Make Shepherd's Pie Effortlessly Better With This Salty Secret Ingredient

Shepherd's pie has a place on nearly every pub menu in the United Kingdom, and during the fall and winter months, it makes plenty of appearances on restaurant menus and dinner tables throughout the United States, too. While it's commonly made with ground lamb, it can also be made with ground beef (though that's technically labeled cottage pie). Regardless of the meat you choose, don't skip on one ingredient to add major umami flavor: miso paste.

There are three elements responsible for giving miso paste its intensely savory flavor: soybeans, salt, and koji. That last one is actually a type of fungus, and it combines with the salt and soybeans through a fermentation process that can last anywhere from a few months to a few years. The fermentation period creates different miso flavors, but overall, the paste is commonly added into many dishes beyond just miso soup, from marinades to even butter. And it's definitely worth adding it to ground meat in your shepherd's pie.

Besides meat, shepherd's pie also contains plenty of vegetables, including onions, celery, and carrots, all of which could benefit from a little extra salt. The miso should be added after the ground beef and veggies have had a chance to cook down, and for further umami flavor, you can add in soy sauce or fish sauce, too. The mashed potato layer on top could stand to benefit from miso as well, but keep in mind that miso's flavor is strong, so use it sparingly — no more than about 1.5 tablespoons for the whole pie.

If you don't have miso paste or don't want to buy it, you can substitute with another umami-heavy ingredient. Add a little soy sauce or some Worcestershire instead, which will have a similar effect; soy sauce also comes from fermented soybeans, while the beloved Worcestershire comes from fermented fish, such as anchovies. They'll both add a slightly different flavor than miso would but will build the pie's flavors in a similar way.