour
800ml water or chicken stock or vegetable stock
1 tbsp of Tomato puree
1 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp ready-made English mustard
Sea salt flakes
And For the Potatoes
1 kilo potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks. Look for potatoes that are suitable for mashing.
Sea salt flakes
Butter
Nutmeg
A small bunch of parsley leaves, finely chopped, to finish – optional
For the carrots and onions
Use a sturdy pan with a lid to sweat the onions and carrots in the oil over very low heat until they are soft. This will take about 30 minutes. Set the pan aside once the onions and carrots are done.
For the Potatoes
Put the prepared potatoes in a pan, cover them with cold water and add a little salt (about a teaspoonful). Set them over high heat to bring them to the boil then reduce the heat and let them bubble gently for around 20 minutes or until they are tender.
Drain the potatoes then mash them with some butter (about 85g) and grate in some nutmeg (approximately one quarter of a whole nutmeg) and a little salt if needed. Set the potatoes aside.
For the Lamb
Use a little oil to grease a large frying pan and brown the minced lamb over fairly high heat. Use a wooden spoon to break it up a bit as it browns. Don’t over-fill the pan as that will create too much steam and prevent the meat from browning. You may need to do this in batches. It is a good idea to deglaze the pan after each batch of meat is browned. To do this, remove the lamb, leaving the heat on, splash a little cold water into the hot pan and it will sizzle and bubble. Stir it to help release any meat juices and bits from the bottom of the pan. If the juices are burnt, discard them but if not add them to them to the onion and carrot mixture. This process will avoid wasting all the flavour which would otherwise be stuck to the bottom of the pan.
When all the meat is browned, add it to the onions and carrots in the sturdy pan. Using medium heat, sprinkle in the flour and stir well. Stir in the stock or water and continue stirring until it starts to bubble. Remove the pan from the heat and use the tomato puree, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, salt and pepper to season the mixture and adjust as necessary to suit your taste.
To Assemble and Cook the Pie
Preheat the oven to 180c.
Use a little oil to grease an ovenproof dish.
Add the lamb mixture and then the mashed potatoes – spoon them over the lamb mixture and then use a fork to gently spread them out over the lamb mixture entirely.
Bake in the preheated oven for 25 – 30 minutes. The potatoes should be golden brown on top and the meat should be piping hot. Scatter the chopped parsley (if using) over the potatoes.
Eat this pie with mustard and mint sauce and some seasonal greens and perhaps some red cabbage
See also vegetable stock and chicken stock.
If you want a healthier and more environmentally friendly diet, a good start would be to cook from scratch, avoid buying ready-processed meals, and so avoid foods with a high sugar and salt content. Have a look at food labels, you will likely be amazed by how much salt and sugar is included and, worse, how many of the ingredients are not recognisable as food.
Sherbhert champions delicious, healthy and sustainable food where its production minimises environmental damage, exploitation, animal suffering and subsequent processing. Sherbhert’s recipes are simple and use mainly UK seasonal produce sourced as locally as possible.
Sherbhert occasionally recommends suppliers entirely because of their good produce and ethos.
